INDICATORS FOR SUSTAINABILITY IN INDUSTRIAL SYSTEMS CASE STUDY: PAPER MANUFACTURING

The paper describes a framework for promoting sustainability by using indicators for sustainable production. The concept of sustainable production is described as it is viewed by various organisms actions involved in the analysis of the sustainable industrial systems.The measure of sustainability is approached considering indicators of sustainable production, addressing both their dimensions and qualitative and quantitative features.The proposed framework refines the sustainability dimension for a case study which envisages sustainability in paper manufacturing. The analysis takes into account the life cycle analysis for the considered process since the environmental impact is seen as an essential sustainability indicator. Paper recycling and reuse is associated environmental and social costs, as a preferred alternative in waste minimization hierarchy in the manufacturing of non-trees eco-friendly paper.Proactive initiatives to improve the environmental performances of production process are considered as powerful tools for improving the paper manufacturing environmental footprint

Comparing environmental impacts of natural inert and recycled construction and demolition waste processing using LCA

Construction and demolition wastes (C&DW) are usually recognized as not dangerous, but their accumulation can generate serious environmental problems. In spite of C&DW high potential to be reused/recycled, the practical procedures need to be assessed in terms of environmental consequences. The objective of this study is to quantify the environmental impacts of C&DW recycling/reuse, specifically in the production of aggregate 0/30 mm, comparative to those generated during the natural inert processing, in terms of global impacts addressing the whole process and for each technological phase. The analysis was carried out using Life Cycle Assessment methodology, assisted by SimaPro software, and based on primary data collected directly from the Italian Emilia Romagna region. Three methods were used for impact quantification: Eco-Indicator 99, EDIP/UMIP and Cumulative Energy Demand. The analysis revealed that the environmental impacts generated by C&DW recycling/reuse accounting for about 40% of the impacts induced by natural inert processing

Potenţialul unor microorganisme şi plante indigene de eliminare a metalelor grele din sol

Heavy metals found in soils from different industrial sources or mining activities are persistent inorganic pollutants able to bioaccumulate along the food chain and cause negative effects in theenvironment and for human health. Differentphysical, chemical and biological processes are applied for their removal from soil environments. Biological processes become more and more preferred, since bioremediation strategies have often proved to be more advantageous than the conventional remediation tools, mainly because these processes can be implemented directly onto the contaminated sites (in situ). In this context, the present paper examines the abilityof microorganisms and plants to remove heavy metals from soil, in terms of tolerance and bioaccumulation. A particular interest is given to the bioaccumulation processes of metals by proteobacteria, bacilli and actinobacteria, alone or in synergismwith indigenous plants. Also, some advances in the biosorption of highly toxic heavy metal ions as Cr(VI) and Cd(II) are just discussed,together with various strategies and practices to explore the synergism between microorganisms and plants as valuable biological resource for increasing tolerance against heavy metals and strengthening the bioremediation processes

Comparative Analysis of Three WEEE Management Scenarios Based on LCA Methodology: Case Study in the Municipality of Iasi, Romania

The increasing consumption of electrical and electronic equipment (EEE), correlated with the fast innovation pace in this field, generates a large amount of annual waste. The current established management practices cannot keep up with it, and the results are of increased significance given the negative effects on the environment and human health. Thus, the current study aimed to analyze the environmental impact of three different scenarios of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) management, following population awareness campaigns regarding its collection in the Municipality of Iasi, Romania. Data processing was carried out considering Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology with the established functional unit for each scenario according to the collected amount. The results were quantified using the CML2001 and ReCiPe methods and showed that the highest environmental impact was obtained for scenario II (S2) (1.59 × 10−7 pers. equiv. using the CML2001 method and 32.7 pers. equiv. using the ReCiPe method), while the lowest for scenario I (S1) (6.42 × 10−8 pers. equiv. using the CML2001 method and 13.8 pers. equiv. using the ReCiPe method). The process with the highest contribution to the total environmental impact was the collection stage for all scenarios, with the exception of scenario S2, in which case the highest value was generated for the landfill process following the application of the ReCiPe method (39.93%). The current study provides value to a critical issue in the environmental area and supports the development of sustainable WEEE management processes

