Life-Cycle Assessment

• What is the purpose of a lifecycle assessment?

  To quantify the environmental impact of a product
• What are the four main stages of a lifecycle assessment?

  Extraction, manufacturing, usage, disposal
• What is the first stage in a lifecycle assessment?

  Assessing the impact of raw material extraction
• What is required to produce plastics from crude oil?

  Extraction, transportation, refining, cracking
• What environmental issue is associated with extracting metals?

  Production of large amounts of toxic waste
• What is a significant environmental impact of manufacturing products?

  Energy consumption and harmful waste release
• What is a potential environmental impact during a product's lifetime?

  Battery usage producing toxic waste
• What must be assessed at the end of a product's life?

  Disposal of harmful chemicals and energy use
• What is the difference between plastic and paper bags in terms of resources?

  Plastic bags use crude oil; paper bags use trees
• What is a key environmental concern regarding crude oil?

  It is a non-renewable resource
• What is a consequence of felling trees for paper bags?

  Destruction of habitats like forests
• What is a disadvantage of paper bags compared to plastic bags?

  Paper bags are not as strong and tear easily
• Why do plastic bags pose a significant environmental problem?

  They are non-biodegradable and persist in the environment
• What is a major issue with lifecycle assessments?

  Uncertainty in measuring environmental damage
• How can lifecycle assessments be biased?

  To support claims made by advertisers