Identifying the Grand Challenges to
Reducing the Impact of Materials Flows in the United States
Funded by the
National Science Foundation
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Cooper, J.S., I. Wernick, “Identifying Technologies to Reduce
the Impact of Materials Flows,” Submitted to the Journal of Industrial Ecology
(2005)
In June 2004, the workshop "Identifying the Grand Challenges to
Reducing the Impact of Materials Flows in the United States" engaged stakeholders in the identification of cross-sector opportunities in three
areas of improvement: (1) Synergy in byproduct materials exchange that
simultaneously benefit two or more sectors, (2) Joint development of
technologies common to two or more resource sectors (e.g., separation
processes), and (3) Technology transfer and best practice opportunities for
materials management. Each of these areas captures critical elements in adapting
material flows to ameliorate environmental impacts on a national level and will
be the topics of the workshop.
Background
Over the last decade Materials Flow Analysis (MFA) and Life
Cycle Assessment (LCA) have captured the attention of researchers and
policymakers as a useful means for gauging the environmental consequences of
economic activity in industrial societies. Research in this field has brought
to light a variety of insights on the links between technology, economic
activity, and the material throughput of the economy. Nonetheless, while a
great deal has been said about the benefits of these materials flow analyses,
their value has been viewed primarily as a modeling exercise. Little effort has
gone into identifying research challenges for technology development to reduce
the impact of material flows on national environmental quality.
The workshop will use a US-level MFA assessed using a subset of
the Sustainable Development Indicators (SDIs) identified by the United States
President’s Council on Sustainable Development. For select SDIs, a
preliminary analysis will cover flows of construction materials (steel,
concrete, composites, etc.) and infrastructure materials (used in roads,
bridges, sewers, water distribution, building materials, etc.) and the other
sectors with matching materials flows and technology issues in search of
technology and material transfer and development opportunities. This
preliminary analysis will act as a starting place for stakeholder engagement and
discussion, the development of the workshop agenda, and the final list of
participants.
Project Results
The 18 workshop participants came from the US EPA, Practical
Sustainability, University of Washington, Arizona State University, FMC
Corporation, University of Massachusetts (Toxics Use Reduction Institute),
University of California (Berkeley), National Academy of Sciences, USGS, US DOE,
the American Institute of Chemical Engineers, and the World Resources Institute.
The agenda began with introductions of the participants followed by
presentations and discussions of:
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Opportunities in chemical synthesis and catalysis
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Opportunities in physical and chemical separation
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Organizing research priorities – How can MFA-LCA be used to determine national
research priorities?
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International Update on Material Flow Analysis activities
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Addressing low volume high hazard flows
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Presenting research priorities – How do we use MFA-LCA to make the case for a
research agenda?
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Identifying the audience – What is the best audience for an MFA-LCA based
research agenda?
Key findings are summarized in the workshop report and will be submitted for
publication in an archival journal in January 2005. In short, the use of
MFA and LCA is critical in the development and assessment of research priorities
for major technology systems. Notably, methodological developments to
relate material and energy flows to candidate
process technologies to justify technology research and transfer priorities
should consider the quality of material and energy flows, the impacts of
technology implementation , trends in material and energy flows, the
implications of technology maturity and the consequences of technology
implementation.
Please contact Joyce Cooper
(cooperjs@u.washington.edu) for
more information.
Acknowledgement
This material is based upon work supported by the National Science
Foundation under Grant No. 0349873. Any opinions, findings, and
conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the
authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science
Foundation.
