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8/14/2019 Position Paper Usability of LCA for C2C Purposes
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Usability of Life Cycle Assessment
for Cradle to Cradle purposes
Position PaperDecember 2011
>> Focus on sustainability, innovation
and international
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Usabiliy of LCA for C2C purposes | 2
Executive summary
Life Cycle Assessmen (LCA) is a measuremen ool ha
has been used since he 1970s as a means of assessing
he environmenal impac of producs or services.
Cradle o Cradle (C2C) is an innovaion framework usedsince he 1990s in order o design producs and services
which are beneficial in economic, healh and environ-
menal erms.
Inroducion
A group o companies in he Cradle o Cradle (C2C)
Learning Communiy in he Neherlands are working wih
boh hese ools and wish o deermine wheher C2C and
LCA are compaible. How and o wha exen hese
companies work wih C2C and LCA varies or each company.In he experience o hese companies, he LCA mehod o
comparing producs paricularly he use o Environmenal
Produc Declaraions, EPDs dominaes in he markeplace,
while he beneficial C2C qualiies hey are aiming or are no
refleced properly by hese LCA sandards.
Terms o reerence
The remi o his assessmen is to evaluate the usability of LCA
as a measurement tool for the development and measurement of
C2C products.
This assessmen ocuses primarily on he mehods and
sysems ha are currenly in general use in he field o LCA.
I looks a LCA only rom he perspecive o implemening
C2C, no a he use o LCA or oher purposes.
Concerning he usabilityof LCA in a C2C process, companies
ha implemen C2C principles need a measuremen
insrumen ha can be used or hree key purposes: setting
goal s, monitoringdevelopmen, and external communication.
The usabiliy o LCA or C2C purposes requires a beter
undersanding o C2C dimensions in relation to LCA. C2Cs
innovaion ramework aims or a beneficial futureooprin
based on defined qualities.
These defined qualiies are based on he guiding principles
o C2C. In ac, his assessmen involves an exploraion o
C2Cs guiding principles and the extent to which they can be measured
using LCA.
Summary of findings
How useul is LCA in he C2C process?
The conclusions concerning he use o LCA or C2C
purposes are:
Seting goals, he C2C invenory: LCA can add o he C2C
invenory: know wha you have (The C2C invenory
includes daa ha goes beyond he environmenal daa
gahered in an LCA, e.g. i sars wih a complee conen
declaraion or a produc); C2C Monioring: LCA can help deermine wheher
burdens are shifed when changes are made o he
produc or process.
C2C Monioring: LCA is no designed o indicae how
much progress has been made wih a C2C produc. The
C2C roadmap and associaed measurable milesones are
more imporan or ha.
Exernal communicaion: LCA is no suiable or
communicaing he C2C-ness o a produc, and hus no
suiable or exernal C2C communicaion.
For companies ha wish o apply C2C principles, i may be
useul o know inernally how a C2C design scores using an
LCA o pu i ino he conex o governmen crieria
(susainable procuremen) and oher communicaion based
on LCA, such as EPDs, an indusry-sandard LCA wih
secor-specific produc crieria.
C2C dimensions in relaionship o LCA
During he exper discussions on measuring he C2C-ness
o a produc, hree basic conradicions were idenified
beween he C2C innovaion ramework and he LCA
measuremen ool, which are encapsulaed in he ollowing
senence.
Measuring a qualitativeAplanBfor creating a beneficialCfootprintby using a quantitativeAinstrument designed to measure an
existingBenvironmentally damagingC footprint.
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Each o he conradicions is explained urher.
A. M eas urin g qualitativesolutions with a quantitativemeasure-
ment tool
Under C2C, he principle o wase equals ood or every-
hing serves as a resource or somehing else is aken o
mean he righ maerial, a he righ place a he righ ime.
Righ basically means ha he maerials are suiable or
he use defined or hem. This valuaion depends on he
ineracion o boh he soluion-offering side (i.e. a
produc) and he soluion-using side (i.e. he user, his
surroundings and oher environmens he produc will
come ino conac wih during is lie). Wheher somehing
is righ depends on how hese qualiies, he reerences orgood and bad, are defined. Some o hese can be quanified
using an LCA, while ohers canno.
Conclusion: The exen o which he defined qualiies o a
C2C produc can be measured wih LCA depends on how ar
hey can be quanified or measuremen in LCA erms. In
oher words, on how ar hey can be described in specific
erms raher han concepually.
B. Measuring afuturesolution using currentdata
The C2C ramework concerns uure soluions and hereore
innovaion. Targes and milesones owards hose soluions
are idenified and ac as innovaion drivers. A he saringpoin, he exac naure o he ulimae soluion is no
always known.
