| Abstract
| - Life without chemicals would be inconceivable, but thepotential risks and impacts to the environment associatedwith chemical production and chemical products areviewed critically. Eco-efficiency analysis considers theeconomic and life cycle environmental effects of a productor process, giving these equal weighting. The majorelements of the environmental assessment include primaryenergy use, raw materials utilization, emissions to allmedia, toxicity, safety risk, and land use. The relevanceof each environmental category and also for the economicversus the environmental impacts is evaluated usingnational emissions and economic data. The eco-efficiencyanalysis method of BASF is briefly presented, andresults from three applications to chemical processes andproducts are summarized. Through these applications,the eco-efficiency analyses mostly confirm the 12 Principleslisted in Anastas and Zimmerman (Environ. Sci. Technol.2003, 37 (5), 94A), with the exception that, in one application,production systems based on bio-based feedstocks werenot the most eco-efficient as compared to those based onfossil resources. Over 180 eco-efficiency analyses havebeen conducted at BASF, and their results have been usedto support strategic decision-making, marketing, researchand development, and communication with externalparties. Eco-efficiency analysis, as one important strategyand success factor in sustainable development, willcontinue to be a very strong operational tool at BASF.
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