Environmental Life Cycle Assessment

Environmental Life Cycle Assessment FirozJameel, Jesse Daystar and Richard A. Venditti* Department of Wood and Paper Science North Carolina State University Raleigh, NC 27695-8005 *Corresponding author: Richard_Venditti@ncsu.edu, (919) 515-6185

Introduction • Learning Objectives of this section: • Be able to define a LCA • To understand an LCA’s importance • To identify important aspects of an LCA

Sustainability? How do we supply societies needs without harming the environment or future generations’ ability to meet their needs? We have many options to meet our demands. How to choose the “best” option? Life cycle assessment helps to inform our choices.

What is a Life Cycle Assessment ? • Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a tool to assess the potential environmental impacts of products, systems, or services at all stages in their life cycle [ISO 14001:2004]. • Types of LCA • Cradle to Gate: raw materials to finished good (no use or end life considerations) • Cradle to Grave: Considers everything from harvesting materials to the disposal of the finished goods

Energy Energy Energy Energy Energy Production Transportation Use Disposal Recycle Waste Waste Waste Waste Waste Emissions to air and water Emissions to air and water Emissions to air and water Emissions to air and water Example LCA Process Recycled Materials Raw Materials

Why is an LCA Important? • Helps ensure compliance with government regulations • Helps decrease the environmental impact of a given product • Identifies ways to improve sustainability • Identifies ways to “green” all aspects of product’s life • Can reshape company strategy • Can help marketing • Can reshape company image • Develop product advantage of competition

Important Aspects of Life Cycle Assessment Goal and Scope Definition Interpretation Inventory Analysis Impact Assessment

Goal and Scope Definition • Learning Objectives of this section: • To understand how to properly define the goals of an LCA • To understand how to establish the boundaries of an LCA

Defining Goals • Should state the intent of the study • Intended application • Intended use • Intended audience • Should also include reason for the study

Defining Scope Define functional unit of product Help establish system boundaries for the LCA Determine data collection methods

Goal and Scope Definition: Your Turn Exercise: Define the goal and scope of an LCA designed to study the life cycle of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich

Inventory Analysis • Learning Objectives of this section: • To understand what needs to be included in an inventory analysis • To understand the steps and processes included in an inventory analysis

Energy Energy Energy Energy Energy Production Transportation Use Disposal Recycle Waste Waste Waste Waste Waste Emissions to air and water Emissions to air and water Emissions to air and water Emissions to air and water Inventory Analysis: What Needs to be Included? Recycled Materials Raw Materials • All relevant stages of the life of a product • Raw Materials/Energy Needs • Manufacturing • Transportation, Storage & Distribution • Use, reuse, and maintenance • Recycle & Waste Management

Inventory Analysis: Setup • In an LCA, it is necessary to standardize all units of measure • For measuring energy use • Use mega joules (MJ) to measure potential energy from non-renewable sources • Use kilowatt hours (kW-h) to measure electrical energy • For measuring waste materials and emissions • Use tons to measure airborne emissions and solid waste • Use gallons or liters to measure waterborne emissions • Create a standard basis for comparison • Example: per product piece, or per kg of product • Establish rigid boundaries for the Inventory Analysis

Inventory Analysis: Raw Materials & Energy Needs • Two types of Raw Materials • Primary- first use material • Secondary- second use material (recycled) • Analyze energy requirements • Energy required to harvest the raw materials • Energy required to convert the raw materials to the finished product • Look at materials associated with maintaining the raw materials • Define and quantify emissions and wastes associated with the production of the raw materials

Inventory Analysis: Manufacturing • Manufacturing should take into account the following • Tools • Molds, machinery, etc. • Processes • Waste Material • Packaging • All emissions produced • Energy used

