LCA training package

for users of LCA data and results

2003-11-10 Raul Carlson Sandra Hggstrm Ann-Christin Plsson Industrial Environmental Informatics Chalmers University of Technology

About the training package

This training package is based on the course book from the ISO/DEVPRO IRAM LCA training course in Buenos Aires 2003 prepared and held by Raul Carlson and Ann-Christin Plsson, IMI, Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden. The course book is adapted to the needs of the CASCADE project by Sandra Hggstrm, also at IMI, with the assistance of Ann-Christin Plsson. In the adaptation, the original course book has been transferred into the structure for training packages agreed upon within the CASCADE project. Some supplemental information has also been added.

ii

Table of contents
1 Topic: Introduction ...................................................................................... 1
1.1 Session nr 1: Introduction to life cycle thinking.............................................. 1 1.1.1 Background to life cycle perspective.................................................................. 1 1.1.2 LCA, concepts and definitions............................................................................ 2 1.1.3 Work procedure for LCA.................................................................................... 3 1.1.4 Applications for LCA.......................................................................................... 4 1.1.5 Exercise .............................................................................................................. 4 1.2 Session nr 2: Overview of LCA and the ISO 14040 series of standards....... 5 1.2.1 ISO 14040 Principles and framework ISO 14040.............................................. 5 1.2.2 Goal and scope definition .................................................................................. 6 1.2.3 Inventory analysis .............................................................................................. 7
1.2.3.1 1.2.3.2 Inventory components:.............................................................................................. 7 Data collection and documentation........................................................................... 7

1.2.4 1.2.5 1.2.6 1.2.7 1.2.8 1.2.9

Life cycle impact assessment.............................................................................. 8 Life cycle interpretation ..................................................................................... 9 Reporting ............................................................................................................ 9 Data documentation format ............................................................................... 9 Critical review.................................................................................................. 10 Exercise ............................................................................................................ 10

Topic: LCA Goal and scope definition.................................................. 11

2.1 Session nr 3: Goal and scope...................................................................... 11 2.1.1 Goal definition.................................................................................................. 11 2.1.2 Scope definition ................................................................................................ 11
2.1.2.1 2.1.2.2 2.1.2.3 2.1.2.4 2.1.2.5 Function, functional unit and reference flow .......................................................... 12 Initial system boundaries ........................................................................................ 12 Data quality requirements ....................................................................................... 13 Reporting ................................................................................................................ 13 Critical review......................................................................................................... 13

2.1.3

Exercise ............................................................................................................ 14

Topic: LCA Inventory Analysis ............................................................. 16

3.1 Session nr 4: Life cycle inventory ................................................................ 16 3.1.1 Inventory procedure ......................................................................................... 16 3.1.2 Preparing for data collection ........................................................................... 17 3.1.3 Data collection ................................................................................................. 17 3.1.4 Calculation ....................................................................................................... 17 3.1.5 Allocation ......................................................................................................... 18 3.1.6 Exercise ............................................................................................................ 19 3.2 Session nr 5: Documentation....................................................................... 20 3.2.1 Documentation incentives ................................................................................ 20 3.2.2 Role of documentation during the inventory .................................................... 20 3.2.3 Data documentation format ISO/TS 14048...................................................... 21 3.2.4 Data quality...................................................................................................... 22
3.2.4.1 3.2.4.2 3.2.4.3 Reliability................................................................................................................ 22 Accessibility............................................................................................................ 23 Relevance................................................................................................................ 23

3.2.5 3.2.6

Data quality review .......................................................................................... 23 Exercise ............................................................................................................ 24

Topic: LCA Impact assessment ............................................................. 25

4.1 Session nr 6: Mandatory elements of the impact assessment .................... 25 4.1.1 Mandatory elements ......................................................................................... 25 iii

4.1.1.1 4.1.1.2 4.1.1.3

Selection of impact categories ................................................................................ 26 Classification .......................................................................................................... 26 Characterisation ...................................................................................................... 26

4.1.2 Exercise ............................................................................................................ 27 4.2 Session nr 7: Optional elements of the impact assessment........................ 29 4.2.1 Optional elements............................................................................................. 29
4.2.1.1 4.2.1.2 4.2.1.3 4.2.1.4 4.2.1.5 Normalisation.......................................................................................................... 30 Grouping ................................................................................................................. 30 Weighting................................................................................................................ 31 Comparison of weighting methods ......................................................................... 31 Limitations of LCIA ............................................................................................... 32

4.2.2

Exercise ............................................................................................................ 33

Topic: LCA Interpretation ..................................................................... 36

5.1 Session nr 8: Life cycle interpretation .......................................................... 36 5.1.1 Elements of life cycle interpretation................................................................. 36 5.1.2 Identification of significant issues.................................................................... 37 5.1.3 Evaluation ........................................................................................................ 38 5.1.4 Conclusions, recommendations and reporting................................................. 38 5.1.5 Types of LCA studies ........................................................................................ 39 5.1.6 Exercise ............................................................................................................ 39

Topic: Tools and support........................................................................... 41

6.1.1 6.1.2 6.1.3 6.1.4 6.1.5 6.1.6 6.1.7 Introduction ...................................................................................................... 41 Information support.......................................................................................... 41 Competence support......................................................................................... 42 Supportive tools................................................................................................ 42 Impact assessment methods.............................................................................. 43 LCA software.................................................................................................... 44 LCI databases................................................................................................... 45

7 8

Answers to exercises ................................................................................... 46 Terms and definitions ................................................................................ 53

iv

Topic: Introduction

This topic will give an introduction to the life cycle perspective and the central terms and concepts of the LCA. It will also give a short overview of how LCA is performed according to the ISO 14040 standards. Some especially important terms in the LCA nomenclature will be printed in italic style to notify the reader. Terms and definitions are explained in chapter 8.

1.1 Session nr 1: Introduction to life cycle thinking

1.1.1 Background to life cycle perspective
Pipe and chimney solution In the beginning of the industrial era, when the environmental impacts from production processes was first noticed, the solution to the problems were thought to be to lower the concentration of the harmful substances. Instead of releasing the emissions close to where the humans resided, pipes and chimneys were built. End-of-pipe solution Later on, people saw that the consequences of the emissions were still there, even though they did not have an acute impact on human beings any longer. The emissions and effluents were now treated with filters, chemical treatments or combustion. The wastes from the processes were now less hazardous but large amounts of it were produced. Clean process solution The next step towards environmentally friendly processes was to make the process itself cleaner and more efficient to reduce the amounts of waste sent to landfill and to lower the extraction of raw material from non-renewable resources. Product perspective Instead of this process perspective, it is now more common to have a product perspective in the environmental work. For many products, the largest environmental impact does not come from the production. As an example, a car has the most impact on the environment during the years it is used by the customer due to the fuel consumption. To make the car more environmentally friendly it will not be lucrative to make the process cleaner if the fuel consumption during use is not addressed. Phases of the life cycle The life cycle of a product consists of different phases; raw material extraction, production, use, recycling/landfill, and transports. In an ideal world, a product could be manufactured entirely from recycled material of used products. The loop would in that case be closed; no natural resources extracted, and no material sent to landfill or released as emissions; step 2,3 and 4 in the picture below would be continuously repeated. The only input needed would be the energy consumed.
1 Raw material extraction
Transport Transport

2 Production process

Emissions

Emissions

4 Recycling

Emissions

5 Landfill

3 Use of product
Transport

1.1.2 LCA, concepts and definitions

LCA studies the environmental impact of a product in a life cycle perspective; from extraction of raw material, through the different refining and production processes and the use of the product, to the final disposal of the product.1. The different processes included in the product system all have their impacts due to resource extraction, emissions or waste. The function of the product system is quantified as a functional unit to evaluate the environmental performance of the function. The consumer appreciates the function of the products and services and can also be aware of the environmental impacts.

Process/product system

Suppliers

Gate to gate

Use and end of life

Function of product system

Resource extraction

Emissions and waste

Emissions and waste

Emissions and waste

Environmental impact

Impact categories/category indicators

Copyright Raul Carlson, Ann-Christin Plsson, Chalmers 1998

The environmental impact is expressed by impact categories. The impact categories can be defined at different levels; mid-point effects (acidification, eutrophication, global warming, ozone depletion etc) or end-point effects (lessen biodiversity or shorter length of life of humans). The effect on the environment in each impact category is quantified through category indicators e.g. proton release (H+aq) in the case of acidification or infrared radiative forcing (W/m2) in the case of global warming. The life cycle assessment is performed by 1. defining goal and scope for the LCA; 2. compiling an inventory of relevant inputs and outputs of a product system; 3. evaluating the potential environmental impacts; 4. interpreting the results2

LCA can also be used to study the life cycle impact of a service. Here the word product is used to represent both physical products and services. 2 ISO 14040:1997 Environmental management Life cycle assessment Principles and framework

1.1.3 Work procedure for LCA

The work procedure for LCA can be broken down into seven steps: 1. Analysis of the case to identify significant issues. The case material is browsed and analysed with focus on the final target audience and the purpose of the study. 2. Definition of the goal and scope for the case. This step includes documentation of the definitions of the goal and scope. 3. Inventory. The need of data and documentation is identified. The data is collected, validated and documented. 4. Preparation and calculation of the inventory profile in the case. Data is related to the functional unit. System boundaries can be refined. 5. Compilation of the results into the ISO/TS 14048 data documentation format. Document the product system and each included unit process. Document the modelling and validation and supply administrative information. 6. Impact assessment. A full impact assessment includes classification, characterisation and weighting. 7. Interpretation. Interpret the results with the focus defined in the goal and scope.

1.1.4 Applications for LCA

Product development and improvement LCA can be integrated in the environmental management system as a basis for priorities made. Strategic planning LCA can identify the difference in payback from different investment alternatives and facilitate for the company to meet up with future legislation. Public policy making LCA can be used as basis for different public policy decisions, e.g. for new legislation etc. The Integrated Product Policy3 also concerns life cycle thinking. Marketing Environmental labelling e.g. Environmental Product Declarations (EPD) often demands LCA. Other Where the study is used to support a comparative assertion that is disclosed to the public, a critical review shall be conducted, see 2.1.2.5.

