A methodological approach for the economic assessment of best available techniques - Demonstrated for a case study from the steel industry

The determination and the assessment of Best Available Techniques (BAT) is one of the key issues in the realisation of the IPPC-Directive. While resea rch has already focused on environmental benefits and technical practicabil ity of techniques within LCA, little work has been carried out assessing ec onomic feasibility. A methodology for the economic assessment of BAT in the framework of the IPPC-Directive on a plant level has to comprise all costs that accrue by measures to prevent, to reduce, to utilise or to remove emi ssions into water, air and soil caused by industrial production processes. The applied cost concept provides a systematic accounting and allocation of decision relevant costs and possibly revenues, that are pertinent to the e conomic assessment of BAT. The application of the methodology to a case stu dy from the steel industry shows the practical use of the approach.