CRITERIA FOR THE SELECTION OF SUSTAINABILITY INDICATORS IN BIOREFINERIES EVALUATION

The current energetic crisis, petroleum high prices and environmental impact associated to the use of fossil fuels urge us as a global society to achieve a petroleum-independent economy. Such economy will crystallise in the productive sector in the form of biorefineries (BR). For the transition from a petroleum-based to a biomass-based economy to be achieved successfully, it is very important that we can evaluate the sustainability of BR from the conceptual-design stage. An adequate tool for this end must 1) allow sustainability measurements based on an objective baseline; 2) avoid subjective weighing if at all possible, and 3) focus its approach on the intrinsic and distinctive characteristics of BR. Amongst the existent tools for the evaluation of productive-systems ’ sustainability, none covers successfully these three conditions. Given the great importance of BR in the development model of the next decades, it is imperative to develop such methodology with anticipation. This work presents a critique and discussion of different sustainability indicators and the frameworks which organise them. After analysing the available options, a set of indicators for BR-sustainability evaluation and a preliminary thematic framework are proposed. This should be regarded as a first iteration in the development of a complete methodology for the evaluation of sustainability of BR.