Page 285 - Materials Chemistry, Second Edition

APPLICATION OF LCA IN MINING AND MINERALS PROCESSING 273

Box 3· Pilot Project to Assess Environmental Impacts of Nickel and
Chrome Products
In 2002 BHP Billiton's Stainless Steel Materials commodity group initiated
a pilot project to establish LCA profiles for their most significant nickel
and chrome products, as well as stainless steel made with those products.
The project followed their participation in the major LCA studies of nickel
and chrome products by the Nickel Development Institute (NiDI) and the
International Chromium Development Association (ICDA).
The ultimate aim of the pilot project was to manage and mitigate the envi-
ronmental footprint of their nickel and chrome production and maximise the
environmental benefits of the use of these products in stainless steel.
The LCA studies by NiDI and ICDA included inputs from all the major
producers of the world's nickel and chrome from primary sources. Both
studies were conducted to ISO 14040 standards, and the findings were
reviewed by independent groups of consultants, academics and industry
experts. BHP Billiton inputs to the work for the studies was undertaken
a nickel refinery in Australia, a mine and smelter in Colombia and ferro-
chrome operations in South Africa.
Following the LCA studies, we felt the next step was to determine the
real value of nickel and chrome to society. This led to the pilot project,
which aims to:
• establish LCA profiles for the specific nickel containing prod-
ucts from each of the BHP Billiton Operations included above
• benchmark a notional stainless steel made from BHP Billiton's
nickel and ferrochrome products against the industry average
LCA for stainless steel
• compare a stainless steel application with a competing
material
• assess the strengths and weaknesses of BHP Billiton's process-
ing operations in respect to their health and environmental
impacts.

The project is intended to reflect BHP Billiton's ongoing commitment to
product stewardship.
http://hsecreport.bhpbilliton.com/2002/html/case_10.html

12.2.2.2 Association Initiatives
In the main requests for information have come to the companies through
industry associations. LCIs for many metals have been developed and deliv-
ered by the relevant industry associations; examples include International
Iron and Steel Institute (Steel), International Aluminium Institute (LAI)
(Aluminium), Nickel Development Institute (NiDI) and the International
Chromium Development Association (ICDA). Inventories have been made
available by these associations in the public domain for more than ten years.