Conclusion: The C2C-ness o producs can be measured i
hey are defined using daa ha reflec he likely naure o
he uure C2C design soluion. However, he measurabiliy
o ha daa depends on he abiliy o orecas uure oupus
accuraely. LCA is designed as a snapsho o a paricular
poin in ime on he basis o curren impacs. I is no
designed o evaluae a companys progress in compleing
seps owards a qualiaive expeced goal.
C. Measuring a beneficialenvironmental footprint with an
instrument that is designed for measuring an environmentally
damagingfootprint.
The goal o he C2C ramework is o develop a produc in
such a way ha i creaes a beneficial (posiive) environmen-
al ooprin. Three guiding principles are used o define
his beneficial ooprin: wase equals ood, use curren
solar income, and celebrae diversiy.
Conclusion: Alhough LCA has been designed o measure he
damaging (negaive) environmenal impac o producs, i
can also be used o measure he esablished beneficial
(posiive) ooprin o a C2C produc. However, here are
limis o he applicabiliy o he curren LCA approach.
The guiding principles o C2C and measuring
hese wih LCA
C2Cs defined qualiies are based on he hree guiding
principles waste equals food, use current solar income and
celebrate diversity. Wheher he C2C-ness o a produc can
be measured wih LCA depends on he exen o which he
saed qualiies o a C2C produc can be quanified in
curren LCA erms. Taking a closer look a hese qualiies (on
he basis o C2Cs guiding principles), resuls in:
Wase equals food(C2C recycling, cascades, maerials
pooling):
Under C2C a produc will be recyced afer use. C2C works
wih end-o-use scenarios and no wih end-o-lie
scenarios as under LCA. Under LCA, i is difficultomeasure he recyclabiliy o a produc and calculae he
benefis o recycling ha relae o a single produc in he
maerials cascade. Under LCA, sakeholders sill differ
abou how o accoun or his benefi and o whom i
should be credied.
Wase equals food(oxiciy aspecs deermined wih
C2Cs ABC-X mehod):
In many cases, i is not possibleo calculae o wha exen
a maerial is suiable or is conex. Under LCA, his is
done on he basis o he acual impac o oxic emissions
ino he environmen over he enire liecycle. Currenly
he LCA communiy is looking or ways o model moreypes o environmenal impac more accuraely. For
example, measuring he impac on indoor air qualiy and
local aspecs are being developed under LCA.
Use curren solar income:
A quick LCA on several renewable energy-producion
sysems will lead o he same general conclusions as C2C.
The energy consumed or a C2C produc can be measured
wih an LCA. However, he wase equals ood principle
wihin energy producion sysems is no par o a
regular LCA.
Conclusions
The exploraion o he usabiliy o LCA or C2C purposes has
led o he ollowing conclusions:
Commonly used LCAs, and especially EPDs, are not
suiable or assessing and communicaing he beneficial
qualiies o a C2C produc.
- C2C emphasizes he suiabiliy o a nurien (maerial)
o is conex (he righ maerial a he righ ime a he
righ place), hroughou all he use cycles / loops
hrough which i passes;
- Wha is righ canno be measured in LCAs currenly in
use; wihin C2C i is based on specific value-basedqualiy-saemens ha are no generally suiable or
measuremen wih LCA;
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Executive summary 2
Table of contents 5
1 Introduction 61.1 The Cradle to Cradle innovation framework 6
1.2 and Life Cycle Assessment as a measurement tool 6
1.3 Context of this paper 6
1.4 Terms of reference 7
1.5 Target audience 7
1.6 Structure of the position paper 7
2 C2C and LCA in the context of business development and eco-design 92.1 Cradle to Cradle as a framework for design and innovation 9
2.2 Life Cycle Assessment as a measurement tool 10
2.3 Development of materials, processes, products and systems 12
2.4 Summary 13
3 The dimensions of C2C in relation to LCA 143.1 Using a quantitative measurement tool to measure qualitative solutions (A) 14
3.2 Using current data to measure a future solution (B) 14
3.3 Measuring a (positive) beneficial environmental footprint with an instrument 15
that is designed to measure a (negative) environmentally damaging footprint (C)3.4 Summary 16
4 The guiding principles of C2C and their measurability with LCA 174.1 The first guiding principle of C2C: Waste equals food 17
4.2 The second guiding principle of C2C: Use current solar income 21
4.3 Materials management, energy used and LCA measurement 23
5 Conclusions and recommendations 245.1 Conclusions 24
5.2 Recommendations 24
6 Opinions from the Sounding Board 26
Appendices 28Appendix 1: Members of the working group, expert panel and Sounding Board 28
Appendix 2: Comparison of C2C and LCA 29
Appendix 3: C2C and LCA in a product development process 31
Appendix 4: Overview of recycling and cascading issues within C2C and LCA 33
Appendix 5: Overview of toxicity issues within C2C and LCA 34
Appendix 6: Overview of energy production in C2C and LCA 37
Appendix 7: Guide to LCA and how to measure C2C-ness 38
Appendix 8: References and Further reading 41
Table of contents
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1.2 and Life Cycle Assessmen as ameasuremen ool
In he Neherlands, a growing number o companies andlocal auhoriies are sriving o implemen he ideas behind
C2C. They are amiliar wih using Lie Cycle Assessmen,
LCA[3], as a suppor ool or decisions ha involve susain-
abiliy. LCA is also used as a measuremen ool in eco-
design[4]processes. LCA calculaions aim o model he ull
liecycle o a produc (wheher rom cradle o grave or rom
cradle o cradle) and o measure he many ways in which i
will impac on he environmen along he supply chain. As
such, LCA is no a design ool bu measures environmenal
impac. LCA does no relae o a vision o wha he world
should look like; i measures he impacs o decisions
already made.
