Leaching Properties of Estuarine Harbor Sediment Before and After Electrodialytic Remediation

Electrodialytic remediation (EDR) can be used to extract heavy metals from a variety of different media. In this work, contaminated harbor sediments from two locations in the United States and one in Norway were subjected to EDR, and were compared with batch extractions conducted with the sediment. pH-dependent leaching tests were used to evaluate changes in leaching properties of treated and control sediments. Significant fractions of total concentrations were removed during treatment (35–95% with an average of 75% for all sediments and elements investigated). The release of elements in pH-dependent leaching tests, however, demonstrated equal or greater leaching from treated sediments in the neutral pH range. Dissolved organic carbon appears to be a significant contributor to post-treatment increases in leaching, and dissolution of significant iron and aluminum sorption sites is hypothesized to also play a role. This research highlights the importance of understanding contaminant speciation and availability, as total metals concentrations, in this particular case, do not relate to estimates of the environmental availability of metals (total concentrations were typically two to three orders of magnitude greater than concentrations released during pH-dependent leaching)

Visualizing Social Issues in Supply Chains Using The Social Hotspot Database

Companies benefit greatly from streamlined models and tools that can be used to mine for data and prioritize issues regarding the potential impacts of their operations and products. Guided by the wellestablished fields of Environmental Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and Corporate Social Responsibility, Social LCA is a developing technique that allows for the generation, organization, assessment and communication of product life cycles’ social impacts. As a precursor to a full Social LCA study, Social Hotspots can be identified through the use of a generic (i.e., top-down) database of country and sector-level social issues relative to the share of worker hours in the supply chain. Over the last three years, researchers at New Earth constructed such a prioritization tool, called The Social Hotspot Database (SHDB, www.socialhotspot.org). The SHDB system includes a Global Input-Output (IO) model derived from GTAP that is used to visualize product supply chains by Country-specific Sector (CSS). From the GTAP IO data on payment of wages to workers, a Worker Hours Model was created with wage rate data (obtained primarily from the International Labor Organization and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization. This Worker Hours Model is then used to rank CSS within the supply chain of a product category by labor intensity. Those with the highest share of worker hours are considered first for potential Social Hotspots using the SHDB’s Social Theme Tables. These tables are populated with quantitative and qualitative indicators by country, and sector when relevant, that are characterized for their level of risk that the specific social issue is present. By testing the CSS with the greatest share of worker hours and other relevant CSS in the supply chain with the SHDB Social Theme Tables, it is possible to prioritize places in the supply chain that warrant a closer (site-specific) investigation. The paper will present an overview of the SHDB development methodology, including a detailed description of two of the Social Theme Tables, and highlight future advancements

Efficient Assessment of Social Hotspots in the Supply Chains of 100 Product Categories Using the Social Hotspots Database

Data collection, or the inventory step, is often the most labor-intensive phase of any Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) study. The S-LCA Guidelines and numerous authors have recommended generic assessment in this first phase of an S-LCA. In an effort to identify the social hotspots in the supply chains of 100 product categories during just a few months’ time, adopting a streamlined approach was essential. The Social Hotspots Database system was developed by New Earth over 5 years. It includes a Global Input Output (IO) model derived from the Global Trade Analysis Project, a Worker Hours Model constructed using annual wage payments and wage rates by country and sector, and Social Theme Tables covering 22 themes within five Social Impact Categories—Labor Rights and Decent Work, Health and Safety, Human Rights, Governance and Community Impacts. The data tables identify social risks for over 100 indicators. Both the ranking of worker hour intensity and the risk levels across multiple social themes for the Country Specific Sectors (CSS) within a product category supply chain are used to calculate Social Hotspots Indexes (SHI) using an additive weighting method. The CSS with the highest SHI are highlighted as social hotspots within the supply chain of the product in question. This system was tested in seven case studies in 2011. In order to further limit the number of hotspots, a set of prioritization rules was applied. This paper will review the method implemented to study the social hotspots of the 100 product categories and provide one detailed example. Limitations of the approach and recommended research avenues will be outlined

Providing Social Risk and Opportunity Information for Product Category Supply Chains Utilizing the Social Hotspot Database: Findings from Seven Studies

