Chapter 3 - Corporate Perspective 3.5 Life Cycle Assessment

Question 1

Which tests should be carried out as part of the evaluation?

Answer 1

Completeness check
Sensitivity check
Consistency check
Other checks

Question 2

What is the difference between the ReCiPe method and the UBA method?

Answer 2

Damage-based method, i.e. **in contrast to **the UBA method, evaluation at midpoint and endpoint level

Question 3

What does the Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment (LCSA) consist of?

Answer 3

LCSA = LCA + LCC + SLCA
LCA: Life Cycle Assessment (Ökobilanzierung)
LCC: Life Cyvle Costing (Lebenszykluskostenrechnung)
SLCA: Social Life Cycle Assessment

Question 4

State the goal and scope of the social LCA:

Answer 4

• Analysis of social and socio-economic impacts
• Stakeholder engagement as part of the analysis itself, e.g., by providing information on impacts
• Justification necessary if an impact category is omitted

Question 5

List the disadvantages of the UBA method

Answer 5

• No aggregation of environmental impacts possible
• No calculation of the impact potential of the area, toxicity, noise & water consumption available (yet)
• Applicability to other countries not possible/only possible to a limited extent

Question 6

LCA VS Social LCA: Impact Assessment

Answer 6

LCA
* At least partially scientifically-based
* No site-specific impact assessment; definition of impact categories of site types, which depend on physical factors, such as population density or geographical conditions
* Analysis of positive effects is

SOCIAL LCA
* Subjective by nature
* Possibly site specific impact assessment; partial inclusion of ‘political characteristics, such as country, laws
* Analysis of positive and negative effects
* Application of performance reference points (e.g.,

Question 7

LCA Life Cycle Inventory

Answer 7

• Information on the physical properties of products as well as their production, use and disposal
• Different data sources
• Differences in data collection steps and methods
• Differences in balance between quantitative, qualitative and semi-quantitative data

Question 8

• Fctional Unit: Example

Answer 8

e.g. 20 times a year 250 m2 lawn mowing over 10 years

Question 9

Which environmental impacts have to be considered in the assessment?

Answer 9

Categories of the UBA (Umweltbundesamt / German Federal Environmental Protection Agency): * Raw materials consumption
* Greenhouse effect
* Ozone depletion
* Human toxicity
* Ecotoxicity
* Formation of photooxidants (summer smog) * Acidification
* Eutrophication (overfertilization)
* Land consumption
* Noise pollution

Question 10

Reference Flow

Answer 10

The amount of a product that is needed to provide a service / function.

Question 11

Midpoint categories

Answer 11

• Ozone depletion
• Human toxicity
• Ionizing radiation
• Photochemical oxidizer formation
• Particle formation
• Climate change
• Terrestrial ecotoxicity
• Terrestrial acidification
• Agricultural land occupation
• Urban land occupation
• Natural land transformation
• Marine ecotoxicity
• Marine eutrophication
• Fresh water eutrophication
• Freshwater ecotoxicity
• Consumption of fossil raw materials
• Consumption of mineral raw materials
• Water consumption

Question 12

Life Cycle Assessment Steps

Answer 12

1. Definition of the objective and the scope of the investigation
2. Life cycle inventory
3. Impact assessment
4. Evaluation/ interpretation

Continuous: Direct application of the results

Question 13

Life Cycle Assessment
Life Cycle Inventory – Comparability

Answer 13

Comparability
Challenge:
Incomparability, i.e., challenge to compare systems that generate products (functions) of different quality and quantity ( incomparable systems)
Target:
Comparison of systems that provide the same functionality
**
Approach: Expansion of System Boundaries**
– Ensuring the same functionality through the expansion of system boundaries
– Adjustment of system boundaries: Modelling the manufacturing of products / functions with the same quality and quantity within the different systems (Equivalent Processes)
a) Boundary Extension = Adding of equivalent processes
b) Positive Credits = Subtraction of equivalent processes

Question 14

Life Cycle Assessment
Life Cycle Inventory – Allocation

Answer 14

Allocation
Challenge:
* Joint production, i.e. two or more products are produced in one process due to natural or technical reasons
* One process  several products: How to allocate the process-related emissions?
Target:
* Allocation of input- and output flows (environmental impacts) to different products
Approach:
* Guidance for allocation according to DIN EN ISO 14.040 ff.:
1. Avoidance of an allocation (system expansion, substitution,…)
2. Allocation due to physical terms (energy content, mass,…)
3. Allocation due to economic terms (product prices)

Question 15

Life Cycle Assessment
Impact Assessment – Target and General Approach

Answer 15

Targets
* Assess the significance of potential environmental impacts using the results of the life cycle inventory.
* Provision of information for the evaluation phase of the life cycle assessment

Procedure
1.Selection of an evaluation procedure depending on the application (e.g. marketing / comparison with competitive products, internal decision making,…)
2.Linking lifecycle inventory data with specific impactcategories and impact indicators
3.Weighing up the various impactcategories against each other

Question 16

Life Cycle Assessment
Goal & Scope Definition

Answer 16

Relevant Material Flows
Business-relevant material and energy flows
* Material and energy flows with (internalized) costs and prices
* Information available, e.g., price, quantity ≠ Environmentally-relevant material and energy flows
* Material and energy flows that have environmental impacts (but not necessarily costs), e.g. cause greenhouse effect, have toxicity etc.
* Example: quantity, composition/ingredients, infrastructure, material flows < 1 g

Question 17

LCA Goal and Scope Definition

Answer 17

• Environmental impact analysis
• Stakeholder involvement as part of the study’s review process
• No justification required for omitting an impact category

Question 18

How is standardisation carried out according to the UBA method?

Answer 18

With the help of population averages, the values determined are set in relation to the total pollution in Germany

Question 19

Functional Unit

Answer 19

• Quantifies the service / function / utility of a product
• Product-specific benchmark for all input and output data and for all environmental effects
• Allows to compare material- and energy flows of different products and processes

Question 20

Example “Mowing the lawn” Functional Unit/Reference Flow

Answer 20

Alternatives: Lawn-mowers: manual / electric / gasoline / robot
Functional Unit: e.g. 20 times a year 250 m2 lawn mowing over 10 years
Reference Flows:
1⁄2 hand mower, 3⁄4 electric mower, 1 gasoline mower (due to different lifetimes of the mowers).

Question 21

Endpoint categories Protected property

Answer 21

• Damage to human health - Human health
• Damage to ecosystem diversity - Ecosystem quality
• Damage to resource availability - Resource availability