Search results for "impact assessment"
showing 10 items of 211 documents
PROMOTING THE REGIONAL COMPETITIVENESS THROUGH CLUSTERS‘ APPROACH: CASE OF THE LATVIAN INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY CLUSTER
2018
The purpose of this research is to contribute to the debate on regional competitiveness concept by evaluating genesis of the studies of concept development, and the impact assessment. This paper also presents the impact of clusters on regional competitiveness through the experience of the Latvian Information Technology (IT) cluster. The methods used in the research are literature analysis, correlation and statistical analysis. The main tasks include: (i) the usage of competitiveness concept to describe main factors of regional competitiveness, (ii) identification of the role of clusters for regional competitiveness by testing the linkage between regional competitiveness and state of cluster…
Environmental performance of building materials: life cycle assessment of a typical Sicilian marble
2009
Background, aim, and scope: The building sector is strategically important for achieving sustainability. Therefore, the improvement of energy and environmental performances are relevant targets because precious building materials such as marble have a significant impact on the environment. The aim of this paper is an analysis of a typical Sicilian marble (Perlato di Sicilia) to evaluate its energy and environmental performance. Marble plays an important role in the economy of Italy and has a global market share of 58% in terms of exports. For the main production areas of marble, relevant environmental performance data are missing except for one region (Tuscany-Massa e Carrara province). Per…
The rationale for and practice of EIA follow-up: an analysis of Finnish road projects
2015
Follow-up is often considered to be a weak or even missing element in environmental impact assessment (EIA). Though it is recognized that follow-up practices could provide useful opportunities to learn from projects’ actual consequences, the practice is criticized for not achieving this goal. In this paper, we aim to clarify the relationship between the theoretical rationale for EIA follow-up and the actual practices carried out in a Finnish EIA context. An empirical analysis was performed with follow-up documents. The findings indicate that follow-ups focused on dealing with environmental impacts related to the physical environment, e.g., flora, fauna, and ground and surface waters. Social…
The Valencia Port Authority (VPA): environmental information in the annual report
2012
In recent years, most companies are participating in the disclosing of information on the impact of their potential activities on the environment. In 2002, Spain developed its legislation on environmental information in annual reports. The port industry has a potential environmental and economic impact. In this context, it is important to know how it disclosure environmental information in the annual reports. The case of study shows the disclosure information characteristics of Valencia Port Authority (VPA) and the relationships with the environment. The results concluded that VPA has adapted its information not only the standards but as a mean of legitimation.
Life Cycle Assessment of Electricity Generation Scenarios in Italy
2018
Hindering global warming and achieving a more competitive, secure and sustainable energy sector are some of the most relevant goals of the 2030 Framework for climate and energy of the European Union. European countries have to identify and implement strategies for contributing to these ambitious goals. In this context, the authors carried out a scenario analysis on the Sicilian electricity mix in order to estimate the life cycle energy and environmental benefits of the increase of the use of renewable energy technologies for electricity production, and the potential contribution of Sicily in the achievement of the European energy and environmental targets. In detail, the authors identified …
The socio-economic and communication challenges of spent nuclear fuel management in Finland
2010
Abstract One of the key factors behind the expansion of nuclear energy policy in Finland is nuclear waste management. As in many countries, nuclear waste management agencies are still struggling with the siting of intermediate and low level nuclear waste management facilities, in Finland Posiva, the nuclear waste company owned by the two nuclear power utilities Teollisuuden Voima (TVO) and Fortum Power and Heat (FPH), has been excavating a underground characterization facility since 2004 in the Olkiluoto site in the municipality of Eurajoki. The facility under construction is meant to be for a part of the final repository for disposal of spent nuclear fuel (SNF). The site selection process …
Quality of Environmental Impact Assessment: Finnish EISs and the opinions of EIA professionals
2010
This article presents and compares findings of two EIA quality studies conducted in Finland. First a survey was targeted at competent authorities and environmental consultants to investigate their perceptions of the quality of Finnish EIAs. Second, 15 EISs were considered using the European Commission's guidance on review criteria. The results show that the EIA professionals generally consider the quality as good, though they also recognized that the quality varies and suggested certain areas for improvement. In the professionals' opinion the performance of Finnish EIAs could be enhanced, especially with more profound alternative considerations. Based on the results it is also suggested tha…
Life Cycle Assessment of repurposed electric vehicle batteries: an adapted method based on modelling energy flows
2018
Abstract After their first use in electric vehicles (EVs), the residual capacity of traction batteries can make them valuable in other applications. Although reusing EV batteries remains an undeveloped market, second-use applications of EV batteries are in line with circular economy principles and the waste management hierarchy. Although substantial environmental benefits are expected from reusing traction batteries, further efforts are needed in data collection, modelling the life-cycle stages and calculating impact indicators to propose a harmonized and adapted life-cycle assessment (LCA) method. To properly assess the environmental benefits and drawbacks of using repurposed EV batteries …
DEPOSIT REFUND SYSTEM FOR BEVERAGE CONTAINERS IN LATVIA: LEARNINGS WITHIN THE BALTIC STATES
2019
INTRODUCTION
 One of the main global environmental problems we are facing is the increasing the amount of waste. There are numerous policy instruments used to reduce the environmental impact of packaging. Many EU member states use producer levies, packaging and resource taxes, deposit-refund systems and producer responsibility systems (Bailey, 2017; Watkins et al., 2017).
 MATERIALS AND METHODS
 In this article we conduct comparative analyses and evaluate the effectiveness of deposit-refund systems for beverage packaging in the three Baltic States: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Data used in the study is obtained from statistical databases of the Central Statistical Bureau, E…
Are electric vehicles eco-friendly products? A review from life cycle and sustainability perspective
2021
Industry, especially the automotive industry is permanently changing and adapting to the external and internal factors. The appearance of the new types of vehicles – electric vehicles, is a big and important step not only regarding the evolution of the product, but also regarding the advantages of reducing environmental impact. It is promoted the idea that an electric vehicle generates less direct emissions in use phase compared with a conventional one. If we limit to this, we could say that we are dealing with an eco-friendly type of vehicle. The question is, can we extend this idea to the other stages of the life cycle? What about the sustainability of the industry? This article highlight…