1.1.5 Exercise
1) Try to find examples of products where the largest or most detrimental environmental impacts presumably derive from the: - raw material acquisition - production - consumption - disposal

3 The European Commission presented in 2001 a so called Integrated Product Policy. It is an approach which seeks to reduce the life cycle environmental impacts of products from the mining of raw materials to production, distribution, use, and waste management. IPP focuses on those decision points which strongly influence the life cycle environmental impacts of products. The objectives are: Tools for creating the right economic and legal framework. Adapt the market to environmentally friendly products by extended producer responsibility and environmental labelling. Promoting the application of life-cycle thinking. Give support to organisations with life-cycle information and Design for Environment-tools and develop standards for the environmental work. Giving consumers the information to decide. Provide consumers with understandable and reliable product information. It is an attempt by the European Commission to create conditions in which environment-friendly products, or those with a reduced impact on the environment, will gain widespread acceptance among the European Union's consumers.

1.2

Session nr 2: Overview of LCA and the ISO 14040 series of standards

The description of how to perform an LCA in this training package is based on the ISO 14040 series of standards. This series of standards specify which elements that shall be included in the procedure of performing an LCA study.

1.2.1 ISO 14040 Principles and framework ISO 14040

The framework and principles are described in ISO14040:1997. According to ISO 14040 an LCA is divided into four iteratively related phases: Goal and scope definition (described in ISO 14041:1998) Inventory analysis (described in ISO 14041:1998) Life cycle impact assessment (described in ISO 14042:2000) Life cycle interpretation (described in ISO 14043:2000) The overall principles and framework is described in the ISO 14040 standard. The framework shows the relations between the different phases as:

ISO 1997. From ISO 14040:1997

ISO 14040 also describes reporting and critical review of the results, see 2.1.2. ISO/TS 14048:20024 describes the data documentation format, see 3.2.3.

TS stand for Technical Specification. The TS is a normative document that has been approved by a majority of the ISO members and is valid for 3 years. After the 3 years it is either turned into an official standard or withdrawn.

1.2.2 Goal and scope definition

The process to define goal and scope for the study is described in ISO 14041. The standard states that goal and scope shall be consistent with the intended application of the LCA. The LCA begins with the definition of the goal and scope, but as LCA generally is an iterative process they can be refined later in the process, based on interpretation of the results throughout the study. To better reflect the intended application, processes and flows that are originally excluded from the studied system can later be included inside the system boundaries and vice versa. The time period or the impact categories selected may also need to be refined when more information is available. The goal and scope definition is described in detail in Session nr 3.

ISO 1998. From ISO 14041:1998(E)

Elementary flows are energy or material flows that are not refined by any technical process but enter or leave the system directly from/to the nature, e.g. crude oil, air, heat, non-refined minerals but also emissions and effluents that are released into the environment. Non-elementary flows are energy or material flows that are refined through technical processes, e.g. petroleum, electricity and other artificially manufactured components.

1.2.3 Inventory analysis

The inventory analysis is described in ISO 14041 and describes how to define the product system that performs a function, and how to collect and handle data. The inventory analysis is described in detail in Session nr 4. 1.2.3.1 Inventory components: A product system is a collection of unit processes that are connected by intermediate flows. A product system can perform one or more functions. The unit process is the smallest portion of a product system for which data is collected. Examples are individual production processes, production lines, cradle-to-gate systems for components, transports etc. The data categories are inputs and outputs of a unit process or product system. Examples are resources, products, energy, raw materials, emissions, waste etc. The categories facilitate the management of the collected data. Data categories Unit process Unit process

1.2.3.2 Data collection and documentation The data collection is usually the most resource consuming part of the LCA. Documentation of the data collection will assure the quality of the results and might also give reusability to the collected data. The result is the life cycle inventory (LCI) 5, a list of all relevant inputs and outputs from the studied system. Below is a procedure for the inventory analysis derived from ISO 14041.
Goal and scope definition Revised data collection sheet Preparing for data collection Data collection Validation of data Relating data to unit process Relating data to functional unit Data aggregation Additional data or unit processes required Refining the system boundaries Allocation and recycling

The data documentation is described in Session nr 5.

These inputs and outputs are called LCI data will later be linked to their environmental consequences in the impact assessment part of the LCA.
5

1.2.4 Life cycle impact assessment

ISO 14042:2000 describes how to assess the environmental impact of a product system from a chosen environmental perspective. The impact assessment is performed by selecting the relevant the impact categories, category indicators and characterization models assigning the LCI results (classification) calculating the category indicator results (characterisation) Optional elements in the impact assessment are normalisation of category indicators, grouping, weighting and a data quality analysis. In practice this selection is implied by choice of impact assessment method, e.g. EPS, EDIP, Eco-Indicator 99. Below is the ISO 14042 structure for impact assessment. Life cycle impact assessment is described in detail in Session nr 6 and 7. Mandatory elements
Selection of impact categories, category indicators and characterisation models Assignment of LCI results (classification) Calculation of category indicator results (characterisation)

Category indicator results (LCIA profile) Optional elements

Calculation of the magnitude of category indicator results to reference information (normalisation) Grouping Weighting Data quality analysis ISO 2000. From ISO 14042:2000

1.2.5 Life cycle interpretation

ISO 14043:2000 describes how to prepare for the reporting of conclusions and recommendation from the study. In the interpretation the findings of the inventory analysis and the impact assessment are combined in a way that is consistent with the defined goal and scope in order to reach conclusions and recommendations. The completeness, sensitivity and consistency of the study are checked. This is done interactively with the other phases of the LCA. Life cycle interpretation is described in detail in Session nr 8.
Life Cycle Assessment framework Goal and scope definition

Interpretation phase 1. Identification of significent issues 2. Evaluation by - completeness check - sensitivity check - consistency check - other checks

Inventory analysis

Impact assessments

Conclusions, recommendations and reporting

Direct applications - product development and improvement - strategic planning - public policy making - marketing - other

ISO 2000. From ISO 14043:2000

1.2.6 Reporting
Reporting is an important part of an LCA study: Results of the LCA are reported to the intended audience. Type and format of the report is defined in the scope. Results, data, methods, assumptions and limitations shall be transparent and presented in sufficient detail. Allow use of results and interpretation consistent with the goal and scope. When results are to be communicated to any third party, a third-party report shall be prepared as a reference document.

1.2.7 Data documentation format

ISO/TS 14048 is a documentation format for data describing product systems and unit processes as described in ISO 14040 and -41. The documentation is compatible with ISO 14042 and -43. Data documentation according to ISO/TS 14048 is described in detail in Session nr 5.

1.2.8 Critical review

Critical review is performed to ensure that: The methods used to carry out the LCA are consistent with the standards The methods used to carry out the LCA are scientifically and technically valid The data used are appropriate and reasonable in relation to the goal of the study The interpretations reflect the limitations identified and the goal of the study The study report is transparent and consistent The scope and type of critical review is defined in the scope phase of the LCA. If the LCA results are used for comparative assertion a critical review must be performed.

1.2.9 Exercise
1. Which ISO standards describe life cycle assessment? 2. What are the different phases of an LCA called and what is included in each phase? 3. What is a product system?

10

Topic: LCA Goal and scope definition

This chapter describes the first phase of the life cycle assessment, i.e. how to define the goal and scope in accordance with ISO 14041. The goal and scope is defined together with the commissioner of the study and shall be clearly defined and consistent with the intended application. LCA is an iterative process and this allow for modifications of this part later in the process if needed. The usefulness of the study for other purposes than the original can be described as a separate item in the goal and scope definition. The goal and scope should be studied carefully before reusing the results of the study in a new context.

2.1

Session nr 3: Goal and scope

2.1.1 Goal definition

The goal is defined together with the commissioner. It is important that the goal is clearly defined and understood before commencing the work. The goal is defined in terms of: Intended application and reasons for carrying out the study Acquire a clear description of the commissioners reasons for carrying out the study and the intended applications of the results e.g. marketing, product development etc. Intended audience Acquire a clear description of the commissioners intended audience for the result of the study.

2.1.2 Scope definition

The scope is defined together with the commissioner based on the goal and available resources. The scope is defined in terms of: Function, functional unit and reference flow. Identify the function or the product to which the assessment is related. Initial system boundaries Define the product system in terms of included processes, and excluded processes. Describe the data categories (inputs and outputs). Describe initial assumptions and limitations Establish criteria for inclusion of inputs and outputs (elementary flows). Choose initial allocation procedures Choose methodology of impact assessment Data quality requirements Describe intention regarding site-specific and general process data, in terms of e.g. completeness and representative qualities. Describe sufficiency in terms of e.g. precision, consistency and reproducibility. Report and critical review Type and format of the report required for the application Define the scope and type of critical review Each of these issues is described in detail below.

11

2.1.2.1 Function, functional unit and reference flow The function delivered by the product system is expressed by a functional unit. The functional unit is thus a measure of the functional performance of the outputs of the product system. It is used to compare the function produced by the product with the environmental effects from the products life cycle. A product system may have several functions. The functional unit that best describes the system in line with the goal and scope of the study is chosen. When an LCA is performed to compare two products it is important to make sure that the functions delivered by the two products are comparable. An example is when single use items are compared to reusable items (cutlery, cups, clothes etc). Then the functional unit cannot be based on the product item but has to be based on the function (1000 meals, 1000 times of use etc) to make a fair comparison. Length of life of products and services is also important to have in mind when deciding the functional unit. The functional unit is usually expressed with a reference flow. For example, the reference flow for the functional unit 1 m2 painted wall can be the amount of paint needed to paint the wall based on defined characteristics for e.g. coverage of paint etc. An appropriate reference flow for each unit process shall also be determined in order to facilitate the calculations (e.g. 1 kg of material or 1 MJ of energy). The quantitative input and output data of the unit process shall be calculated in relation to this reference flow. 2.1.2.2 Initial system boundaries The system boundaries define which unit processes to be included in the studied product system and which can be excluded. The product system is a collection of unit processes which performs one or more functions. These unit processes are connected by flows of intermediate products. Ideally, the inputs and outputs that cross the boundaries of the product system should be elementary flows, i.e. all flows are followed back to the cradle. Mostly there will not be time or resources enough for such a comprehensive study. Resources need not be expended on the inputs and outputs that will not significantly influence the study. The system boundaries can be expanded or reduced later on in the study, if e.g. a sensitivity analysis shows that it is suitable.

