A Decision Support System (DSS) for Sustainable Production of Biofuel

摘要

Great deal of concerns have been aroused after the global surge of prices of petroleum along with shrinking resources of non-renewable fossil fuel and regarding the necessity of renewable energy sources as alternative fuel. Despite the many positive characteristics of biofuels, they cause a variety of environmental, economical, and social challenges that were not known to decision-makers by usual evaluation tools such as life cycle assessment (LCA) and Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). This paper aims to design a Decision Support System (DSS) which covers weakness of existing assessment tools, using Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) and life cycle assessment (LCA) models. Furthermore, a sustainable framework for decision making through assessing and considering wider environmental, economic, and social issues pertinent to different steps of development of biofuel is developed.