Austrian Science Fund (FWF): I 549-N21
The incorporation of
the “final sink” concept into a metric for
sustainable resource management
Ulrich KRAL
Paul H. BRUNNER
2nd International Conference on Final Sinks, 16.5.2013, Espoo, Finland.
Resource management…
…with respect to sink capacities.
Temporal
Scale
Decision making
Sink Indicator*
decade
year
Optimization of companies or plants
Management of districts, etc. Resource management of regions
day
Aggregating
information
Small scale process
hour
Cities, Provinces, Nations
m2
km2
100 km2
1000 km2 Spatial Scale
*) Döberl, G. and P. H. Brunner (2004). Substances and their (final) sinks - a new indicator for monitoring sustainability Indicators for Evaluating Sustainable Development - The Ecological Dimension. Berlin.
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Which fraction of a substance…
…enters appropriate sinks?
Environment
Emissions I
Emissions II
Waste
Management
Region
Wastes
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Indicator Framework
1. Inventory
2. Impact assessment
(substance flow analysis)
(e.g. Risk assessment)
3. Sink Indicator
calculation
Safe level
S 
Flows into sinks:
Air
A
*100
A B
Safe level
Score [%]
Water
100%
Safe level
λS
B
Best
case
Current
score
Incinerator
A
Region
e.g. Helsinki
Safe level
Landfill
0%
Worst
case
Flow [mass/time]
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Case Studies
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
Lead
Copper
c‐OctaBDE
PFOS
Taipei (Taiwan)
Vienna (Austria)
Vienna (Austria)
Switzerland
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Pb in Taipei
1. Inventory
(Pb flow analysis)
2. Impact Assessment
3. Sink Indicator
(Health Risk Assessment)
Safe level
Pb  93%
Air
Water
Soil
4. Measurements
Landfill
Reducing airborne
emissions by 40%
Pb flow [t Pb/yr]
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70
Safe level (HQ = 1)
Fraction into appropriate sink
Fraction into non‐appropriate sink
Data source: Chen, S., H.W. Ma (2013): Human Health Risk Assessment for Urban Sink Management , Conference Proceedings, 2nd Conference on Final Sinks,
Espoo, Finnland.
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Cu in Vienna
1. Inventory
(Cu flow analysis)
2. Impact Assessment
3. Sink Indicator
(Critical flow method)
Receiving
Water
Cu  99.9%
Urban Soil
Underground
storage
Landfill
Cu flow [g/cap yr]
0,1
1
10
100 1000
Save level
Fraction into appropiate sinks
Fraction into non‐appropriate sinks
4. Measurements
- Elaborating
legal threshold
for heavy
metals in urban
soils
- Monitoring
loads to urban
soil
Data source: Kral, U., et al. (2013). "The copper balance of cities: Exploratory insights into a European and an Asian city." Journal of Industrial Ecology, submitted
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c-OctaBDE in Vienna
1. Inventory
(c-octaBDE flow analysis)
2. Impact Assessment
3. Sink Indicator
(Critical flow method)
Environment
cOctaBDE  72%
WEEE
Recycling
Plant
Incineration
4. Measurements
?
- Improving
inventory data
cOctaBDE flow [kg/yr]
- Directing c0
1000
2000
octaBDE to
appropriate
Save level
sinks
Fraction into appropriate sink
Landfill
Fraction into non‐appropriate sink
Data source: Vyzinkarova, D, P.H. Brunner (2013). SFA of Wastes Containing Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers: The Need for More Information and for Final
Sinks. Journal of Industrial Ecology, accepted for publishing
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PFOS in Switzerland
1. Inventory
(PFOS flow analysis)
3. Sink Indicator
2. Impact Assessment
(Critical flow method)
PFOS flows [kg PFOS/yr]
0
1000
PFOS  77%
Air
?
Water
Soil
2000
?
4. Measurements
Incinerator
Landfill
Save level
Fraction into appropriate sinks
- Managing the
stockpiles
- Minimize and
eliminate
emissions
- Monitoring
Fraction into non‐appropriate sinks (?)
Data source: Buser, A. and L. S. Morf (2009). Substance flow analysis for Switzerland: Perfluorinated surfactants perfluorooctanesulfonate (PFOS) and
perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA). Environmental studies no. 0922. Bern: 144.
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Indicator scores
Score [%]
100%
(Best case)
Flows into
non-appropriate sinks
99,9%
93%
0%
(Worst case)
Cu
Vienna
Pb
Taipei
77%
72%
PFOS
Switzerland
cOctaBDE
Vienna
Flows into
appropriate sinks
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Influencing the score…
…without changing reality:
• Improving the inventory (SFA data quality) and/or the impact
assessment method
• Selecting another impact assessment method
…with changing reality, e.g.:
• Reducing flows into sinks
• Routing wastes and emissions into appropriate sinks
• Enhancing the appropriate sink capacity
• Restricting the use of the substance
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Summery and conclusions
Basic idea
• Supporting regional resource management with a new
indicator that respects sink capacities.
• Making the final sink function of WM technologies explicit.
Sink Indicator λ
• determines the fraction of a substance entering appropriate
sinks.
• is high aggregated information, including the analysis and
assessment of regional substance flows.
Benefits
• Performance monitoring over time.
• Benchmark of different regions.
• Integration of substance flow analysis and various
assessment methods (e.g. RA, CF).
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