ISO 1998. From ISO 14041:1998(E)

12

2.1.2.3 Data quality requirements Data quality requirements specify the characteristics of the data needed to enable the goal and scope of the LCA study. During the goal and scope the following should be considered and described: Intention regarding site-specific and general process data, in terms of e.g. completeness and representative qualities. Data sufficiency in terms of e.g. precision, consistency and reproducibility. 2.1.2.4 Reporting There are two major issues to observe during the reporting; 1. That the report is structured after the intended purpose. The reporting shall allow use of results and interpretation in a manner consistent with the goal and scope. The type and format of the report are defined in the scope and will be different depending on the intended audience. The results shall be fairly, completely and accurately reported in a way that is adapted to the intended audience. 2. That the information is presented with sufficient transparency and accuracy. Results, data, methods, assumptions and limitations shall be transparently reported and presented in sufficient detail. When results are to be communicated to any third party, a third-party report shall be prepared as a reference document that contains information of the commissioner, the practitioner, the critical reviewer and other information that is needed to make the report fully comprehensible. 2.1.2.5 Critical review The critical review assures the quality of the study. It can be performed by e.g. an expert or by an interested party independent of the study, the so called third party. There are three types of critical review processes: Internal expert review External expert review Review by interested parties Critical reviews are performed to ensure that: 1. The methods used to carry out the LCA are consistent with the standards and scientifically and technically valid 2. The data used are appropriate and reasonable in relation to the goal of the study 3. The interpretations reflect the goal of the study 4. The limitations of the study are identified 5. The report is transparent and consistent and the type and format is addressed to the intended audience The scope describes the type of critical review desired for the study, but also the scope of the critical review, i.e. the purpose, the level of detail, the parts that needs to be involved in the process etc. Where the study is used to support a comparative assertion that is disclosed to the public, a critical review is required to decrease the likelihood of misunderstandings or negative effects on external interested parties. The critical review shall however not be seen as a confirmation of the interpretations in the comparative assertion.

13

2.1.3 Exercise
1) Multiple choice tests find the incorrect answer/answers: a) The goal definition a) is the starting point for the LCA b) should describe the data categories c) should be defined together with the commissioner d) should describe the intended application of the study b) Inputs and outputs a) from a product system are data categories b) are included or excluded in the scope c) to the studied system are always elementary flows d) can be both material flows and energy flows c) The scope a) may be changed later on in the LCA b) defines the type and format of the report c) defines the scope and type of the critical review d) describe the data quality requirements 2) Functional unit. In the examples below only the outputs of products are displayed for the sake of simplicity. Functional units can be based on inputs as well as outputs. Choose suitable functional units for inventorying the CO2 emissions from the following systems (CO2 emissions/functional unit), several answers are possible:

A. Plywood box, cradle to gate

Production of steel Output: 1 kg steel bar Hot rolling of steel strips Output: 0.2 kg steel strip Production of plywood Output: 1.5 kg plywood sheet Zinc coating of steel strips Output: 0.2 kg coated steel strip Production of nails Output: 0.025 kg steel nails

Production of plywood box Output: 1 plywood box (Weight: 14 kg)

14

B. Lubricant, cradle to grave

Oil extraction Output: 1 m3oil

Oil refining Output: 1 m3oil Production of lubricant Output: 1 l lubricant Use of lubricant Output: 1 kg waste oil/hour

Combustion of waste oil Output: emissions [mg/hour]

C. Energy, cradle to gate

Coal extraction Output: 1 kg coal

Coal combustion Output: 1 MJ

Exhaust gas treatment Output: emissions [mg/hour]

Waste treatment Output: emissions [mg/hour]

Heat generation Output: 1 MJ

Electricity generation Output: 1 MJ

15

3 Topic: LCA Inventory Analysis

This chapter treats the inventory procedure described in ISO 14041 and the data documentation described in ISO/TS 140486. This phase results in life cycle inventory data (LCI-data). The inventory is more or less a list of all the materials in the inputs and outputs of the studied process system, documented with a certain data format. Energy inputs can also be materialised if traced back to the energy source e.g. coal, oil or uranium. The reliability of the results of the LCA study is highly dependent on the reliability of the data the results are derived from, and the data documentation is therefore a crucial issue.

3.1

Session nr 4: Life cycle inventory

3.1.1 Inventory procedure

The procedure of the inventory analysis according to ISO 14041 is shown below:

ISO 1998. From ISO 14041:1998

The procedure consists of the following steps: 1) Preparing for data collection 2) Data collection 3) Calculation 4) Allocation Each step is described in detail below.

TS stand for Technical Specification. The TS is a normative document that has been approved by a majority of the ISO members and is valid for 3 years. After the 3 years it is either turned into an official standard or withdrawn.

16

3.1.2 Preparing for data collection

In a real LCA-study the data collection has the largest importance for the usefulness of the result, and consumes most of the resources of the study. Therefore, the preparations should be carefully made to make use of the resources as efficiently as possible. Steps of the preparation: 1) Identify which unit processes to collect data for 2) Define data documentation requirements 3) Select data documentation format for all data 4) Author instructions for the reporters of data 5) Identify which data source to collect data from, e.g.: real processes (companies, production sites, etc.) new modelling or estimations external databases and literature in-house databases and reports

3.1.3 Data collection

The data collection should begin immediately after the preparations as it is very time consuming. It is recommended to document the data continuously during the collection. This will increase the quality, assure transparency and reviewability of data and reduce the time and effort needed as the knowledge is still fresh in the memory. This will also enable collected data to be reused in new LCA studies and for other applications. A description of each unit process is important to avoid double counting or gaps. In a real LCA-study different issues are important when collecting data from different data sources: Data source: Real processes (companies, production sites, etc) New modelling or estimations External databases and literature In-house databases and reports Important issues: Questionnaires, reporting manuals, dialogues and business agreements Process modelling, extrapolations, modelling from similarity, substitutes for real data, etc Transparency, pricing, copyright, applicability Secrecy, applicability, transparency, remodelling

3.1.4 Calculation
The validation of data is made continuously to see that the data collected is representative and valid for the process system it is supposed to describe. The methods to do this can be to use mass/energy balances, compare with similar data and find a way to handle missing data and data gaps. The data should be related to a unit process, this is done by determining a reference flow for each unit process and normalising the data to this flow. The data should also be related to the functional unit, this is done by normalising the data from each unit process to the functional unit. The aggregation is made to obtain the results from the inventory. Flows that are of the same data category (e.g. air emissions) and same substance (e.g. CH4) of different unit processes are aggregated to produce a total value for the whole system. Be careful to avoid doublecounting and aggregate only if it is the same substance and the same data category! 17

Finally the system boundaries might need to be refined. A sensitivity analysis will show if there is need of improving some data or the scope of the study.

3.1.5 Allocation
An allocation is the assignment or division of a common flow to different part processes. Few industrial processes yield only a single output and therefore the study shall identify the processes shared with other product systems. The materials and energy flows as well as associated environmental releases shall be allocated to the different product outputs. The priority for choice of allocation procedure is as follows: 1. Avoid allocation. This can be done by dividing the process and using more detailed data or expanding the system so that co-products etc are included. 2. Use physical relationships between inputs and outputs within the process. They reflect the way in which the inputs and outputs are changed by products or functions delivered by the system and are not necessarily in proportion to simple measurement such as the mass or molar flows of co-products. 3. Use other relationships, e.g. price or mass. Further issues arise if reuse or recycling of the product occurs. The inputs and outputs will have to be shared by other product systems and care must be taken to if the physical properties of recycled materials are changed. The product system can be of closed loop or open loop type. Systems where the recovered materials are used in the same application as they were used in originally are called closed loop systems. An example is the aluminium can recycling system. When the recovered materials are used for other applications than the original it is an open loop system, as in e.g. paper or plastics recycling systems. The allocation procedure for a life cycle inventory is a little more complicated. The closed loop allocation procedure also applies to an open loop recycling system where the materials physical properties do not change in the process and the recycled material is used to substitute virgin material in another product system. This can be illustrated as:

Technical description of a product system Material from a product system is recycled in the same product system Material from one product system is recycled in another product system Closed loop Open loop Open loop Closed loop

Allocation procedures for recycling Material is recycled without change in the inherent properties

Recycled material undergoes change in inherent properties

ISO 1998. From ISO 14041:1998

18

3.1.6 Exercise
1) Normalise the unit processes to the functional unit in the example. 2) Allocate the CO2 emissions from the steel production to the steel strips and steel nails for the plywood box. 3) Construct a data collection form for an inventory of CO2 emissions for plywood box production. 4) Why does the data need to be validated? Example: CO2 emissions from production of plywood boxes The plywood box in this example is manufactured from 12 kg of plywood, 1.6 kg of steel strips and 0.4 kg steel nails. The functional unit in this example is CO2 emissions/plywood box. The steel producer provides both the strip manufacturer and nail manufacturer with steel. No recycled material is used. Transports are excluded. The weight of the output (product) from each unit process is documented in the flow chart below: Production of steel Weight of steel bar: 1 kg

Hot rolling of steel strips Weight of strip: 0.2 kg Production of plywood Weight of sheet: 1.5 kg Zinc coating of steel strips Weight of coated strip: 0.2 kg Production of nails Weight of ten nails: 0.025 kg

Production of plywood box Total weight: 14 kg CO2 emissions from each unit process (all values are fictional): Process Production of steel Hot rolling of steel strips Zinc coating of steel strips Production of nails Production of plywood Production of plywood box CO2 emissions 1210 100 15 120 128 178 Unit g/kg steel g/kg strip g/kg coated strip g/ kg nails g/kg plywood g/plywood box

19

3.2

Session nr 5: Documentation

3.2.1 Documentation incentives

Without documentation the collected data would only be digits without meaning no matter how correct, representative or exact the measurement is. To take an example, if a person requests information about the concentration of lead in Swedish lakes, he or she will not be contented if the answer given is 0, 04509 or even 0, 0450912. On the contrary, the person will be very interested in knowing the unit of measurement (mg/m3), the number of lakes investigated (seven medium-sized lakes in the south of Sweden) the competence of the practitioner (authorized governmental inspector), the number and method of the measurements taken (3 tests close to shore, 3 tests at surface, 3 tests at bottom aggregated to a mean value), the time of measurement (early spring 1998) etc. If all this information is available, the value of the data is increased and the user can form a personal opinion of the quality, usefulness and representativeness of the data.