1.3 Conex of his paper
In 2009, a group o 17 pioneering companies in he
Neherlands came ogeher o share heir experience
o implemening he principles o C2C in he Learning
Communiy C2C. Mos o hese companies waned o
answer he quesion: Why does LCA sometimes not reflect the
improvements expected from C2C?. They el srongly ha C2C
needed o be made more proessional wih a measuremen
ool ha was acceped among he LCA communiy o
incorporae eco-effeciveness ino heir LCA-based
decision-suppor ools. Addiionally, in heir experience
LCAs mehod o comparing producs paricularly hrough
he use o Environmenal Produc Declaraions, EPDs
dominaes he markeplace, while he beneficial C2C
qualiies hey are aiming or are no refleced properly in
hese LCA sandards.
The degree o which each company works wih C2C varies.
Some companies simply use C2C as a source o inspiraion
when developing heir producs. Ohers are going all ou o
become a C2C company. The resuls o he Learning
Communiy and he experiences o he paricipaing
companies were published in he bookle eniled Cradleo Cradle pays off![5].
In response o a growing awareness ha our curren
sysems of producion, consumpion and disposal
are damaging he environmen, mehods such as
eco-design and measuremen ools such as Life CycleAssessmen were developed in order o quanify and
miigae environmenal damage. The concep of
susainable developmen served as a guide in his:
developmen ha mees he needs of he presen
wihou compromising he abiliy of fuure generaions
o mee heir own needs, Brundland [1].
Among indusrial producers, he desire o minimize he
damage caused by he producion, use and disposal o
producs has grown because manuacurers wish o avoid
image problems and mee legal requiremens. Increasingly,
businesses are adoping corporae social responsibiliypolicies and aking advanage o he marke opporuniies
ha hey can offer.
Now, anoher approach is atracing he atenion o
pioneering companies. The Cradle o CradleInnovaion
Framework, C2C[2], is enabling companies o develop
producs which acually creae a posiive environmenal
ooprin. The C2C design ramework, wih is hree guiding
principles, gives clear direcion o (produc) developmen.
I uncions as a driver or innovaion in he produc chain.
1.1 The Cradle o Cradle innovaionframework
The Cradle o CradleInnovaion Framework has rapidly
become he ocus o increasing atenion. I was originally
developed in he lae 1980s, and maured during he 1990s
as a posiive approach o reconciling human aciviy and is
environmenal impac. Curren hinking on he environ-
men encourages us o reduce, reuse and recycle. However,
according o Michael Braungar and William McDonough,
ounders o he C2C concep, his will lead only o a
coninuaion o he radiional Cradle o Grave producion
model ha has already been he cause o such enormousamouns o wase and polluion. As hey see i, we should
sop rying o do bad hings less badly and insead sar
doing hings ha are inrinsically beneficial o he environ-
men insead.
1 Introduction
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Companies apply C2C in different ways
Some companies have developed heir own environmenal
oolkis wih which hey evaluae he environmenal impac
o heir producs and processes. LCA is one elemen inhese oolkis. These companies may also see C2C as an
ineresing new concep wih which o expand heir oolki.
C2C challenges exising assumpions and inroduces a
compleely new way o hinking. For hese companies, C2C
is primarily a design mehodology or an R&D concep. This
documen will help hose companies see he differen
perspecives aken on specific aspecs o environmenal
susainabiliy under boh C2C and LCA.
Oher companies involved in his work have adoped he
C2C philosophy in ull and inegraed i ino all aspecs o
heir business model. The conclusions and recommen-
daions a he end o his documen are mainly relevan
or hose companies ha have adoped C2C in ull and are
ineresed in inegraing LCA while coninuing o ollow
he C2C mehodology.
The working group, expert panel and sounding board
The paricipaing companies saed ha hey were
ineresed in he use o LCA as a decision-making ool
when developing C2C policies. Several exper sessions were
held o discuss he easibiliy o using LCA o measure C2C
producs and processes. This process was suppored and
moderaed by NL Agency (Age ntsc hap NL), a Duch govern-
men agency ha aims o promoe innovaion andsusainabiliy. This posiion paper describes he main
conclusions o hese exper panels, and has been reviewed
by an inernaional sounding board.
