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The pressure of forestry operations on biodiversity is not appropriately characterized using existing life cycle inventories and impact assessment methodologies. As a consequence, it is not possible to distinguish between well-managed and poorly managed forests in terms of biodiversity. Several attempts have been made to establish a biodiversity impact assessment method to be used in life cycle assessment (LCA). Those methods cannot be easily implemented by practitioners, or they cannot be used to differentiate forestry practices. We therefore propose an alternative approach that requires limited data collection, while reflecting effects of forestry practices on biodiversity. This paper demonstrates that the biodiversity level of managed boreal forests can be captured in LCA by means of a relatively simple method based on known forestry practices and using the notion of hemeroby, compatible with previously proposed approaches for biodiversity assessment. This method allows differentiating between wood products produced with different forestry practices from one and the same forest type. The proposed method is a clear improvement compared to commonly used approaches: it does not require measuring field data yet allows the quantification of potential environmental impacts of different forestry practices in boreal forests. The proposed inventory data and characterization factors can contribute to better assess the biodiversity impacts or benefits of forest management practices. The present description demonstrates how a biodiversity evaluation can be conducted in the case of boreal forestry and how the way it is built converges to values that are comparable to field measurements. It also opens doors for similar methods to be developed for tree plantations under other climates and further to other types of land use.

The purpose of this study is to assess whether for dry biodegradable packaging without food contamination, a detailed life cycle assessment supports the priorities suggested by the five-level hierarchy, as described by the European Waste Directive 2006/12/EC. Environmental impacts and water withdrawal were assessed using an extended version of IMPACT 2002+, accounting for the dynamic pattern of greenhouse gas releases for each scenario when determining Global Warming Potentials for a time horizon of 100 years (in this paper defined as dynamic assessment). The present assessment shows that, for most impact categories, mechanical recycling is the most interesting option, followed by direct fuel substitution. Intermediate performances are obtained by anaerobic digestion and municipal incineration. Landfill and industrial composting of dry packaging generate the highest environmental impacts of the studied end-of-life options. Indeed, the composting of the studied materials does not substantially improve compost quality and does not enable energy recovery. The hypothesis that composting is by default environmentally preferable over energy recovery because it is a form of recycling is not confirmed by the present study, thus underlining the importance of a sound and case-specific application of the EU waste hierarchy and the need to complete the hierarchy by product specific studies. Though of limited effect on the present study, the dynamic assessment of greenhouse gas may moderately decrease the impacts effectively taking place over the 100-year horizon. More important is to consider the degradation patterns of biodegradable materials and present to the decision makers both the 100-year and the long term impacts of the end-of-life options.

The potential of pulp fiber-reinforced thermoplastics is currently not fully explored in composites. One of the main reasons is that pulp fibers are extracted for the use in papermaking and are thu ...

The forced compression behavior of random 3D and 2D pulp fiber networks is investigated. Existing theories are found to describe well the evolution of packing stress with fiber volume fraction for the pulp networks. It was, moreover, found that the packing behavior of an initially random 3D network of pulp fibers does not go through a transition to a 2D network packing behavior as it is compressed. Rather, the fibers exhibit localized collapse at contact points, a result of the hollow nature of the pulp fibers. The implications of this phenomenon on the overall packing response were further examined by means of compression tests performed on a series of representative tubes of varying wall thickness. This analysis allowed determining the pressure range within which localized fiber buckling takes place.

Hypospadias, when the urethra opens on the ventral side of the penis, is a common malformation seen in about 3 per 1000 male births. It is considered a complex disorder with both genetic and environmental factors involved in the pathogenesis. Low birth weight is known to be an important risk factor for hypospadias, but several observations speak in favour of genetic factors as well. In order to delineate the relative contribution of the genetic factors behind hypospadias, we performed a complex segregation analysis of 2005 pedigrees in Sweden. The probands were ascertained through the departments of paediatric surgery and departments of plastic surgery and urology in Sweden where boys with hypospadias undergo surgery. In 7% of the ascertained families one or more additional cases of hypospadias were present. The complex segregation analysis showed a heritability of 0.99 and evidence for multifactorial inheritance. The results suggest that hypospadias might be due to monogenic effects in a small proportion of the families, but that there is a multifactorial cause for the majority of the cases.