3.2.2 Role of documentation during the inventory

The documentation is thus an important part of LCA. The documentation of data is described by ISO/TS 14048 data documentation format. ISO/TS 14048 has a fundamental role during the inventory: Documentation of the data collection Provides a format for documenting data and data processing. Combines the structuring of data and documentation. Provides a framework for data questionnaires. Facilitates interpretation of data from data sources. Facilitates re-use of data in other LCA studies. Documentation of the calculations Facilitates structuring of data for calculations. Structures data to facilitate validation. Documentation of the allocations Allows for documentation of both allocated and unallocated data. Allows for documentation of decisions and processing made during the allocation. A common data documentation format enables the collected data to be understood, interpreted and reviewed. It will also facilitate the exchange, storage and retrieval of LCA-data without loss of transparency.

20

3.2.3 Data documentation format ISO/TS 14048

The technical specification ISO/TS7 14048 is part of the ISO 14040 series of standards and specifies and describes a data documentation format. It supports transparent reporting, interpretation and review of data collection, data calculation, data quality and data reporting. It also facilitates data exchange between data users in different contexts etc. The format is intended for data documentation of processes, e.g. individual production processes, production lines, production plants, product systems, waste management systems, individual transports, transportation routes etc. Scope of the format: Handles the documentation for all steps of an LCI. Developed and structured for documentation of: Processes, i.e. unit processes and product systems descriptions Process description Inputs and outputs Modelling and validation Administrative information

ISO 2002. From ISO/TS 14048:2002

The data documentation format for description of a process consists thus of three parts: - Process, which contains the Process description, a description of properties of the modelled process with regard to technology, time-related and geographical coverage etc. The Process part also includes Inputs and outputs to the modelled process and a description of the properties of those, documentation about the data collection etc. - Modelling and validation, which contains the description of prerequisites for the modelling and the validation of the process e.g. modelling choices describing which processes and flows that have been excluded. - Administrative information, which contains general and administrative information related to the administration of the documentation of the process e.g. data commissioner, date completed, copyright etc.

7 TS stand for Technical Specification. The TS is a normative document that has been approved by a majority of the ISO members and is valid for 3 years. After the 3 years it is either turned into an official standard or withdrawn.

21

Structural components of the format: Each unit process is documented in a separate document. A product system is documented in the same way as a unit process, but also refers to documents that describe each included unit process, and their interrelationships (inputand output-connections). Documentation is divided into distinct data fields with a specified data type as date, number, short text etc to facilitate documentation and interpretation. Data fields describing inputs and outputs supports calculations of LCA. For a full description of the documentation please see ISO/TS 140488 and Flemstrm & Plsson9. Examples of documented processes can be found in Carlson&Plsson10.

3.2.4 Data quality

One of the main issues with this course is to explain how to assess data quality. Data quality is needed for the data to be useful and reliable. The reliability of the results of the LCA study is highly dependent on the reliability of the data the results are derived from. Data quality may be defined as characteristics on data that bears on their ability to satisfy stated requirements. The quality of a dataset can only be assessed if the characteristics of the data are sufficiently documented. Data quality does therefore in many respects correspond to documentation quality. The dimensions of data quality9 can be depicted as:

R. Carlson, A-C Plsson, Chalmers University of Technology, 1998

3.2.4.1 Reliability To be able to draw conclusions from the result when using the data, the data should be reliable. The reliability of data depends on the precision of data and the credibility of the origin of the data. The precision of data concerns the numerical accuracy and the uncertainty of data. This quality aspect, though important, is not sufficient if all other aspects of data quality are explicitly not known. The credibility of the origin of the data concerns how
ISO/TS 14048:2002 Environmental management Life cycle assessment Data documentation format Flemstrm K., Plsson A-C. "Introduction and guide to LCA data documentation using the CPM documentation criteria and the ISO/TS 14048 data documentation format" CPM report 2003:3, Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden. The report may be downloaded from www.cpm.chalmers.se 10 Carlson R., Plsson A-C.; First examples of practical application of ISO/TS 14048 Data Documentation Format. CPM-report 2001:8, Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden. The report may be downloaded from www.cpm.chalmers.se
9 8

22

credible the data is determined to be. For example, any statement regarding precision is useless, unless the data origin may be considered credible. Credibility may be achieved through transparency and competence. If the data cannot be transparently reviewed it is impossible to assess its credibility. Also, the credibility of data depends on if the data has been acquired by someone with competence regarding the technology and the system that is described by the data. For instance, a data set describing a specific plant would generally be considered more credible if the data is acquired by someone working within the plant and well familiar with the process, than if the data is acquired by someone who is not situated at the plant and is not familiar with the process. 3.2.4.2 Accessibility Accessibility of data has generally not been considered as a quality aspect, but more as a general problem in LCA. However, if the data is not accessible for the data users no other quality aspects can be considered. The accessibility of data concerns data communication, openness after data acquisition and semantic. Data communication is an important aspect of accessibility. In order for data to be useful, it needs to be mobile, i.e. it needs to be efficiently communicated between the data suppliers and the data users. This may be done in many different ways such as via mail, questionnaires, specific formats etc. Data communication may however only be done depending on the openness after data acquisition. If aspects regarding openness, e.g. secrecy, is not solved or handled adequately, the accessibility of data will be obstructed. The semantic aspect of data is also a vital component of the accessibility of data. Data are generally acquired within a specific context, for example within a company. When the data are communicated within this specific context, terminology and other aspects regarding e.g. the technology are implicit and do not generally need explanation. However, if the data is to be communicated to someone who operates in a different context, the terminology and other implicit aspects must be explicitly explained, for the data to be understood and accessible. 3.2.4.3 Relevance Regardless of all other aspects of data quality, if the data is not relevant for the context in which it will be used it is not useful. For any specific data set relevance can be divided into two groups; general (suited for LCA) and specific (suited for a specific application). The general issue regards that the data must describe environmentally relevant in- and outflows in a system, which fulfils a function, expressed by a functional unit or a functional flow. The specific issue, i.e. that the data is suited for the specific application, regards whether or not the data is relevant for the application in which it is used.

3.2.5 Data quality review

Because data collection is such an expensive task, it is more economic to reuse data already collected, and most LCA practitioners do reuse data from previous studies retrieved from LCI databases or other sources. A data quality review is needed before a dataset is used by another person than the one that created it, to form an opinion of the reliability and the relevance of the data. Data sufficiently documented should ideally not need further research for the data user to be able to interpret and correctly use the data. In practice the general ambition for documentation may vary depending on for what the data will be used and within which contextual environment the data will be communicated. The concept of sufficient documentation is thus very much dependant on the application and the receiver of the information.11

11 Flemstrm K., Plsson A-C. "Introduction and guide to LCA data documentation using the CPM documentation criteria and the ISO/TS 14048 data documentation format" CPM report 2003:3

23

According to ISO 14041, the following data quality requirements should be considered when performing an LCA: time related coverage geographical coverage technology coverage Also, further descriptors to define the nature of the data should be given, and the following parameters should be considered at an appropriate level of detail: precision completeness representativeness consistency reproducibility A dataset documented in the ISO/TS 14048 format is sufficiently documented to make a review of these quality requirements possible. The ISO 14041 requirements may be used as a guideline when assessing the quality of a dataset documented in another format.

3.2.6 Exercise
1) Which parts is the documentation of processes divided into? 2) How can data quality be assessed?

24

4 Topic: LCA Impact assessment

The life cycle impact assessment is described in ISO 14042. In this phase of the LCA, all inventoried inputs and outputs are related to their environmental consequences and the impact is assessed. The result is an LCIA profile that may optionally be further treated by normalisation, grouping and/or weighting.

4.1

Session nr 6: Mandatory elements of the impact assessment

4.1.1 Mandatory elements

The impact assessment assigns the results from the inventory to impact categories or classes of environmental problems. It is important to be aware of that a problem will only exist if there is a person that experiences it as a problem. Thus the impact assessment can never be entirely objective. Below is the structure for impact assessment according to ISO 14042. Mandatory elements
Selection of impact categories, category indicators and characterisation models

Assignment of LCI results (classification) Calculation of category indicator results (characterisation)

Category indicator results (LCIA profile)

ISO 2000. From ISO 14042:2000

1) The first step is the selection of impact categories, category indicators and characterisation models. It is important to document the subjective choices that are made in the selection. In practice this selection is implied by choice of impact assessment method, e.g. EPS, EDIP and Eco-Indicator 99, where the selection of impact categories, etc. has already been made. 2) Step number two is the assignment of the LCI results to impact categories (classification). This assignment is in practice also implied by choice of impact assessment method. 3) The third step is the calculation of category indicator results (characterization). In practice this calculation is performed by multiplying the LCI-results with characterization factors. The calculation results in the contribution to the impact on each category indicator. These factors are equivalence factors based on scientific conclusions of how large the impact on the category indicator is from a certain substance. The characterisation factors are also provided by the impact assessment method. The result when these three steps have been performed is an life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) profile, i.e. measures of how large the environmental impact from the process system is on each impact category or category indicator results. This is the mandatory part of the impact assessment.

