Integrated Evaluation of Environmental Impact with JEPIX

Abstract

JEPIX（Japan Environmental Policy Priorities Index）is a method of environmental life cycle impact assessment（for Japanese companies in a domestic meaning）related with products, product parts, production processes and a factory/company as a whole. This paper introduces the initial development of JEPIX study briefly, and expounds the fundamental structures, features and practical uses of JEPIX. On the whole, there are three major characteristics in the JEPIX measurement system:（1）JEPIX is based on national environmental policies and environmental laws/regulations of Japan, （2）JEPIX uses（only）single unit EIP（Environmental Impact Point）as its overall measurement and reporting unit, and（3）JEPIX adopts the simple weighting factor F/Fk（F: actual flow, Fk: critical flow）, which is based on the so-called “distance to target method”. With these merits, it is in the undustrial world widely recognized that JEPIX can be very useful for many major companies in Japan. But there are still some important points which must be improved immediately from the standpoints of time span, geographic areas and impact categories. This paper discusses the basic content of these current（problem oriented）improvements of JEPIX calculations, related with the development of new Ecofactors of Swiss BUWAL（Bundesamt für Umwelt, Wald und Landschaft, Swiss EPA）.