Inventory Analysis: Transportation, Storage and Distribution • Transportation • Equipment used to move goods • Airplanes, trucks, trains, etc • Distance • Storage and Distribution • Warehouses • Wholesalers • Retailers

motor oil, oil & air filter, hoses, tires, etc. CO2, H2O spent motor oil, oil & air filter, hoses, tires, etc. spare parts for newer cars gasoline Inventory Analysis: Use, Reuse and Maintenance Inventory or materials and energy required to fully utilize the product • Use • Energy required for normal use • Emissions from normal use of the product • Reuse • Reusing product for the intended purpose • Reusing the product in a different manner • Maintenance • Replacement parts • Maintenance fluids • Oils, grease, polish, paint, etc

Inventory Analysis: Recycle and Waste Management • Recycle • Salvage of useful parts • Production of secondary raw materials • Waste Management • Disposal of non-salvageable product • Landfills, hazardous waste dumps, etc • Incineration • Composting

Inventory Analysis: Types of Pollution • Three main types of pollution • Airborne emissions • Carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, etc • Waterborne emissions • Wastewater, untreated chemicals, etc • Solid waste • Scrap materials, process waste, etc

Inventory Analysis: ISO Standard • Overall steps for LCA are defined in ISO 14044 • Steps for conducting an inventory analysis are explained in ISO 14041 • Steps involved • Preparing for data collection • Data collection • Validation of data • Relating data to unit process • Relating data to functional unit and data aggregation • Refining system boundaries

Inventory Analysis: Example • Example product: copy paper • Raw Materials • Wood, water, various chemicals, energy • Chemical and Energy Recovery • Manufacturing • Machinery, processes, packaging material • Transportation and Distribution • Storage of paper in warehouses, selling of it via wholesalers/retailers • Use • Products associated with the use of copy paper • Disposal • Waste products, Recycling, landfilling • Energy recovery

Inventory Analysis: Your Turn Exercise: Conduct an Inventory Analysis of a Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich:

Impact Assessment Definition: Impact assessment is the process of identifying the future consequences of a current or proposed action.(cbd.int/impact) • Learning Objectives of this section: • To understand what needs to be included in an impact assessment • To identify the usual steps and processes included in an impact assessment

Impact Assessment: ISO Standard • Overall steps for LCA are defined in ISO 14044 • Protocol for an impact assessment is explained in ISO 14042 • Mandatory elements for an impact assessment • Selection of impact categories • Assignment of inventory analysis results • Calculation of category indicator results (characterization) • Optional elements • Calculation of the magnitude of category indicators (normalization) • Grouping • Weighting

Impact Assessment: What Needs to be Included? All environmental impacts associated with the production, use and disposal of the product • Ecological Systems Degradation • Resource Depletion • Human Health & Welfare

Impact Assessment: Ecological Systems Degradation • Chemical • Toxicity • Physical • Habitat Loss • Biological • Foreign Species Ecological system : An ecosystem is a natural unit consisting of all plants, animals and micro-organisms (biotic factors) in an area functioning together with all of the non-living physical (abiotic) factors of the environment. (Christopherson, 1996) Invasive species-Kudzu

Cl Cl C Cl F Freon 11 Impact Assessment: Ecological Systems Degradation – Risks Assessment • Ecological Response to Indicator • Intensity of Potential Effect • Time Scale of Recovery • Spatial Scale • Transport Media There is no global agreement in weighting risks Hole in ozone layer caused by Freon

Impact Assessment: Resource Depletion • Resources are either renewable or non-renewable • Renewable • Hydroelectric energy, biomass products, most crops, etc • Non-renewable • Oil, minerals, metals, etc • Ideally want to recycle as many non-renewable based components as possible

Impact Assessment: Human Health & Welfare • Analyze impact of product on human health • Diseases that could potentially be caused by using the product • Cigarettes: Cancer • Diseases that can be caused by wastes produced by the product or the production of it • Solid particulates emitted in stack gasses for a coal burning plant: Cancer • Products that harm human health can have a negative impact on a company’s image

Environmental Indices IGW – global warming ISF – smog formation IOD – ozone depletion IAR – acid rain IINH – human inhalation IING – ingestion toxicity ICINH -human carcinogenic inhalation ICING – carcinogenic ingestion toxicity IFT – fish toxicity