25

4.1.1.1 Selection of impact categories Impact categories can describe environmental impacts on different levels. One alternative is to use the effect on nature like acidification, eutrophication, global warming, ozone depletion etc (mid-point effects). Another alternative is to use the consequences these effects will have, like lessen biodiversity or shorter length of life of humans (end-point effects). Category indicators are quantified measures that are representative for an impact category. The characterisation model describes how strong the effect on the environment is from a certain substance compared to other substances in the same impact category. The characterisation converts the assigned LCI results to the common unit of the category indicator. The characterisation model is included in the impact assessment methods. In the Eco Indicator 99 method there are three impact categories: Impact category Ecosystem Quality Human Health Resources Category indicator Potentially disappeared fraction DALY (Disability Adjusted Life Years) Resource damage Unit PDF*m2*yr person*year MJ/kg

Other impact assessment methods have other impact categories, the number of which varies. 4.1.1.2 Classification In the classification step, the substances on the list from the inventory are assigned to the impact category that they affect. Some substances will contribute to one exclusive impact category while others might contribute to two or more. The flows of the substances must in the latter case be allocated between the different impact categories, unless there is a serial mechanism. As an example, NOx emissions may contribute to both acidification and ground-level ozone formation in turn and the total flow will be assigned to both of these two categories. SOx emissions on the other hand, will contribute to both impairment of human health and acidification, but these impact categories are parallel mechanisms, and the flow will be allocated between the two impact categories. 4.1.1.3 Characterisation The characterisation model describes how strong the effect on the environment is from a certain input or output from the inventory. The severity of the impact varies for equal amounts of two substances. The work with associating the use of a resource or the outlet of an emission to environmental problems like extinction of species is thorough and requires scientific knowledge, time and resources. It is however possible to refine the classification step of the chosen impact assessment method after own knowledge of local conditions. The refinement of the method must however be thoroughly documented to keep the reliability. As an example, CH4 is a worse green house gas than CO2. The impact category global warming has usually kg of CO2 as common unit. The characterisation factor for CO2 is hence 1, while e.g. CH4 has 4. This means that 1 kg of CH4 has the same impact as 4 kg of CO2. In the example below the LCI results are normalised to the functional unit of the whole study, e.g. kg SO2 / litre of lubricant produced. Acidification is chosen for impact category and the SO2 emissions are assigned to this category. The next step is the characterisation, where the contribution to proton release of 1 kg of SO2 is compared to the contribution from 1 kg of HCl, 1 kg of H2SO4 etc with help from characterisation factors. The LCI-results are in practice multiplied with the characterisation factors to become LCIA results. 26

 ISO 2000 From ISO 14042:2000

4.1.2 Exercise
1) Manual characterisation A company wants to compare their old Product A with a new Product B that they have developed as a more environmentally friendly alternative. The results from a life cycle inventory, cradle-to-grave, of the two products are presented below. All values are normalised to the functional unit.
Product A Resources Name Crude oil (resource) Hard coal (resource) Lead ore Nickel ore Zinc in ore Emissions to air Methylene chloride Methane Copper Lead Cadmium Benzene Hexachlorobenzene Ni Formaldehyde CO2 Chloroform Amount 5.655 0.5348 0.0586 0.896 0.262 0.67 0.007862 0.00186 0.0001786 0.0000982 0.0687 0.009717 0.000197 0.001937 1.869 0.0000727 Unit kg MJ kg kg kg kg kg kg kg kg kg kg kg kg kg kg

27

Product B Resources

Name Natural gas (resource) Hard coal (resource) Nickel ore Zinc in ore

Amount 1.85 0.5348 0.786 0.282 0.348 0.00572 0.00164 0.006214 0.000128 0.000837 2.551 0.5698 0.00789

Unit kg MJ kg kg kg kg kg kg kg kg kg kg kg

Emissions to air

Methylene chloride Methane Copper Hexachlorobenzene Ni Formaldehyde CO2 Nitrous oxide Pentachlorophenol

Use the table below to associate the substances with the impact categories ecosystem quality (Potentially disappeared fraction [PDF*m2*yr]), human health (Disability Adjusted Life Years [person*year]), and/or resources (Resource damage [MJ/kg]). Multiply the LCI-results with the characterisation factor for the impact category, and make a statement if the new product really is more environmentally friendly! Impact assessment information:
Source Air emissions Air emissions Air emissions Air emissions Air emissions Air emissions Air emissions Air emissions Air emissions Air emissions Air emissions Air emissions Air emissions Air emissions Fossil fuel extraction Fossil fuel extraction Fossil fuel extraction Mineral extraction Mineral extraction Mineral extraction Name Hexachlorobenzene Ni Formaldehyde Cadmium CO2 Chloroform Methylene chloride Nitrous oxide Methane Copper Lead Cadmium Benzene Pentachlorophenol Crude oil (resource) Hard coal (resource) Natural gas (resource) Lead ore Nickel ore Zinc in ore Characterization factor 5.36E-00 1.53E+00 6.44E-05 8.77E-00 1.36E-05 5.39E-05 1.23E-04 4.48E-03 2.86E-04 2.85E-01 4.95E-01 1.88 5.36E-07 2.59E-03 7.02E-04 1.02E-06 1.78E-05 4.38E-05 2.91E-05 2.24E-04 Unit DALY/kg DALY/kg DALY/kg DALY/kg DALY/kg DALY/kg DALY/kg DALY/kg DALY/kg PDF m2 yr/kg PDF m2 yr/kg PDF m2 yr/kg PDF m2 yr/kg PDF m2 yr/kg MJ/kg MJ/MJ MJ/MJ MJ/kg MJ/kg MJ/kg

28

4.2

Session nr 7: Optional elements of the impact assessment

4.2.1 Optional elements

In addition to the mandatory parts of impact assessment, there are some optional elements to facilitate the interpretation of results: Normalisation, i.e. calculating the magnitude of category indicator results relative to reference information. This can for example be done for comparison with a reference system. Grouping, i.e. group impact categories Weighting, i.e. quantitatively prioritize between impact categories. In practice the weighting is performed by assignment of the set of category indicators to a weighting method. Data quality analysis, i.e. identify significant contributors and major uncertainty and sensitivity. It is essential that these actions are transparently documented since other individuals, organizations and societies may have different preferences of the display of the results and might want to normalise/group/weigh them differently. The category indicator results deriving from the mandatory parts of the impact assessment may look like:
Impact categories Depletion of element reserves Depletion of fossil reserves Life expectancy Nuisance Crop production capacity Production capacity of water Category indicators Cu reserves [kg Cu] Natural gas reserves [kg] Years of lost life [person*year] Nuisance [person*year] Crop production capacity [kg] Production capacity of irrigation water [kg] Amount 1.658 895 258 8963 4658 58 Unit kg kg person*year person*year kg kg

This information might be difficult to interpret and make use of due to lack of time, knowledge etc. The optional elements of the impact assessment can make the information more accessible. Category indicator results (LCIA profile) Optional elements
Calculation of the magnitude of category indicator results to reference information (normalisation) Grouping Weighting Data quality analysis ISO 2000. From ISO 14042:2000

29

4.2.1.1 Normalisation The normalisation is a calculation of the relative magnitude of the LCIA results from a comparison with reference information. This will help understand the relative significance of each indicator result in the study. It can also be a first check of consistency. A sensitivity analysis may provide additional information about the choice of reference value or baseline. In practice all LCIA results are divided with a reference value that can be e.g.: the total use of resource or emissions for a given area, which may be global, regional, national or local the total use of resource or emissions for a given area on a per capita-basis or similar measurement a baseline scenario, such as a given alternative product system The normalised results will provide information that is displayed the way the information was asked for. E.g. how much of the environmental deterioration in an area that is caused by the investigated product system, or give an answer to if the new product system is more environmentally friendly than the old one. 4.2.1.2 Grouping Grouping is the assignment of impact categories into different groups, e.g. use of resource and emissions or global regional and local spatial scales. This element contains also the ranking of impact categories in a given hierarchy, e.g. high, medium and low priority. For the impact assessment method Eco Indicator 99, there are only three impact categories; Ecosystem Quality, Human Health and Resources, therefore grouping or ranking may be unnecessary. The EPS impact assessment method on the other hand has many different impact categories that are grouped together in five groups to make the method easier to grasp. Some examples of the content of the five groups:
Group Abiotic stock resource Impact categories Depletion of element reserves Depletion of fossil reserves Depletion of mineral reserves Human health impact Production capacity of ecosystem Life expectancy Nuisance Crop production capacity Production capacity of water Base cat-ion capacity Bio-diversity impact Cultural and recreation value Extinction of species Defined when needed Category indicators Cu reserves [kg Cu] Natural gas reserves [kg] Bauxite reserves [kg] Years of lost life [person*year] Nuisance [person*year] Crop production capacity [kg] Production capacity of irrigation water [kg] Base cat-ion capacity [H+ mole equivalent] Normalised extinction of species [dimensionless] Defined when needed

30

4.2.1.3 Weighting Weighting is the converting of the results of each impact category to a comparable unit with value-based numerical factors or, simply, weighting factors. A subjective and quantitative priority is given of the relative severity of different impact categories, e.g. if resource depletion is worse than extinct species. The available impact assessment methods usually have some kind of weighting model. EPS is a Swedish method where the weighting model is based on surveys and interviews with people in the OECD countries of their willingness to pay (WTP) to avoid certain environmental impacts. EDIP is a Danish method where the weighting model is based on the distance to political targets. The weighting factors of Eco Indicator 99 are based on decisions from an expert panel. Instead of displaying the results as 3.5 MJ depleted resources 20 PDF*m2*yr potentially disappeared fraction species 15 person*years of disability for human beings these impact categories are weighted compared to each other. The Eco Indicator 99 has the following priority: Impact Category Human Health Ecosystem Quality Resources Weighting factor 400 400 200 Unit ECO 99 unit/DALY ECO 99 unit/PDF m2 yr ECO 99 unit/MJ

