Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
changes also provide important information in controlling and regulating the applied
measures and technologies.
The monitoring of the technology and the impacted or potentially impacted envi-
ronment provides data for the evaluation of the efficiency of the RR measure. Planning
the monitoring and selection of the parameters to monitor are also based on the
conceptual risk model and the target of the remediation measure.
When substituting a chemical substance or an industrial technology with another,
the monitoring is focused on the technology, including the emission from the source
(industrial, mining, agricultural, etc. activity). In a wider context, the environmental
compartments and the receptors are also monitored. The positive impact of an environ-
mental RR technology can be followed by measuring the input and output parameters
and the technological parameters of the installation. The broad environment should
be monitored to measure the technology's efficiency for verification purposes.
The impacts by the restriction of the use of a chemical substance depend on the
restriction's scope and, in the case of national or regional extension, can be measured
by the quality of the national or regional environment and/or by the health of human or
ecological receptors in the area. In addition to the quality and health of the environment
and the receptors, other economic, social and cultural impacts should also be moni-
tored. The monitoring of the changes indicates the efficiency of the measure covering:
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Human exposure directly and via the environment;
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Workplace exposure;
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Environmental exposure;
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Direct toxicity or other adverse effects to humans and ecosystems;
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Statistics on diseases and accidents;
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The effects and risks of alternatives;
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Material efficiency and energy efficiency of the applied technologies;
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Costs and cost efficiency of the measures;
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Health, social, economic and cultural benefits due to the applied management
option.
Alternative production technologies and application methods may decrease the
risks measured for the baseline scenario, but new materials and technologies may pose
new, unknown and unexpected hazards and risks. The effects of the new production
technology or application method can be compared with the replaced one but it should
also be evaluated quantitatively (using absolute values) characterizing the following:
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Mass balance and technological efficiency;
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Emissions into the environment;
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Toxic and other adverse effects of the emitted toxicants;
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Human health risk;
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Workplace exposure and risk;
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Environmental risk at local, regional and global scales including:
◦
atmospheric emissions;
◦
the use of renewable and nonrenewable resources;
◦
energy consumption, etc.
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