1.4 Terms of reference
This assessmen aims to evaluate the usability of LCA as a
measurement tool for the development and measurement of
C2C products.
We ocus primarily on he mehods and sysems generally
used in LCA, since his is he main concern or businesses
and governmens ha use LCA. The remi o his documen
includes using LCA o implemen C2C, bu excludes he use
o LCA or oher purposes.
Those companies ha are implemening he principles o
C2C need a measuremen insrumen ha can be used orhree key purposes in he C2C process:
Setting goals(vision/ambiion);
Monitoring he developmen;
External communication.
The saring poin or hese companies is o use wha is
currenly he mos widely acceped measuremen ool,
Lie Cycle Assessmen (LCA). LCA, unlike he LCA-based
Environmenal Produc Declaraion (EPD), is an open
ramework ha can be very flexible. EPDs, by conras,
are more rigid and heir Produc Caegory Rules are based
on secor consensus.
1.5 Targe audience
This paper is essenially mean or companies which are
considering implemening C2C bu are more amiliar wih
LCA. I addresses managers, designers and eco-designers,
environmenaliss, LCA specialiss and CSR specialiss
working in companies who wan o develop producs
according o he guiding principles o C2C. Bu i is also
relevan or ohers who come ino conac wih boh C2C
and LCA, who can benefi rom he comparison o he wo
conceps. As such, i will also be relevan or policymakers
and purchasers wihin local and naional governmen who
are aiming o implemen C2C, o help hem undersand
wha an LCA can be used o measure. The paper deals
mainly wih using LCA as an inpu or C2C, bu some
secions also relae o using C2C as an inpu or or alongside
an LCA process. Eco-designers amiliar wih LCA as a ool
will benefi rom he inormaion on he role o C2C and
LCA in produc-developmen processes. There is more
pracical inormaion in he appendices abou his and how
managers, designers and CSR specialiss can make use o
boh conceps.
1
Cradle to Cradlepays off!
COMPANIES OF THE C2C LEARNING COMMUNITY ABOUT THEIR EXPERIENCES AND LESSONS LEARNED
http://www.theterrace.nl/assets/cms/File/Booklet_Learning_Community_C2C-Cradle_to_Cradle_pays_off!.pdfhttp://www.theterrace.nl/assets/cms/File/Booklet_Learning_Community_C2C-Cradle_to_Cradle_pays_off!.pdfhttp://www.theterrace.nl/assets/cms/File/Booklet_Learning_Community_C2C-Cradle_to_Cradle_pays_off!.pdfhttp://www.theterrace.nl/assets/cms/File/Booklet_Learning_Community_C2C-Cradle_to_Cradle_pays_off!.pdfhttp://www.theterrace.nl/assets/cms/File/Booklet_Learning_Community_C2C-Cradle_to_Cradle_pays_off!.pdfhttp://www.theterrace.nl/assets/cms/File/Booklet_Learning_Community_C2C-Cradle_to_Cradle_pays_off!.pdf8/14/2019 Position Paper Usability of LCA for C2C Purposes
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1.6 Srucure of he posiion paper
As saed, he objecive o his assessmen is to evaluate the
usability of LCA as a measurement tool for the development and
measurement of C2C products.
Chaper 2 explores how C2C and LCA operae in business
developmen and he produc design processes. Chaper 3
ocuses on hree imporan dimensions o C2C in relaion o
LCA as a measuremen ool. I describes how LCA could be
used o measure a beneficial uure ooprin on he basis o
defined qualiies which are in urn based on he guiding
principles o C2C. Chaper 4 explores he usabiliy o LCA or
C2C purposes by examining he guiding principles o C2Cand he poenial useulness o LCA when assessing he
applicaion o hese principles. The main conclusions and
recommendaions can be ound in Chaper 5.
The main body o his posiion paper describes he
heoreical aspecs o using LCA or he purposes o C2C,
while he appendices include urher pracical inormaion
on LCA and C2C.
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To explore he usefulness of LCA as a ool for develop-
ing and evaluaing C2C producs, his chaper of he
paper will firs examine how C2C and LCA operae in
business developmen and he produc design
processes.
2.1 Cradle o Cradle as a framework for designand innovaion
C2C is a design ramework or innovaion. I is based on a
philosophy, guiding principles and applicaion ools.
Appendix 2 shows a comparison beween C2C and LCA,
including he developmen o new maerials, processes,
producs and sysems. Companies ake varying approaches
o implemening C2C. Some op o have heir exising
producs cerified, ohers choose o opimize heir producs
firs and hen have hem cerified individually, and ohers
sill adop C2C across he enire company including all
producs and processes.