Using these weighting factors: Resource depletion stands for 3.5 x 200 = 700 ECO 99 units Extinct species 20 x 400 = 8 000 ECO 99 units Disability adjusted life years 15 x 400 = 6 000 ECO 99 units This means in this case that resource depletion is viewed as a minor problem, contributing with less than 5% of the total environmental impact. It is important to remember that the trade-offs between environmental impacts are always subjective. All weighting methods and operations used shall be documented to provide transparency. 4.2.1.4 Comparison of weighting methods The subjectivity of the weighting methods can be shown by a comparative example. Noh and Lee of the Environmental Engineering Department of Ajou University in Korea has studied five different environmental impact assessment methods. They were the IEF, EcoIndicator99, Korean, EPS and EDIP methods, from Finland, the Netherlands, Korea, Sweden and Denmark respectively. In a case study on LCA of printed circuit boards, impact assessments were performed with each of the different methods. The conclusions were that IEF/EcoIndicator99/Korean and EPS/EDIP were similar but the two groups results differed to a large extent12. The judgments of the severity of the impact from the different components are seen in the figure below:

12

The results were presented at the International Conference & Exhibition on Life Cycle Assessment of April 25 27 2000, Arlington, Virginia 31

There is thus a difference in how environmental problems are ranked in expert panels, in the setting of political targets and how they are ranked by the public when it comes to pay extra money for an environmental sound product. 4.2.1.5 Limitations of LCIA Some limitations of the impact assessment which are important to be aware of: 1) the LCIA is not a complete assessment of all the environmental issues of the product system, but assess the issues that are identified in the goal and scope 2) value-choices are used in the selection of impact categories, category indicators and characterization models as well as in normalization, grouping and weighting 3) LCIA combines emissions or activities over space and/or time and this may diminish the environmental relevance of the indicator result 4) the characterization model contains simplifying assumptions of the corresponding environmental mechanism 5) LCIA results do not predict impacts on category endpoints, exceeding of thresholds, safety margins or risks 6) The relevance of the impact assessment is also limited by lacks of scientific knowledge and data gaps

32

4.2.2 Exercise
1) Interpreted results Consider what type of information that is disclosed and that is hidden in the presentations of the results from an LCA study of fridges below. Grouped results The category indicator results are divided into the groups; Human health, Ecosystem damage and Resource depletion. Human health
50 40 DALY 30 20 10 0
s R es p. or ga ni cs R es p. in or ga ni cs C li m at e ch an ge ar ci no ge n ad ia tio n ep le ti o n

Fridge 1 Fridge 2

R O

Ecosystem damage
10000000 8000000 PDF*m2yr 6000000 4000000 2000000 0
Ecotoxicity Acidification/ Eutrophication Land use

zo ne

la ye rd

Fridge 1 Fridge 2

Resource depletion
25000000 20000000 MJ surplus 15000000 10000000 5000000 0 Minerals Fossil fuels

Fridge 1 Fridge 2

33

Normalised results The product (Fridge nr 2) is compared with the old product (Fridge nr 1) according to the formula (New fridge Old fridge) / Old fridge * 100 = % change.
200 150 100
% change

50 0 -50
et io n Ec ca ot tio ox n/ ici Eu ty t ro ph ic at io n La nd us e M in er al s Fo ss il fu el s ns s ic s e an ic no ge rg an an g at io n de pl or g ad i ch

New fridge

ar ci

in o

es p.

at e

R O zo n e la y

es p.

Weighted results The results are weighted with the EcoIndicator 99 method: 1 DALY 1 PDF*m2yr 1 MJ Weighted impact:
5,00E+09 4,00E+09 ECO 99 3,00E+09 2,00E+09 1,00E+09 0,00E+00
ns .o rg es an p. ic s in or ga C ni lim cs at e ch an ge O zo R ad ne ia la t io ye n rd Ac ep id le ifi tio ca n Ec tio ot n/ ox Eu ici t ro ty ph ic at io n La nd us e M in er al Fo s ss il fu el s og e

400 ECO 99 400 ECO 99 200 ECO 99

Ac id ifi

-100

lim

er

Fridge 1 Fridge 2

ar c C

in

es p

The impact categories are sorted after their impact and the scale is adjusted to show the categories with minor impact:

34

ECO 99 20 30 40

ECO 99

ECO 99
O zo ne la y R er ad i

10

0,00E+00

5,00E+03

1,00E+04

1,50E+04

2,00E+04

0,00E+00

5,00E+07

1,00E+08

1,50E+08

2,00E+08

O zo R ne la y er de pl et io n n es p .o rg an ic s an g e ch at io ad i

Radiation

R C lim at e C R es p .i no rg an ic s ns ar ci no ge

Ozone layer depletion Fridge 2 Fridge 1 Fridge 2 Fridge 1

at i de on R pl es et p. i or on C ga lim ni at cs e ch an C ar ge ci R no es p. ge in ns or ga ni Ac L a cs id ifi nd ca us tio e n/ M in Eu er t ro al s ph ic at io n

Resp. organics

Fridge 2

Fridge 1

35

5 Topic: LCA Interpretation

The life cycle interpretation is described in ISO 14043. This is the phase where the results are checked and evaluated to see that they are consistent with the goal and scope and that the study is complete. The process of interpretation is meant to progress simultaneously with the other phases in the LCA and not only afterwards. The results from this phase are conclusions, recommendations and reports.

5.1

Session nr 8: Life cycle interpretation

5.1.1 Elements of life cycle interpretation

Life cycle interpretation is a systematic procedure to identify, qualify, check and evaluate the results from the three previous phases of the LCA. The life cycle interpretation will result in analyses, conclusions, recommendations and reports, all transparently documented. There are three key elements in the interpretation: 1) identification of the significant issues based on the results of the LCI and LCIA phases of LCA. This is performed by identifying and structuring information and determining the significant issues. 2) Evaluation where different checks are performed with regard to completeness, sensitivity, consistency, and other issues. 3) conclusions, recommendations and reporting All interpretations are made in accordance with the goal and scope. The practical procedure when performing interpretation is as follows: Interpret each consecutive result of the LCA separately: Inventory analysis: Data, System boundaries, LCI results Impact assessment: Classification, Characterisation, Weighting For each consecutive result: Identify significant issues Evaluate with regard to e.g. completeness, sensitivity and consistency Conclude, recommend and report based on the findings from the interpretation. The life cycle interpretation is an iterative procedure both within the interpretation phase itself and with the other phases of the LCA. The roles and responsibilities of the different interested parties should be described and taken into account. If a critical review has been conducted, these results should also be described. Communication with the commissioner is also an important part of this phase. The relationship with the other phases of the LCA is depicted below:

36

Life Cycle Assessment framework Goal and scope definition

Interpretation phase 1. Identification of significent issues 2. Evaluation by - completeness check - sensitivity check - consistency check - other checks

Inventory analysis

Impact assessments

Conclusions, recommendations and reporting

Direct applications - product development and improvement - strategic planning - public policy making - marketing - other

ISO 2000. From ISO 14043:2000

5.1.2 Identification of significant issues

The identification of the significant issues is the element where the results from the LCI and the LCIA phases are structured. The significant issues should be determined in accordance with the goal and scope definition and interactively with the evaluation. The interaction will assure awareness of assumptions, allocations, cut-offs, selections and other decisions taken in the study. All results from the previous stages shall be gathered and consolidated. They may be on the form of data lists, tables, bar diagrams or other appropriate forms. They can be structured after the life cycle phases, different processes (energy supply, transportation, raw material extraction etc), type of environmental impact or after other criteria. The identified significant issues can be: Inventory data types: Energy consumption Emissions to air Emissions to water Waste Impact categories: Resource use Global warming potential Eutrophication Extinct species Life cycle stages: Raw material extraction Production Transportations Disposal

The identification of significant issues is depending on the chosen impact assessment method but also subjective decisions, as where to draw the line between significant and nonsignificant for example. These decisions and choices must therefore be documented properly to give transparency to the identification process.

37

5.1.3 Evaluation
The purpose with the evaluation is to enhance the reliability of the study by analysing the result with the following measures: Completeness check Sensitivity check Consistency check Uncertainty analysis Assessment of data quality In the completeness check, any missing or incomplete information will be analysed to see if the information is necessary to satisfy the goal and scope of the study. The preceding phases might need to be revisited to fill the gap, or alternatively the goal and scope can be adjusted. If the decision is made that the information is not necessary, the reasons for this should be recorded. In the sensitivity check, it is investigated how the results are affected by uncertainties in the data, assumptions, allocation methods, calculation procedures etc. This element is especially important when different alternatives are compared so that significant differences, or the lack of them, can be understood and reliable. The consistency of the used methods and the goal and scope of the study is checked. Some relevant issues to check can be; data quality, system boundaries, regional and temporal differences, allocation rules and impact assessment. The uncertainty analysis and the quality assessment of the data will give a picture of the reliability of the information that is used in the study. The evaluation should be done interactively with the other phases in the LCA.

5.1.4 Conclusions, recommendations and reporting

The conclusions and recommendations are formed after the intended audience and application-oriented requirements of the LCA or LCI study. The conclusions are drawn from an iterative loop with the other elements of the interpretation phase in the sequence that follows: a) identify the significant issues b) evaluate the methodology and results for completeness, sensitivity and consistency etc c) draw preliminary conclusions and check that these are consistent with the requirements of the goal and scope of the study d) if the conclusions are consistent, report as full conclusions. Otherwise return to previous steps a), b) or c). A thorough analysis of the data quality requirements, the assumptions and the predefined values need to be made. When the final conclusions of the study are drawn, recommendations to decision-makers are made to reflect a logical and reasonable consequence of the conclusions. The report shall give a complete, unbiased and transparent account of the study; see 1.2.6 for more information.

