9319795 Shields The proposed research investigates the information gap that confronts decision-making regarding both investment in R&D for and deployment of innovative technologies for pollution prevention to support environmentally conscious manufacturing. Commitments by major industries were made up to three years ago to reduce hazardous wastes and toxic emissions by 50% by the year 1995. Industrial managers are now challenged to decide: 1) which product changes should be initiated to achieve pollution prevention goals? 20 which innovative technologies should receive research and development investments to advance pollution prevention goals? and 3) Which processes should be redesigned using innovative technologies that have already been researched and developed but not yet deployed? To ensure the economic as well as the environmental viability of the company, these managers must make informed decisions based on reasonably accurate costs and benefits. Historically, though, environmental costs have not been properly valued, notably externalities have not been internalized by producers. Additionally, the manner in which any environmental costs have been tracked is not conductive to on-going management of technology innovation because the costs are not allocated accurately to technologies, processes and products. The proposed research effort addresses both these needs. Through case-studies and benchmarking the research will establish a systems framework to track environmental costs as well as a method for valuing them. Life-cycle costing will enable this. Eventual practical implementation of the system will be facilitated by formalizing the links between the costs and the technologies by defining waste generating processes and overlaying on them Activity-Based Costing (ABC) methods. The ABC system will be specific to the Chemical and Refining Industries since it is activity based. These two industries were selected for three reasons: 1) together the y contribute to over half of all waste generated in the United States; 2) the tendency to focus on discrete manufacturing has neglected these very important waste producers and economic contributors; and 3) these industries are heavily concentrated in the State of Texas where the majority of the research will be conducted. The wide range of support to this effort from industry representatives, policy organizations, academics and government agencies is a testament to feasibility and desirability of this research endeavor. ***