The analysis of social impacts of product supply chains is receiving substantial interest from corporations and their stakeholders. Social LCA is a technique that allows for the generation, organization, assessment and communication of product life cycles’ social impacts. The Social Hotspots Database provides a three layered system to assess the potential social risks and opportunities associated with product life cycles. The system was used to carry out social scoping assessments on seven product categories for The Sustainability Consortium. This article summarizes the methodology and discusses the main findings generated by the application of the system and database

Identifying Social Impacts in Product Supply Chains:Overview and Application of the Social Hotspot Database

One emerging tool to measure the social-related impacts in supply chains is Social Life Cycle Assessment (S-LCA), a derivative of the well-established environmental LCA technique. LCA has recently started to gain popularity among large corporations and initiatives, such as The Sustainability Consortium or the Sustainable Apparel Coalition. Both have made the technique a cornerstone of their applied-research program. The Social Hotspots Database (SHDB) is an overarching, global database that eases the data collection burden in S-LCA studies. Proposed “hotspots” are production activities or unit processes (also defined as country-specific sectors) in the supply chain that may be at risk for social issues to be present. The SHDB enables efficient application of S-LCA by allowing users to prioritize production activities for which site-specific data collection is most desirable. Data for three criteria are used to inform prioritization: (1) labor intensity in worker hours per unit process and (2) risk for, or opportunity to affect, relevant social themes or sub-categories related to Human Rights, Labor Rights and Decent Work, Governance and Access to Community Services (3) gravity of a social issue. The Worker Hours Model was developed using a global input/output economic model and wage rate data. Nearly 200 reputable sources of statistical data have been used to develop 20 Social Theme Tables by country and sector. This paper presents an overview of the SHDB development and features, as well as results from a pilot study conducted on strawberry yogurt. This study, one of seven Social Scoping Assessments mandated by The Sustainability Consortium, identifies the potential social hotspots existing in the supply chain of strawberry yogurt. With this knowledge, companies that manufacture or sell yogurt can refine their data collection efforts in order to put their social responsibility performance in perspective and effectively set up programs and initiatives to improve the social conditions of production along their product supply chain

Visualizing Social Issues in Supply Chains Using The Social Hotspot Database

Companies benefit greatly from streamlined models and tools that can be used to mine for data and prioritize issues regarding the potential impacts of their operations and products. Guided by the wellestablished fields of Environmental Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and Corporate Social Responsibility, Social LCA is a developing technique that allows for the generation, organization, assessment and communication of product life cycles’ social impacts. As a precursor to a full Social LCA study, Social Hotspots can be identified through the use of a generic (i.e., top-down) database of country and sector-level social issues relative to the share of worker hours in the supply chain. Over the last three years, researchers at New Earth constructed such a prioritization tool, called The Social Hotspot Database (SHDB, www.socialhotspot.org). The SHDB system includes a Global Input-Output (IO) model derived from GTAP that is used to visualize product supply chains by Country-specific Sector (CSS). From the GTAP IO data on payment of wages to workers, a Worker Hours Model was created with wage rate data (obtained primarily from the International Labor Organization and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization. This Worker Hours Model is then used to rank CSS within the supply chain of a product category by labor intensity. Those with the highest share of worker hours are considered first for potential Social Hotspots using the SHDB’s Social Theme Tables. These tables are populated with quantitative and qualitative indicators by country, and sector when relevant, that are characterized for their level of risk that the specific social issue is present. By testing the CSS with the greatest share of worker hours and other relevant CSS in the supply chain with the SHDB Social Theme Tables, it is possible to prioritize places in the supply chain that warrant a closer (site-specific) investigation. The paper will present an overview of the SHDB development methodology, including a detailed description of two of the Social Theme Tables, and highlight future advancements

Providing Social Risk and Opportunity Information for Product Category Supply Chains Utilizing the Social Hotspot Database: Findings from Seven Studies

The analysis of social impacts of product supply chains is receiving substantial interest from corporations and their stakeholders. Social LCA is a technique that allows for the generation, organization, assessment and communication of product life cycles’ social impacts. The Social Hotspots Database provides a three layered system to assess the potential social risks and opportunities associated with product life cycles. The system was used to carry out social scoping assessments on seven product categories for The Sustainability Consortium. This article summarizes the methodology and discusses the main findings generated by the application of the system and database