There are three guiding principleswihin he C2C ramework
or innovaion:
1) Wase equals food: producs and by-producs are
designed o ac as defined nuriens in a biological or a
echnical meabolic sysem;
2) Energy requiremens mus be me using sources derived
rom curren solar income(eiher direc or derived, hus
including geohermal and kineic energy);
3) Celebrae diversiy (biodiversiy, culural diversiy,
concepual diversiy). A diversiy o acors and conceps
will ulimaely make i possible o implemen C2C while
adhering o hese principles.
When developing C2C producs and processes, hese
principles are applied in an inegraed manner. Forexample, when developing a C2C carpe, maerials are
seleced according o heir healhiness during use as well as
heir compaibiliy wih defined uure uses. Boh he
producion and recycling o carpes involve using a range o
renewable energies. Applying he principles in an inegraed
manner also means ha hese renewable energy producion
sysems are designed according o he wase equals ood
principle.
The objecive o a beneficial environmenal ooprin is
undamenal o he C2C approach. C2C aims or producs
and processes ha improve he environmen and sociey,
add value and are eco-effecive. Progress owards his goal
is direced by he hree principles oulined above.Companies begin a C2C process by saing heir qualiaive
inenions according o hese guiding principles.
2.1.1 Seting goals (vision/ambiion)
Companies ofen define corporae goals o reflec heir
values. A corporae sraegy or policy may include eco-
effeciveness (such as conribuing o soil resoraion) and
eco-efficiency (zero wase) goals.
Implemening C2C begins wih he ormulaion o
eco-effeciveness goals based on he guiding principles o
C2C. The exen o which corporae goals are consisen wih
he C2C innovaion ramework and is guiding principles
may be refleced in he companys KPIs.
The process sars wih he C2C invenory (know wha you
have). Depending on is scope, his may include daa on an
exising produc or porolio (in he case o a redesign) or
on a produc concep. I sars wih a precise and compre-
hensive undersanding o 1) he composiion o he
produc; 2) maerial flows o which i conribues (or would
conribue) and 3) he acors involved and heir atiudes.
The C2C invenory includes a complee conen declaraion
o a produc o 100 ppm (pars per million).
C2C uses a back-casting approach. This means ha i begins
wih he objecive, and works backwards o define he
condiions necessary o achieve his objecive. Elemens are
bundled o orm milesones.
2 C2C and LCA in the contextof business development andeco-design
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In his conex, eco-effeciveness encompasses no only he
final resul bu also he interim results achieved along he
way, which represen he condiions or reaching he final
objecive. From he cusomers perspecive, buying producs
rom a company which has no ye achieved is final
objecive bu which has saed is inenion o achieve ha
objecive also represens an eco-effecive conribuion o a
beter environmen under he C2C approach (bu an
addiional challenge in evaluaing he C2C-ness o
producs).
2.1.2 The C2C Roadmap and monioring progress
Goal-seting is a he hear o he C2C design and innovaion
ramework. I is he process hrough which he coreprinciples o C2C are applied o a produc or process. The
C2C Roadmap is an imporan applicaion ool ha
describes he pahway ha he organizaion will ake o
achieve is goals. I includes clearly idenifiable and
measurable milesones, or key perormance indicaors
(KPIs), which can be used o assess he exen o which he
goals have been achieved.
Under C2C, KPIsmigh include aciviies ouside he
companys own boundaries. For example, or service
producs wih pos-use managemen o he used producs
and maerials, he sysem o KPIs could encompass: at a milestone: Logistic partners contracted for future
collecion o used producs and maerials;
at a later milestone: Rate of collection and rate of
recovery o maerials rom he used producs colleced.
Those milesones (e.g. percenage o recycled conen,
percenage o solar income, and so on) are measurable, bu
do no usually require a ull LCA. More argeed ools could
be used insead and a screening LCA or a carbon ooprin
may be enough, or example. I would be useul o explore
how seleced LCA ools could be used o evaluae he
milesones on a C2C roadmap. The selecive use o ools
could avoid cosly duplicaion on occasions when a ull LCA
is no needed.
2.1.3 C2C cerificaion (exernal communicaion)
Producs made rom maerials which are environmenally
sae, healhy and recyclable are awarded he C2C cerificae.
C2C cerificaion gives companies a way o demonsraing
he success and progress o heir producs. Consumers may
seek ou producs on he basis o wheher hey have me
his qualiy requiremen. Addiionally, he use o renewable
orms o energy, a responsible atiude o waer usage and
oher social aspecs are also considered. A C2C cerificae
remains valid or one year, afer which recerificaion isneeded. A higher level o cerificaion may be awarded i
progress has been made. Cerificaion shows he exen o
which a produc has saisfied he requiremens o C2C and
here are our differen levels o cerificaion: basic, silver,
gold and plainum. Cerificaion is planned o be carried
ou by an independen NGO, he C2C Produc Innovaion
Insiue in Caliornia[6]. The insiue is currenly imple-
mening a criical review o he cerificaion process and
is planning o release an updaed version (3.0) in early 2012.