Impact Assessment: Example • Example product: copy paper • Ecological systems degradation • Impact of cutting down trees • Impact of discharged chemicals in the water waste on the water quality • Resource depletion • Resource is renewable because it is trees, but it is not rapidly replaceable • The paper is easily recyclable, reducing primary raw material needed • For energy, mostly self sufficient • Human health and welfare • Impact of chemicals used on human health • Impact of stack emissions from chemical and energy recovery on health of population around mill

Impact Assessment: Your Turn Exercise: Conduct the impact assessment for a Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich

Interpretation • Learning Objectives of this section: • To be able to identify what needs to be included in an interpretation • To understand how this step can be best used

Interpretation: ISO Standard • Overall steps for LCA are defined in ISO 14044 • Proper protocol for interpretation is explained in ISO 14043 • Aside from presenting results, the interpretation should conduct these checks • Completeness check • Sensitivity check • Consistency check • Include conclusions and recommendations

Original product After Improvement Analysis Interpretation: The Feedback Mechanism • Analyze opportunities to reduce or mitigate the environmental impact throughout the whole life cycle of a product, process or activity. • Analysis may include both quantitative and qualitative measures of improvement • Changes in product design • Changes in raw material usage • Changes in industrial processes

Interpretation: Example • Example product: copy paper • Changes in product design • Determining potential areas of improvement for the product design • Lighter weight paper? • Lower brightness paper? • Changes in raw materials • Using more secondary materials in place of primary materials • Use alternative chemicals • Changes in industrial process • Changing from Acid to Alkaline papermaking • Changing from chlorine containing bleaching processes to chlorine free bleaching processes

Interpretation: Your Turn Exercise: Interpret the results of your LCA and present them to the group

Carbon Footprint Model for Bleached Pulp and Paper Products Trevor H. Treasure, Jesse S. Daystar and Richard A. Venditti* Department of Wood and Paper Science North Carolina State University Raleigh, NC 27695-8005 *Corresponding author: Richard_Venditti@ncsu.edu, (919) 515-6185

Waste PaperWhat do we do with it all? • Paper • More than 700 lb/person annual paper consumption in the USA • 40% of all municipal waste is paper • What should be done with waste paper?

Life Cycle Assessment-Recycling Paper Products Goal and Scope Definition Interpretation Inventory Analysis Impact Assessment

Goals To compare the carbon footprint of three waste management scenarios for copy paper 1. Landfilling2. Incineration3. Recycling To perform a systematic and quantitative evaluation of these three waste management options To provide a tool for consumers and waste management personnel for determining the best waste management practices Goal and Scope Definition

Scope Goal and Scope Definition • Three waste management scenarios considered. • Landfilling • Incinerating • Recycling • This study will not consider the effect of recycling on the value of wood or its consequences on the wood market • A full impact assessment will not be performed • This analysis only accounts for carbon emissions • Other significant pollutants are emitted but are not accounted for in this study, example heavy metals

Assumptions 1 of 2 • Increased recycle production has no effect on tree production • Methane emissions from land fills have been converted to carbon dioxide equivalents using a ratio of 21:1 (IPCC 1995, table 4, pg. 26) • Avoided CO2 releases based on fuel mix for national electricity grid • Heating value of copy paper  6213 BTU/lb (PTF White Paper No.3) • Net heating value of methane 21,433 BTU/lb (engineeringtoolbox.com)

Assumptions 2 of 2 • Responsible silviculture replant to harvest ratio equals 1:1 • Carbon sequestration based on wood makeup and weight percent carbon of cellulose, hemicelluloses, and lignin • All mills are considered to be average in energy and production efficiency • Office paper is assumed to be 20% inert, inorganic filler material • Office paper fibers: 20% softwood and 80% hardwood

Life Cycle Assessment -recycling paper products Goal and Scope Definition Interpretation Inventory Analysis Impact Assessment

Raw Material Composition Source: Dr. Dimitris S. Argyropoulos, course pack for WPS 332

Environmental Life Cycle Assessment