Title: Life-cycle-analysis: a methodology to analyse ecological consequences within a Technology Assessment Study?

Authors: Eberhard Bohm, Rainer Walz

Addresses: Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research, Karlsruhe, Germany. ' Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research, Karlsruhe, Germany

Abstract: Technology Assessment studies try to find out and evaluate the different impacts of the technologies assessed. Among these impacts the ecological impact of certain production technologies or products play an important role. A methodological tool for an improved assessment of the ecological effects is Life-Cycle-Analysis. It identifies the ecological effects |from cradle to grave| by including the analysis of the horizontal and vertical process chains from mining of raw material through the production and use to the deposition. For each of the three parts of a Life-Cycle-Analysis – Inventory, Environmental Assessment, Valuation – the paper describes state of the art, methodological problems and likely developments.

Keywords: lifecycle analysis; LCA; lifecycle assessment; technology assessment; environmental impact assessment; valuation; technology management; ecological effects.

DOI: 10.1504/IJTM.1996.025451

International Journal of Technology Management, 1996 Vol.11 No.5/6, pp.554 - 565

Published online: 22 May 2009 *

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