2.2 Life Cycle Assessmen as a measuremenool
Lie Cycle Assessmen ools have been developed wihin a
broad and open communiy o expers and companies. No
one individual or organizaion owns he mehod, alhough
several privaely and publicly owned sofware ools anddaabases are used, and a number o organizaions have
produced LCA handbooks. Global guidance is provided
hrough ISO sandards 14040 and 14044, and hrough he
UNEP/SETAC Liecycle iniiaive. In Europe, he JRC in Ispra
runs an LCA cenre ha has developed is own mehods and
daabase[7].
The aim o LCA is o provide a ool o help decision makers
undersand and improve he environmenal impac o
producs and services. Sysemaic measuremen is essenial
i we wan o assess and miigae he impac o human
aciviy on he environmen. LCA is no a design concep:i ocuses on undersanding producs, wheher hey are
already in producion or will be produced in he uure.
LCA includes all possible aspecs o environmenal impac,
rom he raw maerials consumed during manuacuring
(cradle) o disposal o he produc afer use in a landfill or
incineraion sie (grave), or in he case o recycling is
new liecycle (he nex cradle). I is necessary o isolae he
impac o a single produc because producion processes
and produc sysems are ofen inerlinked.
Three key issues ha mus be addressed are:
Sysem boundaries: 1) Where do we sop modelling?
2) Wha can be omited wihou disoring resuls?
Allocaion: Indusrial processes ofen resul in more han
one produc (or service). For example, i we wan o
model he produc milk, we find ha catle arming also
produces mea, leaher, bones ec. How do we allocae a
share o he environmenal impac o catle arming o
milk in paricular?
Regional differences: The elecriciy consumed by a
company in France will use energy rom a differen source
(mainly nuclear) o a company in Denmark (mainly coal
and some wind power) or Norway, (mainly hydro-elecric
power). This means ha idenical producion processes
ha consume elecriciy can have a differen environmen-al impac depending on where hey are carried ou.
These are a ew o he complexiies involved wih model-
ling he world, wheher his is he model o a C2C world or
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no. How LCAs are conduced depends on he decision
conex.
It is important to note that different choices or forecasts of how
industrial processes interact and how the market responds to
changes can lead to different models and therefore different results.
The bes way o handle he ambiguiy ha resuls rom his
complexiy is o be ransparen, clear and consisen on how
choices and inerpreaions are made. This means ha in an
LCA sudy, he purpose and goal o he sudy, which are
ofen based on he decision conex o he LCA, need o be
clearly described and jusified in agoal and scop e d ocum ent.
The goal and scope documen also describes he choicesand assumpions made (including he sysem boundaries),
he required deph o he analysis as well as he use o uure
scenarios and he main mehodological choices. Conse-
quenly, when perorming an LCA or a C2C produc, i is
essenial o speciy which aspecs o C2C will be assessed
and how. I is also wise o sae which C2C aspecs are no
aken ino consideraion. This inormaion needs o be
included in he goal and scope documen. Despie criicism
o is ambiguiy, LCA has been acceped and adoped as an
imporan ool enabling us o measure he environmenal
impac o producs and processes sysemaically.
The world o LCA is consanly improving as mehods
evolve o assess environmenal impac ever more accuraely.
This posiion paper ocuses on commonly used LCA
mehodology a he ime o wriing.
2.2.1 Seting goals
LCA can be used as a measuremen ool in eco-design
processes. One o he purposes o LCA in eco-design is o
ideniy environmenal hotspots. Hospo analysis helps
produc developers o prioriize areas or improvemen afer
an LCA has been conduced.
Akey differencerom he C2C approach is ha when
conducing an LCA, prioriies are no se a priori. Depending
on he hospo analysis, i is possible o ocus on produc
developmen o improve recycling o he used maerials,
bu equally he ocus may be on minimizing energy use,
reducing he amoun o maerials used, improving logisics,
replacing oxic maerials, and so on.
2.2.2 Monioring progress and he benefis o C2C
Anoher use or LCA in eco-design processes is in comparing
alernaive design soluions and ideniying an alernaive
ha has a lower environmenal impac. I is also possible o
compare he iniial produc design wih a redesignedproduc o reveal how much progress has been made in
reducing he environmenal impac. LCA can be used in C2C
o show wheher environmenal burdens are being shifed.
LCA-relaed sandards are ofen unable o reveal he benefis
o C2C producs. The shor guide in appendix 7 includes a
number o poins which may be relevan when analysing
C2C producs using an LCA, including he aspecs relevan
o C2C. The useulness o LCA in measuring specific
indicaors depends on he flexibiliy o LCA models. I hey
are flexible enough, LCA can play a more useul role in C2C.
