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In previous chapters, attention focused upon the nature of complex social-ecological systems, visions for the future, characteristics of an ecosystem or holistic approach, issues related to governance, the nature of adaptive environmental management, attributes of partnerships and stakeholders, and alternative ways to resolving disputes. For all of these matters, alternative approaches exist and choices must be made. This chapter focuses on three methods for identifying and assessing alternatives: benefit-cost analysis; environmental impact assessment, including strategic environmental assessment; and life-cycle assessment, including ISO 14001 and the European Union’s eco-management and audit scheme (EMAS). Case studies are provided from China, the Republic of Kiribati in the Pacific Ocean, Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia, and Italy. Bram Noble, in his guest statement, examines alternative ways to address uncertainty in environmental impact assessments in the context of Canada.

There are several strategies for advancing the transition to safer chemicals: prohibition strategies, aversion strategies, and safer chemical strategies. The safer chemical strategy relies on assessing the alternatives available for substituting or replacing chemicals of concern and adopting those that meet acceptable performance and cost criteria and are safer. Chemical action planning and alternatives assessment are new tools that can be employed to help guide safer alternative selection and implementation. Alternatives assessment can include hazard assessment, performance assessment, cost assessment, exposure assessment, material management assessment, life cycle assessment and social impact assessment.

This chapter explores how the interdisciplinary field of industrial ecology, a blend of environmental science, social science, engineering, and management, can help deliver sustainable development goals (SDGs). As a systems science, industrial ecology provides a source of knowledge that can guide sustainable manufacturing, waste and pollution reduction, and offer a framework for extending the life of physical goods in a circular economy. The chapter focuses on four industrial ecology approaches: material stock and flow analysis, life-cycle assessment, input-output analysis, and industrial symbiosis, offering descriptions and case examples that relate to specific SDGs and targets. Although these approaches are relevant to a broad range of SDG targets, the authors focus on those pertaining to responsible and efficient use of water and energy (SDG6 and target 7.3), economic growth (SDG8), reducing inequalities (SDG10), transportation (target 11.2), production and consumption systems (SDG12 and targets 2.4 and 9.4), and climate action (SDG13). Industrial ecology approaches are also beneficial to rapidly industrializing countries, where improvements in economic performance and the environment must be carefully balanced. Finally, by tracking flows of material and energy, industrial ecology promotes resource efficiency and provides a strong basis for making sustainable production and consumption decisions.

This chapter proceeds on the assumption that there exist no backup duties on the part of relatively affluent states and that states are either solely responsible for fulfilling subsistence rights within their own territories or they must be assisted with capacity or institution building, but not with wealth transfers. The basic question in this chapter is therefore how to conceive of fair cooperation between states when at least one of them has a population facing subsistence rights deficits (assuming that such cooperation is morally permitted). It analyses what the entitlement principle and the requirement of fair cooperation entail in the presence of subsistence rights deficits in cooperating states in this case. The aim is to show that even if the duty to assist burdened or negligent states with wealth transfers is rejected, the existence of subsistence rights deficits is nevertheless key to determining what constitutes a fair allocation of the benefits and burdens of cross-border cooperation.

This chapter discusses the challenges and sustainability implications surrounding mineral resources. It focuses on the quantification of stocks and flows of minerals to evaluate potential future scenarios toward sustainability. The chapter also discusses several approaches that examine sustainability issues. These methods include material low analysis (MFA), life cycle assessment (LCA), and input-output (IO) analysis. The major factors affecting resource demand and supply are also discussed. The chapter concludes by formulating alternative future scenarios to address the challenges posed by future mineral requirements.

This chapter compares environmental impacts of organic, conventional, and integrated farming systems. The first part present results of a meta-analysis comparing environmental impacts of organic and conventional farming in Europe. The second part presents a study that uses a life cycle assessment to explore the potential of integrated farming systems in terms of energy and greenhouse gas balances and biodiversity impacts when the opportunity costs of land use are taken into account. To provide further information for decision making, the financial performances of the farming systems are presented, and the cost-efficiencies of some specific practices for reducing greenhouse gas emissions are calculated. Finally, the chapter proposes a novel method for weighting different environmental impact categories that allows calculation of overall environmental performance scores.

This chapter assesses the interactions between energy, water, and metallic ore resources and their impact on sustainability. First, it discusses life cycle assessment (LCA) studies concerning the production of metals from metalliferous ores in terms of gross energy requirement (GER). It then presents the results of LCA studies in terms of water consumption in metal production. The chapter also discusses the impact of deteriorating ore quality on energy, water and greenhouse gases. The chapter concludes with some suggestions for mitigating the energy, greenhouse gas, and water impacts of ore deterioration.