The Application of Life Cycle Assessment as an Environmental Decision Making Tool in the Power Sector

摘要

From strategic planning to plant design and operation, environmental impacts are now a vital concern in the decision making process within the power generating sector. Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) produces "cradle-to-grave" profiles of the environmental impacts of power generation processes (including fuel production, transportation, combustion and residue disposal), which are systematically generated and comprehensive in coverage of environmental concerns. This paper presents the wide range of applications for which LCA can be used to aid environmental decision making. The methodology is described, with an illustrative example to show the LCA method in practice. The example used is that of a state of the art waste to energy operation. Though the LCA methodology is still dynamically progressing in line with continuing advances in environmental understanding, it already presents a framework for assessing multiple impacts and for comparing diverse technological options.