2.2. Communicaion: LCA as a basis or
Environmenal Produc Declaraions
The ambiguiy o LCA resuls and is misuse in green-
washing have promped he developmen o a series o
ISO sandards. Greenwashing is common among companies
ha wish o improve heir green credenials. The sins ogreenwashing websie[8]publishes a regular overview and
ound ha only 5% o all producs invesigaed were
innocen o all he seven sins o green washing.
The ISO disinguishes our ways o communicaing
environmenal inormaion abou producs:
1. Full LCA repors as described above. These are used in
business-o-business communicaion.
2. Environmenal claims (ISO14024), such as his produc
is recyclable. The sandard describes he minimum
requiremens ha mus be me beore his claim or oher
popular claims can be made.3. Environmenal labels (ISO14021), such as he EU flower,
he Nordic Swan, he blue angel and he Duch Milieukeur.
The ISO sandard sipulaes ha a generic LCA mus be
conduced. This is hen used as one o he inpus or a
panel o expers which ses easily verifiable requiremens
or producs o mee beore hey can carry a paricular
label. The aim is o reward only he op 20% o producs
on he marke.
4. Environmenal Produc Declaraions (ISO 14025) are
declaraions o environmenal impac ha are usually
prined on he produc or packaging. There is some
parallel wih he sandardized nuriional inormaion
ound on many ood and drink producs. The idea is o
empower consumers o choose or hemselves, bu he
mos imporan applicaion seems o be in a business-o-
business conex. To minimize he problem o ambiguiy,
he sandard describes a procedure according o which a
Produc Caegory Rule (PCR) mus be defined9. The PCR
is comparable wih he Goal and Scope Documen used in
LCA. Resuls mus be calculaed in he same way wihin
each produc caegory. PCRs are also developed hrough a
ransparen sakeholder consulaion process. One source
o conusion, however, is ha hese PCRs are developed
on a naional or regional basis.
Environmental Product Declarations
Recenly some very imporan iniiaives o sreamline
Environmenal Produc Declaraions have emerged: The
greenhouse gas proocol rom he World Business Council
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Susainable Developmen[10], The Susainabiliy
Consorium[11]and he PCR Harmonizaion iniiaive[12].
In he experience o he working group, hese LCA sandards
are no suiable or communicaing he C2C-ness o a
produc, and hus unsuied or exernal C2C communica-
ion. Why hey are no suiable in relaion o C2C-specific
qualiaive benefis is explained in chaper 4.
2. Developmen of maerials, processes,producs and sysems
Boh C2C and LCA can be used o develop maerials,processes, producs and sysems. The guiding principles o
C2C are based on he noion ha maerials, producs and
processes orm par o a wider sysem a biological sysem
and/or a echnological sysem in which maerials are
defined as nuriens ha inerac wih humans, he open
environmen and uure generaions. This is no o be
conused wih C2C cerificaion, which is only available or
maerials and producs. The C2C process ocuses on
changing a produc hroughou is uncional and environ-
menal uses, aking accoun o he socieal conex in which
i is embedded. The process aims a sysem change and
here is no rule abou where in he supply chain o sar, or
where o end. The invenory will move up and down he
chain. Under his mehod o sysem change, he saring
poin is usually irrelevan.
LCA looks a he whole produc chain when analysing he
environmenal perormance o a produc. I an LCA covers
he sysem in which a produc operaes, his defines he
boundaries o he LCA.
2.3.1 Produc developmen process
C2C and LCA can boh be used in he produc-developmen
process. LCA can be used as one o he ools in an eco-
design process, o measure he environmenal impac oproducs. C2C is a guiding ramework or he design
process. The able below gives an overview o boh in
relaion o eco-design.
C2C and LCA can complemen one anoher. An imporan
difference is ha in LCA he direcion or design soluions
is depending on he analysis o he impacs, and no on he
basis o guiding principles. Appendix 3 ocuses on how C2C
and LCA operae a each sage o he produc developmen
process.
Aim
Design tool
Beginning, generation of idea,
divergence
Final stage, evaluation, convergence
Table 1: C2C and LCA in a (eco-)design process.
CC
Make good producs (eco-effeciveness).
Give a clear direction, hrough he hree guiding
principles.
CC gives a clear direcion a he sar of he
design process (divergence phase). This direcion
is based on is innovaion framework and hecorresponding guiding principles. They define
he beneficial qualiies o aim for.
Qualiaive check: does he CC produc mee
he saed inenions?
Eco-design / LCA
Take environmenal impac ino accoun when
designing producs; LCA can help deermine his
impac.
Give a clear direcion by idenifying hospos
using a range of informaion sources, of which
LCA may be one.
LCA can be used o give a clear direcion a he
sar of he design process and suppor
designers in making choices.
LCA mainly comes in a he final sage of he
design process o assessa number of design
opions in quaniaive erms, and use his for
rerospecive learning and communicaion.
