Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
5115597 | Environmental Impact Assessment Review | 2017 | 8 Pages |
Abstract
Prior to market entry, new chemical substances are assessed for their risk to human health and the environment. Conventional risk assessment (RA) is limited in scope, i.e. it usually does not cover the entire life cycle of a substance, nor does it take into account sustainability aspects such as the amount of raw materials and energy required to produce the substance. Life cycle assessment (LCA) can provide this pivotal information to support an informed decision on the sustainability of a new substance. Unfortunately, LCA has had little regulatory application up to now. We believe that increasing the focus on combined use of LCA and life cycle-based RA could lead to improved regulatory long-term decisions for marketed chemicals. Inclusion of human biomonitoring could increase the robustness of such decisions even further. In addition, the combined use of the three methods allows a robust search for sustainable alternatives of currently marketed chemicals that have an unfavourable risk profile.
Keywords
Related Topics
Physical Sciences and Engineering
Energy
Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment
Authors
Tobias Walser, Réjane Morand Bourqui, Christoph Studer,