38

5.1.5 Types of LCA studies

Depending on the application in which the LCA study will be used, different requirements are put on the study. LCA studies can be divided into three types; descriptive, comparison or change oriented, or forecasting. Which type of LCA that is performed depends on the application in which the results will be used. The type also determines the data needs. Descriptive Application types: Data needs: Product development Marketing Supply-chain information Generic cradle-to-gate data Comparison or change oriented Forecasting

Product improvement Strategic planning Strategic planning Public policy making Public policy making Focus on elements that are different in alternatives Focus on description of product system scenarios

When results from an LCA study are used in another context than the original is it important to identify the original goal and scope and consider what implications it may have on the results.

5.1.6 Exercise
1) Choice of significant aspects: Investigate the two LCIA profiles below. What are the consequences of if the line between significant and non-significant issues has been drawn at: A) 0.05 Eco-points, 0.1 Eco-points, 0.5 Eco-points. B) 0.1 ELU, 0.5 ELU, 1 ELU.
A Inflows Crude oil (resource) Hard coal (resource) Lead ore Nickel ore Zinc in ore Outflows Methylene chloride Methane Hexachlorobenzene Ni Formaldehyde CO2 Chloroform Cadmium Copper Lead Benzene 0,08241 2,24853E-03 0,5208312 0,30141 1,24743E-04 2,54184E-02 3,91853E-06 0,092308 0,5301 0,088407 3,68232E-05

Eco-points 0,396981 5,45496E-04 2,56668E-03 2,60736E-02 0,058688

39

B Life cycle phases Raw material extraction Energy production Production process Transports Air emissions Sewage treatment Solid waste treatment

ELU 5,655 0,5348 0,0586 0,896 0,262 0,67 0,007862

2) Explain why the data needs differ depending on if the LCA has been made for product development, marketing or strategic planning.

40

6 Topic: Tools and support

This chapter aims to give a view of the support that is available when you are going to make your own LCA studies in the future. It is not a study session, is meant as an informative aid, and should not be seen as a complete list of available support.

6.1.1 Introduction
The different support sources have been divided after which problem they will help to solve: Information support sources for the data collection Competence support support with the performance of the study Supportive tools structure and guidelines for the work Impact assessment methods ready-made methods for the impact assessment LCA software structure and management of the information LCI databases general data collected for other LCA studies

6.1.2 Information support

When performing LCA information from different sources is needed. Information specific for the study can be acquired from different sources within the area of investigation. See the table below for which type of information that can be acquired from which source. Information source Design department Type of information Material contents Expected life time Function Raw material Energy consumption Emissions Waste and spill Suppliers of raw materials and transports Supply chain alternatives Use scenarios Distribution Significant issues Future scenarios Business segment average data

Production management

Purchasing department

Marketing department

Industry associations

In addition to information specific for the study, other information sources may have to be used such as previous relevant LCA studies, LCI databases and IA databases. These information sources can provide: Methodological experiences General data Specific data Comparisons/Benchmarking data

41

6.1.3 Competence support

External sources can also provide competence support that can help the inexperienced LCA practitioner make efficient use of available resources and avoid mistakes. Competence Universities Type of support Theoretical experience Sounding board Practical experiences Practical advice Sounding board Sharing of data Perform full LCAs under guidance of commissioner Providing data Practical experiences Practical advice Sounding board Perform full LCAs under guidance of commissioner and experienced practitioner

Establishment of a competence-network

Expert consultants

General technical consultants

6.1.4 Supportive tools

There are various tools to help with the practical work in the LCA study. The ISO standards and other guidelines can give advice on how the work may be performed. Data administration tools will give a structure of the management and documentation of the information that is collected in the study. Tool The ISO standards Support Contains the relevant specifications and criteria. To be used consistently as rules and guidelines. Ensures that LCA studies are made in line with international agreements. Consider what is available within the industrial sector and within similar sectors Consider what is available within the industrial sector and within similar sectors Use tools appropriate with the purpose of the study.

Guidelines and manuals

Questionnaires and other data administration tools Analysis tools and software

42

6.1.5 Impact assessment methods

There are many different weighting methods and the list below is not complete. A short description is given here together with a literature reference so that the reader can get more information about the methods that are interesting.
Name CML 2 baseline method (2001) Country The Netherlands Year 1992 Information Includes characterization and normalization. Developed at the Centre for Environmental Studies (CML), University of Leiden, 2001. Replaces the CML method 1992. Includes characterization, normalization and weighting. Developed by Mark Goedkopf et al. and maintained by Pr consultants, see: http://www.pre.nl/eco-indicator99/ The Eco-indicator project was run under commission of the Dutch Ministry of Spatial Planning, Housing and the Environment and was co-funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation and BUWAL, the Swiss Agency for the Environment, Forests and Landscape. Includes characterization, normalization and weighting. Developed at the Institute for Product Development, Technical University of Denmark with and five leading Danish companies. EDIP is being updated at the moment, see: http://www.lca-center.dk/ Includes characterization, normalization and weighting. Developed by Bengt Steen et al. at Technical Environmental Planning/Centre for Environmental Assessment of Products and Material Systems, Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden. The EPS 2000 default method is an update of the 1996 version. Developed at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Lausanne (EPFL), Switzerland. http://www.epfl.ch/impact (Schmidt-Bleek, 1994) The total mass flow is used as an overall measure. Distance to Target (DtT). In this method, the sum of 'points' from all Stressors gives a measure of the total environmental impact (Abbe et al, 1997). UBP score = (relative emissions)(scarcity factor) =E/Eacceptable * E total / Eacceptable * E+12 The critical flow or maximum acceptable pollution load, Eacceptable, represents the absorption capacity of an environmental compartment for a particular pollutant. A watershed, an airshed, or the area of a nation are chosen as control volumes, depending on the scale of the effect

Eco-indicator 99

The Netherlands

1999

EDIP (Environmental Design in Product Development)

Denmark

1996

EPS (Environmental Priority Strategy)

Sweden

2000

Impact 2002+

Switzerland

2002

MIPS-measure Scarcity Switzerland

1994 1997

43

6.1.6 LCA software

There are various LCA software products on the market from different suppliers. Below are some examples: Name EcoLab GaBi LCAiT 1992 Year first developed 1995 Information EcoLab is maintained by Nordic Port, Sweden. More information is found at http://www.port.se/ecolab/ GaBi 4 is maintained by PE Europe, Germany. More information is found at http://www.gabi-software.com/ LCAiT is developed and maintained by CIT Ekologik, Sweden. More information is found at http://www.lcait.com/ SimaPro is maintained by PR Consultants, Netherlands More information is found at http://www.pre.nl/simapro/ TEAM is developed and maintained by Ecobilan, PriceWaterhouseCoopers, France More information is found at: http://www.ecobilan.com/uk_team.php 2001 Prototype of free web-based LCA-software developed by IMI at Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden. The software allows documentation in ISO/TS 14048 data documentation format, More information is found at: http://workshop.imi.chalmers.se/

SimaPro TEAM

1990

WWLCAW

44

6.1.7 LCI databases

LCI data needs to be sufficiently documented to make them suitable for reuse in other contexts than the original, see 3.2.6 about data quality review. Name No of items ~2500 Information

Ecoinvent Data v1.0

IVAM

1350

SPINE@CPM

~500

The Swiss Centre for Life Cycle Inventories under the leadership of EMPA, have combined and extended different Swiss LCI databases in the Ecoinvent 2000 project. The sets of LCI data include the areas of energy, transportation, waste disposal, construction, chemicals, detergents, papers and agriculture, which is valid for Swiss and Western European conditions. http://www.ecoinvent.ch/ IVAM LCA Data 4 consists of about 1350 processes, leading to more than 350 materials. The database is maintained by IVAM which is the environmental research, training and consultancy firm of the Universiteit van Amsterdam, in environmental aspects of materials. http://www.ivam.nl/ SPINE@CPM the Swedish national LCI database, which is quality reviewed. The database is maintained by IMI at Chalmers University of Technology for the Centre for Environmental Assessment of Product and Material Systems (CPM). The database includes information about energy, transportation, materials, etc and is both available in SPINE and ISO/TS 14048 formats. http://www.globalspine.com/

45

7 Answers to exercises
Topic 1, Session nr 1
Page 4 1) Raw material acquisition: Products made from fossil resources, rare metals etc. Production: Single use items, energy intense products etc. Consumption: Engines, motor vehicles etc. Disposal: Non-biodegradable single use items, bulky non-biodegradable materials, products containing heavy metals etc.

Topic 1, Session nr 2
Page 10 1) 14040, 14041, 14042, 14043, 14048 2) Goal and scope definition analysis of the task and the application of the results, setup of system boundaries Inventory compilation of an inventory of relevant inputs and outputs of included processes Impact assessment evaluation of the potential environmental impact of the studied system Interpretation conclusions from and evaluation of the study 3) A product system is a collection of unit processes connected by flows of intermediate products which performs one or more defined functions. The essential property of a product system is characterised by its functions, and cannot be defined solely in terms of the final products.

Topic 2, Session nr 3
Page 14 1) a) b is wrong, the scope describes the data categories. b) c is wrong, inputs can be refined flows and outputs can leave to another technical system. c) all answers are correct!

