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Analysis of Physical interactions

32 important questions on Analysis of Physical interactions

Stationary economy (section 12.1)

A form of economic development with no physical growth (i.e., a stable population size and consumption level).

Cowboy economy (section 12.1)

An economy in which success is gauged by the quantity and speed of production and consumption.

Entropy law for economics (section 12.1)

The creation of order in the form of useful products created from raw materials is necessarily accompanied by creation of disorder in the form of waste products and pollutants.

Analytical tool (section 12.2)

An operational method for the analysis and management of relationships between the economy and the environment that comprises all aspects relating to problem content and, more
specifically, the availability of data, models an rules for computing such results as impacts of the environment or sustainability indicators.

Examples: environmental risk assessment ERA, substance flow analysis SFA and life cycle assessment LCA, cost benefit analysis CBA, input-output analysis IOA

Procedural tool (section 12.2)

An operational method for the analysis and management of relationships between the economy and the environment covering a wide variety of organizational, legal and institutional aspects. Examples: environmental impact assessment EIA and environmental audit EA.

Risk quotient (section 12.3.5)

For environmental risk assessment: the quotient of the predicted environmental concentration of a substance and the no-effect level of that substance (i.e., the PEC/PNEC quotient).

For human risk assessment: the quotient of the predicted daily intake and the acceptable daily intake of a given substance (i.e., the PDI/ADI quotient)

Hazard identification (section 12.3.5.1)

First step of the risk assessment process with the aim to establish whether a risk is present.

Exposure assessment (section 12.3.5.2)

The process of estimating or measuring the magnitude, frequency and duration of exposure to a substance. Often, it includes the emission, transport, dilution, accumulation, transformation and intake of a substance.

Effect assessment (section 12.3.5.3)

The process of estimating or measuring the likelihood and magnitude of effects caused by the exposure to a substance. Often, effect assessment is based on a number of standard tests.

Biomagnification (section 12.3.5.2)

The accumulation of chemical substances within a food chain.

Acute toxicity (section 12.3.5.3)

The adverse effects of a substance resulting from relatively high exposure levels over a relatively short period of time (usually, less than 24 hours).

Chronic toxicity (section 12.3.5.3)

The adverse effects of a substance resulting from relatively low exposure levels over a relatively long period of time (usually, more than 1/10th the life expectancy of a species).

LC50 (section 12.3.5.3)

Median lethal concentration
Alternative: The exposure concentration at which 50% of the individuals in a population die after being exposed for a fixed period of time (e.g., 24 hrs).

NOEC (section 12.3.5.3)

No-Observed Effect Concentration

QSAR (section 12.3.5.3)

Quantitative Structure-Activity Relationship
Models that relate structural properties of a chemical (e.g., molecular weight or size) to biological activity (e.g., bioconcentration or toxicity).

Extrapolation factor (section 12.3.5.3)

A safety margin applied to experimental laboratory data reflecting the degree of uncertainty in extrapolating these data to man or ecosystems.

DALY (section 12.3.4)

Disability Adjusted Life Years

the number of years of healthy life that are lost due to mortality (the risk of dying from a certain hazard) and morbidity (the risk of becoming disabled).

BATNEEC (section 12.3.3)

Best Available Technologies Not Entailing Excessive Cost

BPM (section 12.3.3)

Best Practicable Means

ALARA (section 12.3.3)

As Low As Reasonably Achievable

Bulk-MFA (section 12.4.2)

Bulk-Material Flow Analysis

Lithosphere (section 12.4.4)

That part of the environment which does not or hardly interact with the other media for the material or substance(s) under study.

Ecological rucksack (section 12.4.4)

Flows outside the region under consideration that are related to the consumption in question.

ISO standard 14044 (section 12.5.6)

A standard by the International Organisation for Standardization that specifies requirements and provides guidelines for life cycle assessment (LCA).

Inventory table (section 12.5.5)

An aggregated list of all the environmental pressures (extractions, emissions an types of land use) associated with the product systems under investigation.

Functional unit (section 12.5.4)

The quantified function provided by the product system(s) under study, for use as a reference value throughout the LCA study.

Characterization factor (section 12.5.6)

A number that is used to convert and combine the Life Cycle Inventory results into representative indicators of impacts to human and ecological health. Characterization factors provide a way to directly compare the LCI results within each impact category. In other words,
characterization factors translate different inventory inputs into directly comparable impact indicators

Data uncertainty (section 12.6.5)

Uncertainty with regard to empirical established numbers or measurements.

Methodological uncertainty (section 12.6.5)

Uncertainty with regard to assumptions made in the scientific analysis.

Scenario uncertainty (section 12.6.5)

Uncertainty with regard to future developments that lie beyond the scope of the study.

Value choice (section 12.6.5)

A choice that involves the (subjective) valuation of impacts.

Monte Carlo simulation (section 12.6.5.3)

A computational technique that relies on repeated random sampling from predefined probability distributions for input parameters to compute the output parameters.

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Principles of Environmental Sciences

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