Primary Source: Suomalainen, K. (2006) Computable General Equilibrium Model SWOT Analysis in Report on the SWOT analysis of concepts, methods, and models potentially supporting LCA. Eds. Schepelmann, Ritthoff & Santman (Wuppertal Institute for Climate and Energy) & Jeswani and Azapagic (University of Manchester), pp 88-95

Level of analysis: Macro.

Assessed aspects of sustainability: Economic, possible to include environmental aspects.

Main purpose of the assessment: To assess macro-economical impact of policy changes.

Description of the methodology: Computable general equilibrium models are a class of economic models that use realistic economic data together with the abstract general equilibrium structure to simulate how an economy might react to changes in policy, technology or other external factors. In other words, CGEMs solve numerically the levels of supply, demand and price that support equilibrium across a specified set of markets. CGE models are a standard tool of empirical analysis, and are widely used to analyse the aggregate welfare and distributional impacts of policies whose effects may be transmitted through multiple markets, or contain menus of different tax, subsidy, quota or transfer instruments. Examples of their use may be found in areas as diverse as fiscal reform and development planning, international trade, and increasingly, environmental regulation (Wing).

Detailed description
Computer models are especially useful when analysing complex systems containing vast amounts of data. The benefits of computer models include explicitness, infallible computing and comprehensiveness (Sterman, 1991). In equilibrium models demand elasticity is introduced. The user specifies a demand curve rather than a single value for the demand. Based on the analysis, the demand level can change in response to changes in prices. The three conditions of market clearance, zero profit and income balance are employed by CGE models to solve simultaneously for the set of [...]

Primary Source: Jeswani, H and Azapagic, A. (2006) EIOA/EEIOA Swat Evaluation in Report on the SWOT analysis of concepts, methods, and models potentially supporting LCA. Eds. Schepelmann, Ritthoff & Santman (Wuppertal Institute for Climate and Energy) & Jeswani and Azapagic (University of Manchester), pp 77-82

Level of analysis: Micro (on substances) and Macro (on policies)

Assessed aspects of sustainability: Environmental and social

Main purpose of the assessment: To assess either environmental or health risks (or both) from a product, process, project or policy in qualitative and/or quantitative ways to assist in decision-making for minimising those risks.

Description of the methodology: Risk assessment is most-commonly used in assessing the environmental, health and safety related risks posed by chemicals, harmful substances, industrial plants, etc. Methodologically, it is rooted in two analytical approaches: probability theory and methods for identifying causal links between adverse effects and different types of hazardous activities.

Detailed description

Risk assessment is used in wide range of professions to examine risks of different natures. It is most-commonly used in assessing the environmental, health and safety related risks posed by chemicals, harmful substances, industrial plants, etc. Environmental Risk Assessment (ERA) is usually used as an umbrella term covering Human Health Risk Assessment (HRA), Ecological (or eco-toxicological) Risk Assessment, and specific industrial applications of risk assessment that examine endpoints in people, biota or ecosystems (Calow, 1998). The risks examined in the assessment can be physical such as radiation, biological such as a genetically modified organism or pathogen, or chemical such as an immuno-toxic substance (Fairman et al., 1998). Although the foundations of environmental risk assessment methodologies have traditionally been based on the investigation of effects on human health, the methodologies have also been expanded to examine the threats to ecosystem (DEFRA, 2000).

Methodologically, [...]

Primary Source: Suomalainen, K. (2006) EIOA/EEIOA Swat Evaluation in Report on the SWOT analysis of concepts, methods, and models potentially supporting LCA. Eds. Schepelmann, Ritthoff & Santman (Wuppertal Institute for Climate and Energy) & Jeswani and Azapagic (University of Manchester), pp 62-71

Level of analysis: Mainly macro, can be applied to meso-level in some cases depending on the level of detail of available data and purpose of assessment. Bottom-up approaches of IO-based LCA allow micro level assessment.

Assessed aspects of sustainability: Environmental, generally national environmental accounting.

Main purpose of the assessment: To account for environmental burdens and understand interdependencies of environmental impacts at a national level, related to transactions between national industries/sectors.