46

2) Possible functional units depending on the goal and scope of the study: A. g CO2 emission/plywood box kg CO2 emission/plywood box kg CO2 emission/year g CO2 emission/kg plywood box g CO2 emission/kg plywood g CO2 emission/plywood sheet g CO2 emission/kg steel etc B. kg CO2 emission/m3 extracted oil g CO2 emission/m3 refined oil g CO2 emission/l lubricant mg CO2 emission/l lubricant g CO2 emission/kg lubricant g CO2 emission/hour of use g CO2 emission/kg combusted waste oil etc C. g CO2 emission/kg extracted coal g CO2 emission/kg of combusted coal g CO2 emission/MJ combustion heat kg CO2 emission/hour g CO2 emission/MJ generated heat g CO2 emission/MJ generated electricity g CO2 emission/MJ total generated energy

Topic 3, Session nr 4
Page 19 1) Normalised CO2 emissions: Process Production of steel Hot rolling of steel strips Zinc coating of steel strips Production of nails Production of plywood Production of plywood box CO2 emissions 2420 (2 kg steel/plywood box x 1210 g/ kg steel) 160 (1.6 kg strips/plywood box x 100 g/kg strip) 24 (1.6 kg strips/plywood box x 15 g/kg strip) 48 (0.4 kg nails/plywood box x 120 g/ kg nails) 1536 (12 kg plywood/box x 128 g/ kg plywood) 178 (1 box x 178 g/ plywood box) Unit g/plywood box g/plywood box g/plywood box g/plywood box g/plywood box g/plywood box

47

2) There are 1.6 kg of steel strips and 0.4 kg of steel nails in a plywood box. A total of 2 kg of steel need to be produced, which will lead to emissions of 2420 g of carbon dioxide. The allocation is done on weight basis: CO2 emissions allocated to steel strips: 1.6 kg steel strips x 2420 g CO2 = 1936 g CO2 2 kg manufactured steel CO2 emissions allocated to steel nails: 0.4 kg steel nails x 2420 g CO2 2 kg manufactured steel 3) 4) = 484 g CO2

The information that is important to collect will be: type of flow (raw material, product etc, in this case it is an emission) short description of the process ( prod. of steel, prod. of plywood etc) the collection date the collection method (on-site measurement, derived from publications etc) reference to the data source the measured value the unit The data must be validated to ensure that the collected data is representative for the studied system, valid for the time and geographical boundaries, and that the units have been understood correctly.

Topic 3, Session nr 5
Page 24 1) Process, Modelling and validation and Administrative information. 2) The characteristics of the data have to be sufficiently documented if an assessment of the quality is going to be made. Data quality does therefore in many respects correspond to documentation quality. The dimensions of data quality can be divided into reliability (e.g. competent data collection), accessibility (e.g. structure for data management) and relevance (e.g. suitability for other application than the original).

48

Topic 4, Session nr 6
Page 27 1) The inputs and outputs from the life cycle of Product A are assigned to their respective impact category that can be deduced from the table with impact assessment information. The cadmium emission is the only flow that contributes to two impact categories. In lack of more detailed knowledge, half the amount is assigned to DALY and half to PDF. The amount of each flow is multiplied with their respective characterisation factor, and the LCIA results of each impact category are added separately. This gives values for the resource damage, disability adjusted life years and potential disappeared fraction that derives from the production of Product A.
Name Crude oil (resource) Hard coal (resource) Natural gas (resource) Lead ore Nickel ore Zinc in ore Amount (LCI-result) 5,655 0,5348 0 0,0586 0,896 0,262 Characterisation factor LCIA result 7,02E-04 1,02E-06 1,78E-05 4,38E-05 2,91E-05 2,24E-04 Resource damage 1,23E-04 2,86E-04 8,77E+00 5,36E+00 1,53E+00 6,44E-05 1,36E-05 5,39E-05 4,48E-03 DALY Pentachlorophenol Cadmium (1/2) Copper Lead Benzene 0 0,0000491 0,00186 0,0001786 0,0687 0 PDF 2,59E-03 1,88 2,85E-01 4,95E-01 5,36E-07 0,0039698 0,0000005 0,0000000 0,0000026 0,0000261 0,0000587 0,0040577 0,0000824 0,0000022 0,0004306 0,0520831 0,0003014 0,0000001 0,0000254 0,0000000 0,0000000 0,0529253 0,0000000 0,0000923 0,0005301 0,0000884 0,0000000 0,0007109

Methylene chloride Methane Cadmium (1/2) Hexachlorobenzene Ni Formaldehyde CO2 Chloroform Nitrous oxide

0,67 0,007862 0,0000491 0,009717 0,000197 0,001937 1,869 0,0000727 0

49

The same procedure is repeated for the inputs and outputs from the life cycle of Product B.
Name Crude oil (resource) Hard coal (resource) Natural gas (resource) Lead ore Nickel ore Zinc in ore Amount (LCI-result) 0 0,5348 1,85 0 0,786 0,282 Characterisation factor LCIA result 7,02E-04 1,02E-06 1,78E-05 4,38E-05 2,91E-05 2,24E-04 Resource damage 1,23E-04 2,86E-04 8,77E+00 5,36E+00 1,53E+00 6,44E-05 1,36E-05 5,39E-05 4,48E-03 DALY Pentachlorophenol Cadmium (1/2) Copper Lead Benzene 0,00789 0 0,00164 0 0 PDF 2,59E-03 1,88 2,85E-01 4,95E-01 5,36E-07 0,0000000 0,0000005 0,0000329 0,0000000 0,0000229 0,0000632 0,0001195 0,0000428 0,0000016 0,0000000 0,0333070 0,0001958 0,0000001 0,0000347 0,0000000 0,0025527 0,0361348 0,0000204 0,0000000 0,0004674 0,0000000 0,0000000 0,0004878

Methylene chloride Methane Cadmium (1/2) Hexachlorobenzene Ni Formaldehyde CO2 Chloroform Nitrous oxide

0,348 0,00572 0 0,006214 0,000128 0,000837 2,551 0 0,5698

The results show that Product B has less impact than Product A in all three categories: Product A Resource damage DALY PDF 0,0040577 0,0529253 0,0007109 Product B 0,0001195 0,0361348 0,0004878

Product B is therefore a more environmentally friendly alternative!

50

Topic 4, Session nr 7
Page 33 1) Interpreted results Grouped results The division after impact categories gives the opportunity of seeing what the impacts from the fridges derive from, and a screening of what the biggest threat is. The actual results are showed this way, which is useful in case there are targets set on a certain impact category. Normalised results Normalisation gives a clear view of which qualities with the new fridge that have been improved and which have been impaired. It does not say anything of the performance of the different category indicator results. The ozone layer depletion has one of the minor impacts but as the new product has such a large increase, the column gets very high and this can be misleading. It can however be useful if the company has a very strong policy for an impact category. Say that there is a public interest in the companys acidifying emissions because of the production units location in a very sensitive environment. Then a hundred percent increase, no matter how small the actual numbers are might need to be avoided. Weighted results The weighting needs to be done in order to put all category indicator results on the same scale. It is first when the ranking have been made on the severity of different impacts that the identification of significant aspects at a company can be made. The use of toxic materials and the energy consumption are the outstanding aspects that this company should work on. Correcting other aspects would clearly be a sub-optimisation. The weighting is however done with one method, created by a body that might not have the same set of values as the company. It is recommended that different weighting methods be used, in order to see how the categories are ranked with different sets of values.

Topic 5, Session nr 8
Page 38 1) A) If the significant issues are those with more than 0.5 Eco-points, only emissions of hexachlorobenzene and copper are significant (together 49% of total impact). If the line is drawn at 0.1 Eco-points, then consumption of crude oil and emissions of nickel are added (all four together 82% of total impact). If the line is drawn at 0.05 Eco-points, then half of the 16 issues will be regarded as significant. The non-significant aspects contribute only with 2.7% to the total impact. The right choice depends on the purpose with the LCA.
0,6 0,5

Eco-points

0,4 0,3 0,2 0,1 0

Series1

51

B) If the significant issues are those with more than 1 ELU, only the raw material extraction is an important issue, which stands for 70% of the total impact. If the line is drawn at 0.5 ELU, then energy production, transports and sewage treatment are added (all four together 96% of total impact). If the line is drawn at 0.1 ELU, air emissions will also be regarded as a significant issue (all five together 99% of total impact).
1,6 1,4 1,2 1 ELU 0,8 0,6 0,4 0,2 0 Series1

2) Generally, an LCA made for product development has the purpose of giving an overall view of the environmental effects of different product alternatives. The environmental advantages and disadvantages are compared with efficiency and economics. Generally, an LCA made for marketing has the purpose of differencing two or more otherwise quite similar products. Much effort is put on the details that differ and therefore this information might not be detailed enough for someone that wants data about aspects that the products have in common. LCAs made for strategic planning might include simulations of the effects of a prospective investment that is totally irrelevant for the first two categories if the investment is not realised.

52

8 Terms and definitions

Allocation Category indicator Characterisation model Data category Elementary flow Division of flows in case they make part of two or more separate processes. Quantifiable representation of an impact category, e.g. infrared radiative forcing (W/m2) in the case of global warming. Model for how the inflows and outflows have impact on the environment. Input or output of a unit process or product system. Examples are resources, energy, products, raw materials, emissions, waste etc. Material flows that are not refined but enter or leave the system directly from/to the nature e.g. crude oil, air, heat, non-refined minerals but also emissions and effluents that are not treated before they are released. Any change to the environment, whether adverse or beneficial, wholly or partially resulting from the organisations activities, products or services. The measure of the functional performance of the outputs of the product system e.g. m2 cut lawn for a lawn mover. Class representing environmental issues of concern to which LCI results may be assigned e.g. acidification, eutrophication, global warming, ozone depletion or human toxicity. List with data on inputs and outputs of the studied system. The results from the inventory phase. A list of all inputs and outputs from the studied systems before the impact assessment is performed. Data about data. Refined energy or material flows, e.g. petroleum, electricity and other artificially manufactured components. A product system is a collection of unit processes connected by flows of intermediate products which performs one or more defined functions. The essential property of a product system is characterised by its functions, and cannot be defined solely in terms of the final products. The system boundaries define the unit processes to be included in the system to be modelled. The smallest portion of a product system for which data is collected. Examples are individual production processes, production lines, cradle-to-gate systems for specific materials, transports, etc.

Environmental impact

Functional unit Impact category

Inventory LCI-data

Meta data Non-elementary flow Product system

System boundary Unit process

53