An integrated approach for environmental assessments: Linking and integrating LCI, environmental fate models and ecological impact assessment using fuzzy expert systems

LCA is a system-wide assessment, and the LCIA phase is confronted with the difficulties of local and regional effects in a number of impact categories. We integrate three different environmental techniques to demonstrate how these effects can be addressed in an environmental assessment. The techniques are life cycle inventory, environmental fate models, and an ecological impact assessment using fuzzy expert systems. Results of the LCI are mass and energy flows. In the environmental fate modelling step these mass flows are transformed into concentration and immission values by dispersion-reaction models. A generalised fuzzy expert system for the environmental mechanisms compares calculated exposure with site specific buffering capacities and formulates a generalised dose-response relationship. This generalised fuzzy expert system is used as a template for the assessment of local and regional environmental impacts. An application of this integrated approach is shown for a practical problem: production of magnesium car components. The environmental fate of nitrogen oxides which are released due to the major combustion source within that production system is simulated. Fuzzy expert models for crop damage, soil acidification and eutrophication determine the possible environmental impact of the immited nitrogen oxides. The important methodological extension of this integrated approach is a regionalised impact assessment depending on the spatial distribution of environmental characteristics.