This article aims to determine the environmental performance of China reed fibre used as a substitute for glass fibre as reinforcement in plastics and to identify key environmental parameters. A life cycle assessment (LCA) is performed on these two materials for an application to plastic transport pallets. Transport pallets reinforced with China reed fibre prove to be ecologically advantageous if they have a minimal lifetime of 3 years compared with the 5-year lifetime of the conventional pallet. The energy consumption and other environmental impacts are strongly reduced by the use of raw renewable fibres, due to three important factors: (a) the substitution of glass fibre production by the natural fibre production; (b) the indirect reduction in the use of polypropylene linked to the higher proportion of China reed fibre used and (c) the reduced pallet weight, which reduces fuel consumption during transport. Considering the whole life cycle, the polypropylene production process and the transport cause the strongest environmental impacts during the use phase of the life cycle. Since thermoplastic composites are hardly biodegradable, incineration has to be preferred to discharge on landfills at the end of its useful life cycle. The potential advantages of the renewable fibres will be effective only if a purer fibre extraction is obtained to ensure an optimal material stiffness, a topic for further research. China reed biofibres are finally compared with other usages of biomass, biomaterials, in general, can enable a three to ten times more efficient valorisation of biomass than mere heat production or biofuels for transport.

We analyzed a large group of patients with hypospadias regarding familial aggregation, phenotype, twin rate and ethnic origin and assessed the correlation of low birth weight with hypospadias.We mailed questionnaires to 2,503 boys operated on for hypospadias in Sweden asking for additional cases of hypospadias in the family, the number of brothers in the nuclear family, and birth weight of the boys with hypospadias and their brothers.Of the boys 7% reported 1 or more additional family members with hypospadias. The birth weight of the boys with hypospadias was significantly lower (p = 5 x 10-13) than the birth weight of their unaffected brothers. Phenotyping of 676 individuals revealed glandular hypospadias in 53%, penile forms in 39%, penoscrotal or perineal variants in 6% and cleaved prepuce as the only manifestation in 2%. There were 50% more twins than expected compared to the general population and established zygosity in 83% (67% monozygotic, 33% dizygotic). Non-Swedish ethnicity was noted in 22% of the subjects, a third of whom were from Middle Eastern countries.We present data on heredity, birth weight, phenotype and ethnic origin in a large group of patients with hypospadias. The finding of additional members with hypospadias in 7% of the families supports the concept that genetic factors are involved in the pathogenesis. The strong association with low birth weight may be explained by genetic and environmental factors.

This chapter introduces the basic features of polymers and their additives. The main ageing and degradation phenomena, which relate to the reliability and durability of polymers, from manufacture and service, to final disposal or recovery, are reviewed. The prediction of the long-term performance of polymers is discussed. Polymers are giant molecules, or macromolecules, constructed from smaller repeating chemical units, or monomers. They are divided in two main classes: thermoplastics and thermosets. Upon heating, the properties of any polymer undergo marked changes at certain temperatures. At very low temperatures, the polymer is frozen in its glassy state, as no part of the molecules can move. For industrial purposes, where material reliability and durability is required, a large variety of substances called additives have been developed to limit the effect of processing and service conditions on the polymer. The combination of a polymer with appropriate additives creates a plastic. These additives not only prolong the life of the material in its application, but also prevent the material from degrading under the high temperatures and mechanical loads induced by processing. It has been shown that polymer properties change over time, as a result of the combined action of numerous external factors. The microscopic structure of polymers also changes over time, even in the absence of external factors. Competitive knowledge of material behavior and characterization and predictive skills for long-term performance are vital for the fulfillment of life cycle engineering strategies.

Publisher Summary Plastics waste is receiving increased attention in the environmental debate. The technology of recovery and recycling is rapidly progressing, but there is no unique solution for treating plastics waste. The strategy to apply depends on the type of material and product and on consumption patterns. Mechanical recycling, feedstock recycling, energy recovery and environmentally degradable plastics are discussed. The importance of efficient collection and separation systems, of steady material supply and quality and of available markets for revaluated material is shown. Early recycling efforts have been plagued by the high capital costs of setting up recycling plants, an irregular supply of material and the low quality of products made from recycled material, which kept recyclers from working at full capacity. The efficiency of collection and sorting structures is measured by collection costs, capture rate and purity of generated feedstock. Automated identification and separation technology is necessary to reduce the cost of recycling and enable greater volumes of waste to be processed. Reclaiming is labor intensive. The material passes through more hands and is transported longer distances than virgin material. This greatly raises the cost of producing competitive material. Each of the described collection and sorting methods has inherent strengths and weaknesses. They will most likely have to be used in combination to achieve good sorting. It remains to be seen whether the economy and energy efficiency of such systems will be competitive compared to incineration or landfill.

