The 1 billion gal of used oil generated in the U.S. each
year are managed in three primary ways: rerefined into
base oil for reuse, distilled into marine diesel oil fuel, and
marketed as untreated fuel oil. Management of used oil
has local, regional and global impacts. Because of the globally
distributed nature of fuel markets, used oil as fuel has
localized and regional impacts in many areas. In this paper,
the human health and environmental tradeoffs of the
management options are quantified and characterized.
The goal of this study was to assess and compare the
environmental impacts and benefits of each management
method in a product end-of-life scenario using a life-cycle assessment (LCA) approach. A life-cycle inventory
showed that 800 mg of zinc and 30 mg of lead air emissions
may result from the combustion of 1 L of used oil as fuel (50−100 times that of crude-derived fuel oils). As an example,
up to 136 Mg of zinc and 5 Mg of lead air emissions may
be generated from combustion of over 50 M gal of California-generated used oil each year. While occurring elsewhere,
these levels are significant (of the same magnitude as
reported total stationary source emissions in California).
An impact assessment showed that heavy metals-related
toxicity dominates the comparison of management
methods. Zinc and lead emissions were the primary
contributors to the terrestrial and human toxicity impact
potentials that were calculated to be 150 and 5 times higher,
respectively, for used oil combusted as fuel than for
rerefining or distillation. Low profits and weak markets
increasingly drive the used oil management method selection
toward the untreated fuel oil market. Instead, both the
rerefining and distillation methods and associated product
markets should be strongly supported because they are
environmentally preferable to the combustion of unprocessed
used oil as fuel.
The US Sustainable Remediation Forum (SURF) proposes a nine-step process for conducting and documenting a footprint analysis and life-cycle assessment (LCA) for remediation projects. This guidance is designed to assist remediation practitioners in evaluating the impacts resulting from potential remediation activities so that preventable impacts can be mitigated. Each of the nine steps is flexible and scalable to a full range of remediation projects and to the tools used by remediation practitioners for quantifying environmental metrics. Two fictional case studies are presented to demonstrate how the guidance can be implemented for a range of evaluations and tools. Case-study findings show that greater insight into a study is achieved when the nine steps are followed and additional opportunities are provided to minimize remediation project footprints and create improved sustainable remediation solutions. This guidance promotes a consistent and repeatable process in which all pertinent information is provided in a transparent manner to allow stakeholders to comprehend the intricacies and tradeoffs inherent in a footprint analysis or LCA.For these reasons, SURF recommends that this guidance be used when a footprint analysis or LCA is completed for a remediation project. O c 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
INTRODUCTIONThe remediation industry has successfully cleaned up thousands of sites contaminated with a variety of pollutants using numerous methods. The beneficial intent of these site cleanups is to remediate contaminated media and reduce risks to human health and the environment to acceptable levels. Historically, the activities conducted during cleanups that can impact the environment have not been completely considered or evaluated. Furthermore, potential impacts to human health and ecosystems beyond those typically addressed in human health and ecological risk assessments have not been considered. Externalities, such as societal costs, have not been included in evaluations as well. If these impacts are taken into consideration, some of the negative impacts from remediation activities may be avoided or reduced. Identifying these potential impacts early in remedial planning enables decision makers to maximize opportunities to reduce negative impacts.Sustainability is an emerging and evolving concept used with increasing frequency in today's business world. Every day, corporate decision makers grapple with their company's impact on the environment, natural resources, human health, and society-in addition to tackling questions of economics. Sustainability principles involve balancing
39Guidance for Performing Footprint Analyses and Life-Cycle Assessments for the Remediation Industry three core aspects: environmental, economic, and social. Life-cycle management is a business approach that can be used to target, organize, analyze, and manage information and activities toward continuous improvement along the life cycle. Life-cycle management is about making life-cycle thinking operational for businesses that are striv...
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