Externalities of fuel cycles 'ExternE' project. Lignite fuel cycle. Estimation of physical impacts and monetary valuation for priority impact pathways

Fuel cycle externalities are the costs imposed on society and the environment that are not accounted for by the producers and consumers of energy. They include damage to health, forests, crops, natural ecosystems and the built environment. Traditional assessment of fuel cycles has ignored these effects and the energy sector is consequently distorted in favor of technologies with significant environmental burdens. Concern over widespread degradation of the environment resulting from fuel cycle emissions has mounted since the late 1960s. In the early 1970s the potential for long range atmospheric transport of certain pollutants was recognized. The effects of acidifying pollutants, ozone precursors and greenhouse gases have caused particular concern. This is reflected in recent trends in economic thought, particularly the emphasis on sustainable development and the use of market mechanisms for environmental regulation. It has thus become increasingly clear that the external impacts of energy use are significant and should be considered by energy planners. Although the theoretical basis for including external costs in decision making processes has been generally agreed, an acceptable methodology for their calculation and integration has not been established. The studies of Hohmeyer (1988] and Ottinger et al. [1990] provide the background for such work, though they are of a somewhat preliminary nature [Friedrich, Voss, 1993]. We need to improve the methods employed and the quality of models and data used so that planning decisions can be based at least partly on the results. If is particularly important that the site and project specificity of many impacts is recognized. In consequence of this a collaborative project between Directorate General XII (Science, Research and Technology) of the European Commission and the United States Department of Energy has been established to identify the most appropriate methodology for this type of work. The current study has three principal objectives: - to quantify the external costs and benefits of the major fuel cycles for electricity generation and conservation, using the best available methods and information, - to adopt a common framework for assessment of fuel cycles, in order that a fair comparison can be made between them, and - to make recommendations on areas in which further research is required in order that future estimates of damages can be made with greater confidence. Within the study the following fuel cycles for electricity generation will be assessed: coal, uranium, lignite, oil, gas, wind, photovoltaics, biomass, small scale hydroelectric projects and energy conservation. The project started by considering the coal and the nuclear fuel cycles. The methodological framework established during the work on these two fuel cycles now has to be modified and transferred to other fuel cycles to demonstrate the general applicability of the accounting framework and to guarantee a consistent analysis of various fuel cycles