Search results for " impact assessment"
showing 10 items of 193 documents
Energy and environmental life cycle assessment of an institutional catering service: An Italian case study
2019
Food production is recognised as one of the major drivers for global environmental pressure. In the last years, changes in consumption models result in an increasing population consuming food out of home that pose the catering service sector at the centre of the European Union policies aimed at improving the environmental sustainability of the food sector. In this framework, better technical knowledge on the environmental impacts of catering service is essential in order to identify potential actions towards a more sustainable food sector. This article presents an environmental assessment of a school catering service operating in Italy and delivering approximately 2,518,128 meals per year. …
Comparing air quality indices aggregated by pollutant
2011
In this paper a new aggregate Air Quality Index (AQI) useful for describing the global air pollution situation for a given area is proposed. The index, unlike most of currently used AQIs, takes into account the combined effects of all the considered pollutants to human health. Its good performance, tested by means of a simulation plan, is confirmed by a comparison with two other indices proposed in the literature, one of which is based on the Relative Risk of daily mortality, considering an application to real data.
Environmental Sustainability Approaches and Positive Energy Districts: A Literature Review
2021
During the last decade, increasing attention has been paid to the emerging concept of Positive Energy Districts (PED) with the aim of pushing the transition to clean energy, but further research efforts are needed to identify design approaches optimized from the point of view of sustainable development. In this context, this literature review is placed, with a specific focus on environmental sustainability within innovative and eco-sustainable districts. The findings show that some sustainability aspects such as sustainable food, urban heat islands mitigation and co-impacts, e.g., green gentrification, are not adequately assessed, while fragmented thinking limits the potential of circularit…
A Life Cycle Environmental Impact Comparison between Traditional, Hybrid, and Electric Vehicles in the European Context
2021
Global warming (GW) and urban pollution focused a great interest on hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) and battery electric vehicles (BEVs) as cleaner alternatives to traditional internal combustion engine vehicles (ICEVs). The environmental impact related to the use of both ICEV and HEV mainly depends on the fossil fuel used by the thermal engines, while, in the case of the BEV, depends on the energy sources employed to produce electricity. Moreover, the production phase of each vehicle may also have a relevant environmental impact, due to the manufacturing processes and the materials employed. Starting from these considerations, the authors carried out a fair comparison of the environmental …
Desarrollo de la gestión medioambiental certificada en unidades hospitalarias y ambulatorias de hemodiálisis
2015
ResumenAntecedentesEl impacto ambiental de la hemodiálisis es destacado. Está destacando la actividad en este sentido incluso a nivel bibliográfico. Los sistemas de gestión medioambiental (SGMA) voluntarios, Environmental Management and Auditing System (EMAS) e International Organization for Standardization (ISO 14001), son instrumentos destacados para la protección medioambiental junto a legislación, impuestos y beneficios fiscales.ObjetivosConocer el grado de implantación de los SGMA en las unidades de hemodiálisis hospitalarias y ambulatorias del Sistema Nacional de Salud español, para disponer de un grupo de centros de referencia en gestión medioambiental en esta actividad sanitaria.Mét…
Development of national climate and adaptation policy in Latvia
2009
PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to analyse the development and character of climate policy in Latvia with a special emphasis on policy instruments.Design/methodology/approachIn order to implement policies and measures effectively and monitor progress in achieving its mitigation targets, Latvia uses a wide mix of policy instruments, including regulations (e.g. environmental impact assessment procedures, environmental permits and standards, restrictions and prohibitions), economic and fiscal instruments (the natural resources tax, the excise tax for energy resources, user's charges), and voluntary agreements, also raising public awareness.FindingsThe combination of the policy instruments …
RISK ASSESSMENT IN ROMANIA: FROM LEGISLATION TO NEEDS AND POSSIBILITIES
2006
Ecological risk assessment (ERA) is an integral part of the environmental policy assumed by the Romanian Government, according to the standards of the European Union, to which our country hopes to be admitted in 2007. Even though very difficult, the negotiations chapter on environment protection was closed not long ago, the norms the Government has passed, inspired by the Community ones, being quite convincing. The paper presents the general ERA national policy framework, as well as some cases of where human health and ERA have been or should be applied: Baia Mare cyanide spill; Copsa Mica area, where the old pollution with Pb and Cd encompasses more than 40 km 2 , with high risks for popul…
Revalorization of Almond By-Products for the Design of Novel Functional Foods: An Updated Review
2021
The search for waste minimization and the valorization of by-products are key to good management and improved sustainability in the food industry. The great production of almonds, based on their high nutritional value as food, especially almond kernels, generates tons of waste yearly. The remaining parts (skin, shell, hulls, etc.) are still little explored, even though they have been used as fuel by burning or as livestock feed. The interest in these by-products has been increasing, as they possess beneficial properties, caused by the presence of different bioactive compounds, and can be used as promising sources of new ingredients for the food, cosmetic and pharmaceutical industry. Additio…
The role of transportation and its involved sources of energy in the environmental assessment of marble producing sites
2018
Marble is acquiring large popularity as building material. Since building materials are now required to be characterized by high energy and environmental performances, marble is entailed to fulfill top-level requirements. About its environmental performances an important European Decision establishes criteria for the award of the Community eco-label to this material. Unfortunately, this Decision is focused on mining and processing activities, seemingly neglecting marble transport. In contrast, this phase affects the whole working chain because it releases (pollutant) emissions and involves the use of primary and, in case, secondary energy sources. Here, the focus is on the role played by tr…
Towards an environmental assessment model of palaeontological and archaeological heritage in the Autonomous Valencian Community without comparative t…
2019
The deficient management of the paleontological heritage through the environmental impact assessment procedures from the Valencian public administrations, linked mainly to the lack of competent technical means in the matter, results in an almost abandonment of it. On the contrary, the archaeological heritage has a series of perfectly structured tools that allow any possible impact on it regarding projects and actions subject to environmental impact assessment that can be detected and corrected. The damage that this situation creates results in the abandonment and almost absolute lack of protection of the palaeontological heritage in the Valencian Community. Despite how much has been written…