Tools for Environmental Analysis, Evaluation and Management 205
Less classic indicators are those that express the environmental state in a
more indirect way, for example:
• The presence (Chapter 4) of significant predator populations (e.g. wolves,
eagles, dolphins) in a natural ecosystem, since they provide evidence
for the good functioning of the whole ecosystem
• The percentage of mothers or fathers and small children strolling
through a city, because it provides evidence for the quality of the
urban environment
Before they are selected for use, environmental indicators or indices
should be checked by experts in relation to their suitability. The selection
criteria are many and various, e.g. how significant is the specific environmental problem and how does society deal with it, how feasible is the
measurement or assessment of the specific index. Therefore, indices or
indicators, in order to meet the criteria as much as possible, should be:
• Representative of the problems
• Significant
• Persuasive
• Accurate
• Transparent
11.4 liFE cyclE analySiS
Life cycle analysis (or life cycle assessment, LCA; Figure 11.1) includes
a series of methods for the detection, assessment and wherever possible,
quantification of environmental consequences of a product, a work, a process or activity for the duration of its life. For example, in the case of an
electric appliance, the environmental aspects of extraction or production of
raw material in general will be considered as well as aspects of the manufacturing processes, distribution, energy and other resource consumption
by its use, of waste generation, of its potential reuse or recycling and final
valorization or disposal of the useless appliance. This method can also be
applied to a technical work, a manner of production, a material etc.
tant components and assessment of their impacts. Identification of important environmental components aims at the quantification of environmental
inflows and outflows during the product’s life span. The result is a list of
pollutants or other burdens that can cause a negative impact on the environment. Usually, those burdens are not comparable to one another. Impact
Less classic indicators are those that express the environmental state in a
more indirect way, for example:
• The presence (Chapter 4) of significant predator populations (e.g. wolves,
eagles, dolphins) in a natural ecosystem, since they provide evidence
for the good functioning of the whole ecosystem
• The percentage of mothers or fathers and small children strolling
through a city, because it provides evidence for the quality of the
urban environment
Before they are selected for use, environmental indicators or indices
should be checked by experts in relation to their suitability. The selection
criteria are many and various, e.g. how significant is the specific environmental problem and how does society deal with it, how feasible is the
measurement or assessment of the specific index. Therefore, indices or
indicators, in order to meet the criteria as much as possible, should be:
• Representative of the problems
• Significant
• Persuasive
• Accurate
• Transparent
11.4 liFE cyclE analySiS
Life cycle analysis (or life cycle assessment, LCA; Figure 11.1) includes
a series of methods for the detection, assessment and wherever possible,
quantification of environmental consequences of a product, a work, a process or activity for the duration of its life. For example, in the case of an
electric appliance, the environmental aspects of extraction or production of
raw material in general will be considered as well as aspects of the manufacturing processes, distribution, energy and other resource consumption
by its use, of waste generation, of its potential reuse or recycling and final
valorization or disposal of the useless appliance. This method can also be
applied to a technical work, a manner of production, a material etc.
tant components and assessment of their impacts. Identification of important environmental components aims at the quantification of environmental
inflows and outflows during the product’s life span. The result is a list of
pollutants or other burdens that can cause a negative impact on the environment. Usually, those burdens are not comparable to one another. Impact