Description of the methodology: EIOA/EEIOA are expansions of conventional IOA introducing the environmental dimension to the conventionally monetary analysis. EIOA uses physical units to describe the activities between sectors, added as extra lines to the conventional IO-table. EEIOA defines a separate so called intervention matrix, which shows the amount of pollutants emitted and natural resources consumed to produce one unit monetary output of each industry. In addition to flows (input materials) corresponding to monetary trade, quantifiable externalities such as pollution are typically also included.
Detailed description
Input-output analysis accounts for the level of output of each sector corresponding to that level of activity in all the other sectors in a national economy. By-products, mostly negative from the environmental view point (e.g. pollution), are often linked directly to the network of physical flows that build up an IO-table. This technical interdependence can be described in terms of structural coefficients similar to those already used to trace the interdependence of production between the sectors of the economy (Leontief, 1970).

EIOA

In EIOA pollutants can be integrated to the conventional IO-tables [...]

Primary Source: Jeswani, H, and Azapagic, A. (2006) Total Cost Assessment Swat Evaluation in Report on the SWOT analysis of concepts, methods, and models potentially supporting LCA. Eds. Schepelmann, Ritthoff & Santman (Wuppertal Institute for Climate and Energy) & Jeswani and Azapagic (University of Manchester), pp 52-5

Level of analysis: Micro

Assessed aspects of sustainability: economic

Main purpose of the assessment: To provide economic assessment of environmental initiatives. It is a long-term oriented cost accounting method which pays specific attention to identifying hidden, less tangible and liability costs.

Description of the methodology: TCA methodology encompasses a broad decision-making perspective and incorporates sustainable development considerations through identification, compilation, analysis, and use of environmental and human health cost, both internal and external information associated with a business decision.

Detailed description

Total Cost Assessment (TCA) is a financial tool used to provide a more complete assessment of the true profitability of business investments and operations. It has been used to evaluate alternative capital investments, operational expenditures and procurement decisions. In most cases, it is used for assessing the costs and benefits derived from the environmental initiatives and policies to support decision making (Beaver, 2000).

TCA is a useful tool for identifying, analysing, and improving cost estimates in key areas such as energy, waste, and prevention management, both internally and externally. It can incorporate a wide spectrum of costs and benefits in business cases for all new product and process projects, focusing on internal and external considerations. TCA pays specific attention to identifying hidden, less tangible and liability costs (Curkovic and Sroufe, 2007). Less tangible costs are, for example, consumer acceptance, corporate image and external relations. Liability costs are fines due to the liability for such things as future clean up, health care and property [...]

Primary Source: Armines, A. R.. (2006) Cost Benefit Analysis Swat Evaluation in Report on the SWOT analysis of concepts, methods, and models potentially supporting LCA. Eds. Schepelmann, Ritthoff & Santman (Wuppertal Institute for Climate and Energy) & Jeswani and Azapagic (University of Manchester), pp 38-45

Level of analysis: Micro, meso and macro

Assessed aspects of sustainability:  environmental, economic plus possibly other external costs (time spent by consumers, space required in household, etc.)

Main purpose of the assessment:

Compare costs and benefits of a proposed action (e.g. environmental directive, choice of technology, environmental policy, …)

Description of the methodology:

Description of the methodology: evaluate all the significant costs and benefits entailed by the proposed action. Both direct and indirect or induced effects need to be taken into account. For many choices this involves evaluation of upstream and downstream impacts, using LCA. But by contrast to most conventional LCA, it includes monetary valuation of the impacts. A typical and very important example is the CBA of the CAFE program (Clean Air for Europe) [Holland et al 2005; EC 2006]. Similar CBAs have been carried out in the USA, for example the study by Abt [2000] for the EPA.

Detailed description

Whereas the basic principle of CBA is straightforward, the practical implementation can be extremely difficult. Countless examples of CBA can be found in the literature, ranging in complexity from a simple comparison of two technology choices (e.g. an evaluation of stricter limits for the emission of PM10 from cement kilns that use waste as fuel [Rabl 2000]) to the evaluation of an entire policy (e.g. the CAFE program (Clean Air for Europe) [Holland et al 2005]).

For environmental CBA a crucial tool is the analysis of impact pathways, i.e. of the chain emission [...]