LCA

• stages:

  • extracting and processing raw materials
  • manufacturing and packaging
  • use and operation during its lifetime
  • disposal at the end of its useful life
  • transport and distribution at each stage
• the lifecycle assessment attempts to put a number on the environmental impact of a product
• 1. extracting and processing raw materials

  • plastics come from crude oil
  • which has to be extracted from the ground and transported to oil refineries
  • the hydrocarbons have to separated and cracked
  • this all requires a lot of energy, which will be generated by buying fossil fuels --> climate change
  • metals must be extracted from an ore which has to be dug out from a mine and transported for processing and releases a large amount of toxic waste products
• 2. manufacturing and packaging

  • requires energy and may release harmful waste products
• 3. use and operation during its lifetime

  e.g. batteries , releases a large amount of toxic waste
• 4. disposal

  chemicals must be disposed of carefully , can require a lot of energy

  takes energy to transport used goods for disposal
• using:

  • water
  • resources
  • energy sources
  • production of some waste
• PLASTIC VS PAPER BAGS:

  • raw material = plastic , comes from crude oil, non-renewable and can be harmful to habitats e.g. if there is an oil leak
  • raw material = paper from wood from trees, renewable as we can plant more, but it is also destructive for habitats
  • both need to be chemically processed which requires a large amount of energy and releases waste products
• PLASTIC VS PAPER:

  • use = plastic is strong and can be re-used multiple times
  • use = paper shopping bags are not as strong and tend to tear, so are single use
• PLASTIC VS PAPER:

  • disposal = both have to be transported for recycling or landfill
  • paper bags are heavier than plastic bags so they take more energy to transport
  • plastic bags are not biodegradable so remain in the environment for a long time so are a major form of litter and fill up landfills
  • paper breaks down quickly
• LCA problems:

  • use of water, resources, energy and production of some waste products can be fairly and easily quantified
  • we cannot always be certain how damaging these are to the environment
  • this means that allocating numerical values to pollutant effects is less straightforward and requires value judgements/estimates
• LCA problems:

  • they can be bias
  • e.g. to support claims by advertisers