Life cycle assessment (LCA) is a long standing measurement and decision support tool that's typically used to assess the impacts of a product or service across a wide range of environmental issues. This is in contrast to product carbon footprinting which gives sole focus to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions such as carbon dioxide and methane. In addition to global warming potential the other environmental issues often include acidification, human toxicity, water impacts, eutrophication, ecotoxicity, amongst others. In fact we can analyse up to 18 different environmental impact categories simultaneously using state of the art methods.
There can be real benefit from considering more than just carbon and GHG's. By considering a basket of impact categories a broad range of environmental burdens can be optimised. This gives confidence that by only optimising the release of greenhouse gases you are not adversely increasing other potentially harmful emissions to air, water or soil - a holistic approach.
This approach also provides a transparent and robust mechanism and methodology for evaluating the trade offs, which are inevitable, between the environmental, social and economic contexts. This approach can then support:
- The decision making process around sustainability within an organisation
- The communication in the public domain of the organisation's environmental credentials
- The positioning of this organisation as a trusted and respected authority to educate its stakeholders on the environmental impacts associated with their products or services.
A complete LCA is analysed over the full life cycle of a product, right from raw material extraction, transport, manufacture, use and finally disposal. LCA is a sophisticated tool and often involves the collection of complex datasets, close analysis and interpretation of results. It provides a powerful opportunity to examine processes in detail. This will identify the 'hot spots' in the life cycle, allowing us to maximise opportunities to design out and reduce waste across the life cycle.
Sustain are experienced LCA experts with a proven track record.
We will break down a project into the four main stages of an
LCA:
1. Goal definition and scoping: Before
starting an LCA it's important to understand the aims of the
project and the needs of the client. This will allow an appropriate
methodology to be constructed and the boundary conditions to be
outlined. To do this successfully we will work closely with the
client, and will clearly outline the implications of different
methodological choices.
2. Inventory analysis: A robust LCA study
requires good data. We will work with the client to collect primary
data that is specific to the project. Where primary data is not
possible or necessary we will utilise the depth of our resources
and network of contacts to source the best available data out
there. This includes Sustain's very own database, Sustaindex©, which is a
comprehensive database of Emissions Factors covering a range of
materials and activities and across all industrial sectors. Sustain
will work closely with you to determine all appropriate inputs and
outputs of materials, fuels, and emissions related to the
study.
3. Impact assessment: Once the data has been
collected the process of calculation and interpretation can begin.
The impact assessment and interpretation stages of an LCA undergo
regular refinement to reflect state of the art knowledge. Approved
practice in LCA has been codified in the ISO 14040:2006 and
14044:2006 standards. Any LCA undertaken by Sustain will follow the
ISO LCA standards.
4. Recommendations for improvement: After the
results have been analysed recommendations for improvement will be
made. This will typically concentrate on the hotspots in the system
to find the biggest savings first. Often a Pareto principle (the
80:20 rule) can be observed - that roughly 80% of the impacts will
come from just 20% of the inputs (i.e. materials, fuels...etc) to
an LCA. Using this philosophy streamlines the process and maximises
the feasible environmental mitigation measures.
Sustain offer the same total solution for your life cycle assessments as for the rest of our Environmental Accounting services (i.e. carbon footprinting and embodied carbon. We provide the following LCA services:
- Full LCA using specialist software
- Streamlined LCA assessment
- Life cycle training and support
- Independent LCA review
Our depth of expertise and experience enables us to deliver complex LCAs for the full life cycle of products with "cradle to grave" assessment of multiple environmental impacts.