Impactul asupra mediului cauzat de deşeurile de echipamente electrice şi electronice: un scenariu italian

Nowadays, some of the highest amounts of waste is caused by the waste ofelectrical and electronic equipment (WEEE). The main reasons are related tothe increasing demand in consumption and in reducing the life of electrical and electronic equipment (EEE). Our paper focuses on a case study which aims to develop a quantitative analysis of the WEEE flow based on a scenario implemented by an Italian collector from the Emilia Romagna region, specifically the city of Bologna. Thisscenario was evaluated based on the Life Cycle Assessment methodology, in terms of environmental and human health impacts,using the CML2001 and ReCiPe methods, available in GaBi software tool. Following the LCA software application, the impacts generated by the proposed scenario highlighted a negative influence especially on Fossil Fuel Depletion, Marine Ecotoxicity Potential and Global Warming Potential. It was found that the amount of generated emissions causeshighimpacts to material resources and fresh water

Life cycle assessment of waste management and recycled paper systems

Municipal solid waste management is a matter experienced by the entire world, mostly encountered in urban areas as a result of population growth and increased income per capita. This issue always posed threats to environmental quality and human health, and continues to be one of the major environmental problems people continues to face. In the last few decades, the systems analysis techniques have been applied to manage the municipal solid waste (MSW) streams through a range of integrative methodologies so as to fulfill the necessity to ensure sustainable development of MSW. The new Waste Directive 2008/98/EC it focuses on the need for choosing appropriate technologies that aim at improving the protection of human health and environment, promoting reuse and recycling, enhancing waste prevention programs via biowaste separate collection. New strategies at European level to promote life cycle thinking in waste management policies were motivated by the scarcity of resources. In this paper Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) was applied to analyze and evaluate, from an environmental point of view, different municipal solid waste management (MSWM) scenarios and tissue paper manufacturing processes (two scenarios) based on virgin and recovered fibers

CONSTRUCTION & DEMOLITION WASTE:A COMPARATIVE CASE STUDY TOWARD ECO-DESIGNED CONCRETE

Construction and demolition wastes (CDW) represent a large amount of the total special waste produced in Europe. The last EU directive for waste management (98/2008/CE) suggest an objective of the 70% at least by 2020 for CDW recycling: innovative reuse and recycling solutions represent a challenging field inside the “end of waste” perspective promoted in Europe. This research has been carried out on concrete recycling, testing several kind of CDW, evaluating their recycling performances both by technical and environmental point of view. A comparative LCA study of concrete with aggregates and cement replacement has been performed to identify the most suitable recipe toward sustainability

Medicinal Plant Growth in Heavy Metals Contaminated Soils: Responses to Metal Stress and Induced Risks to Human Health

Accelerating heavy metal pollution is a hot issue due to a continuous growth in consumerism and increased activities in various global industries. Soil contamination with heavy metals has resulted in their incorporation into the human food web via plant components. Accumulation and amplification of heavy metals in human tissues through the consumption of medicinal plants can have hazardous health outcomes. Therefore, in this critical review we aim to bring together published information on this subject, with a special highlight on the knowledge gaps related to heavy metal stress in medicinal plants, their responses, and human health related risks. In this respect, this review outlines the key contamination sources of heavy metals in plants, as well as the absorption, mobilization and translocation of metal ions in plant compartments, while considering their respective mechanisms of detoxification. In addition, this literature review attempts to highlight how stress and defensive strategies operate in plants, pointing out the main stressors, either biotic or abiotic (e.g., heavy metals), and the role of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in stress answers. Finally, in our research, we further aim to capture the risks caused by heavy metals in medicinal plants to human health through the assessment of both a hazard quotient (HQ) and hazard index (HI)