Pollution prevention opportunity assessment decision analysis guide on evaluating and prioritizing pollution prevention opportunities
- Air Force, Brooks AFB, TX (United States). Bioenvironmental Engineering Div.
- Univ. of Texas, San Antonio, TX (United States). Dept. of Engineering
Sometimes making decisions based upon the results of a Pollution Prevention Opportunity Assessment (PPOA) is easy because the benefits are very clear. However, several different alternatives being considered to replace an existing process could have similar expected benefits. The question then becomes how to select the best alternative solution for the situation or process. The answer to that commonly asked question lies in the use of a very simple yet dynamic methodology for defining, collecting, evaluating, and deciding on PPOAs. In this paper, a general overview of a process and its inputs and outputs are presented. Next, selection criteria for comparing each alternative in the PPOA are made. This selection criteria will include cost, pounds of waste generated, and health and environmental considerations. This criteria may be weighted if necessary to bias the decision process. Once the selection criteria are determined, the user needs to collect data about the baseline process and potential alternatives that matches the selection criteria. As an aid to the data collection effort, a checklist for conducting PPOAs is presented. A methodology for analyzing the data for each alternative for a particular process is used. This methodology, also known as a utility analysis allows collected information to be compared against other PPOA alternatives using the selection criteria discussed earlier. The resulting utility analysis will yield a relative score for each alternative including the baseline process. This relative score becomes the PPOA priority or rank for each alternative. This PPOA priority assessment may be useful in selecting pollution prevention alternatives, funding, management decisions, and documenting justification for those decisions.
- OSTI ID:
- 353567
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-970677-; TRN: IM9929%%113
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: 90. annual meeting and exhibition of the Air and Waste Management Association, Toronto (Canada), 8-13 Jun 1997; Other Information: PBD: 1997; Related Information: Is Part Of 1997 proceedings of the Air and Waste Management Association`s 90. annual meeting and exhibition; PB: [7000] p.
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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