Life Cycle Assessment is a tool permitting the study and evaluation of emissions and environmental impacts over the entire life cycle of a product or process. The aim is to relate the environmental load to the product functional unit to assess technological improvements for reduced resource use and environmental impacts on humans and on the ecosystem. LCA is becoming a key component in the monitoring of environmental performance of products and processes as well as an element of product development and long-term strategic planning. Financial institutions are increasingly using environmental performance indicators as criteria for access to finance and insurance policies. This chapter presents a brief review of the concept of Life Cycle Assessment and its role as a decision-making tool for the plastics industry. The "SETAC LCA-Code of Practice" (1993) is followed with LCA divided into four parts, namely: goal definition and scoping, inventory analysis, impact assessment, and improvement analysis. The inventory analysis is reviewed according to the Centre of Environmental Science of the University of Leiden's guidelines on Environmental Life Cycle Assessment of Products. Special attention is paid to issues specific to polymer, with reference to the inventory analysis methodology proposed by the Association of Plastics Manufacturers in Europe: feedstock energy issues, open- and closed loop recycling and reuse are treated. Guidelines to aid in the analysis of LCA results are given.

The implementation of technical solutions to environment-related problems requires organizational change. Environmental Management Systems (EMS) allows companies to systematize their approach to environmental issues by identifying environmental liabilities and by improving efficiency as well as creating business opportunities. The ICC Business Charter for Sustainable Development, the British green audit Standard BS 7750, the European Community Environmental Management and Audit Scheme and the international standard series ISO 14000 are reviewed. Adhering to these standards is not free from cost, but long-term competitive advantages such as access to markets, finance and insurance as well as improved operational efficiency are likely to compensate for initial costs. Opportunities for support in the implementation of EMS for small and medium-sized companies are discussed. The implementation of such systems is not free from cost, and they demand a certain level of commitment from their participants. There are nevertheless inherent advantages of managing environmental issues in a systematized way, in terms of access to finance and insurance, but more importantly to identify potential liabilities and avoid unnecessary expenditure on clean up and noncompliance. Other reasons for adhesion to a standardized EMS are the possibility of gaining competitive advantage in international trade. The creation of national and international standards for environmental management systems is no guarantee for environmental improvement. Neither does the existence of an EMS within a company make its activities environmentally sound. The increasing adoption of environmental management systems as a core management tool will probably create a common language between companies to aid quicker learning and progress.

The preservation of non-renewable natural resources is an issue that has assumed great importance in modern society. It is now widely recognized that continued economic development should be accompanied by more appropriate use of natural resources. Just how the economy should be organized to achieve such balanced growth is at present open to a great deal of debate. Industry is under great pressure to improve its practices. The polymer industry is particularly under fire, no doubt due to the short lifespan of many plastics based consumer products, the high visibility of polymers in municipal solid waste and the rapid increase of plastics consumption. Sustainable development has been widely accepted as a viable concept for ensuring long-term survival of humankind and of other species on the planet under acceptable conditions. Sustainable growth must therefore encompass environmental, social, and economic factors and maintain a balance between them. This implies consideration of a wide range of factors in determining solutions to environmental problems. Life cycle engineering (LCE) provides a methodology of how to design, manufacture, use, maintain and recover materials and products with the aim of optimizing resource use and minimizing environmental impact. The life cycle of a product made from a polymer or from a polymer-based composite is composed of a series of distinct steps. By monitoring the value of the polymer throughout its life cycle, from the “cradle” to the “grave”, it is possible to guide improvement, the aim being to maintain the performance value of the constituent materials at as high a level as possible throughout the life cycle.

Publisher Summary This chapter presents two studies of pharmaceutical packaging and networking within the automotive industry and it illustrates how environmental requirements affect industrial activities. The directives on producer responsibility are forcing OEMs to organize the recovery and disposal of their products with the lowest possible environmental intervention. This pressure is translated down through the supplier's chain to sub-suppliers, material producers and end-of-life industries. The requirements for recycling and efforts to improve environmental performance demand organizational and technology change to retain performance and profit. The automotive and chemical industries are two of the industry sectors exposed to the hardest environmental criticism. They can turn this to their advantage by putting themselves at the forefront of environmental change. The first case study shows how an environmental strategy is disseminated from corporate level into a business sector of a medical company and how this has affected the sectors' packaging strategy. The activities presented in the second case study show the possibilities and difficulties encountered by the plastics-related industries of the automotive sub-supplier chain, as well as by the automotive producers themselves. There is still much to be done, and the discussion on priorities for environmental improvements within transport continues.