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The companies experiences
The companies paricipaing in he working group repored
ha when ollowing he C2C ramework compleely, i was
sensible o carry ou an LCA in order o know how consum-
ers and governmens who use LCA would view heir
produc. An LCA can help o:
add in-depth knowledge and eliminate any burden
shifing (i.e. reducing one environmenal impac while
increasing anoher one);
explain the dierences and advantages of your product;
explain very clearly why certain choices were made when
quesions are asked, in he even ha he produc has a
worse environmenal impac.
For hose companies no ollowing he ull C2C ramework,
we did no ideniy elemens ha could be added o he
environmenal analysis oolki during his assessmen
because wihin C2C his is presened as an overall approach,
in which everyhing is conneced and i is hereore no
possible o isolae specific pars.
Once a company has decided o deliver a C2C-cerified
produc, an LCA is much easier o carry ou because he daa
needed or he LCA will be much more easily available. C2C
involves knowing exacly wha is in your produc, and his is
precisely he daa ha is needed o conduc a proper LCA.
2..2 When do we need an LCA, when do we no
need an LCA?
LCAs are useul i an environmenal impac assessmen
relaing o he enire liecycle is needed, or when he
environmenal impacs o muliple producs are o be
compared.
This means hey are only useul in he conex o C2C i here
is a clearly defined goal o measure, analyse and compare
lie-cycle impacs. I such a goal has no been clearly
idenified, a deailed LCA may be redundan. Bu even when
here is such a goal, here may be oher and simpler ways o
achieve he desired resul. A simple mass-flow analysis,
energy analysis, he use o LCA-based eco-indicaors, or
plain common sense may be enough.
A shor guide o LCA, which also addresses he relevan
aspecs o C2C, is included in appendix 7.
2.4 Summary
Findings of this chapter
Exploring C2C and LCA more closely in a business develop-
men and eco-design conex, we have learned ha LCA
can be used or C2C purposes whensetting goals(LCA can
conribue o he C2C invenory) and or monitoringwheher
burdens are shifing. However, curren LCA sandards are
no suiable or communicaing he C2C-ness o a produc,
and hus not suitable for external C2C communication. Neiher
are here any plans o make his a goal, as ar as he
paricipans o his projec are aware o.
Remaining questionsMonioring he progress made in a C2C process by using a
measuremen ool like LCA requires a more deailed
exploraion. We need o know more abou he relevan
dimensions o C2C in relaion o LCA. Can a beneficial future
environmenal ooprin based on definedqualitiesbe
measured wih an insrumen like LCA? Chaper 3 will
address his quesion.
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Exploring wheher LCA can be used for C2C purposes
means undersanding he principles of C2C and how
hey relae o LCA. During he exper discussions on
measuring he C2C-ness of a produc, hree basic
conradicions were idenified beween he C2C
innovaion framework and he LCA measuremen ool.
These conradicions are capured in he ollowing
senence:
Measuring a qualiaiveAplanBfor creating abeneficialC
foot pri nt u sing a quaniaiveA
instrument designed to evaluateanexisingBenvironmentally damagingC footprint.
Each o hese conradicions will now be explained in more
deail and illusraed wih examples.
3.1 Using a quaniaive measuremen ool omeasure qualiaive soluions (A)
C2C is based on he qualiaive goals se ou in is hree
guiding principles. Any paricular course o acion is
evaluaed agains hese qualiaive goals, which serve as
benchmarks. Some o hese can be quanified using LCA,
bu ohers canno.
For example, qualiies such as he healh benefis o naural
ligh and access o resh air and is influence on human
produciviy are an inegral par o C2C bu are difficul o
incorporae under curren LCA mehodology. Conribuing
o a green environmen is anoher qualiy ha is hard o
measure in a quaniaive manner in curren LCA measure-
men erms.
However, qualiies ha are being accouned or under
curren LCA mehodology can be included i hey are welldefined. For example, i he producion process o exiles is
developed in such a way ha he waer leaves he process
cleaner han i came in (conaining ewer chemicals).
The exen o which he defined qualiies o a C2C produc
can be measured wih LCA hereore depends on he exen
o which hey can be quanified or LCA measuremen. In
oher words, i depends on he exen o which hey can be
described in curren LCA measuremen erms raher han
concepually or in non-LCA measuremen erms.
The measurabiliy o C2C developmens and producs
according o C2Cs guiding principles (on which he
defined qualiies are based) is discussed in greaer deail
in Chaper 4.
3.2 Using curren daa o measure a fuuresoluion (B)
The C2C innovaion ramework is abou uure soluions.
Targes are se, and milesones defined along he pah o
achieving hose arges. These uncion as drivers or
innovaion. Under he curren siuaion, exacly wha he
final soluion will look like is ofen unknown; however,
his is common in produc developmen and by no means
unique o C2C and LCA.
How can we evaluae uure developmen? I is possible o
conduc an LCA on uure echnologies i a scenario or ha
echnology can be creaed. Once a uure scenario has been
agreed (including backcasing and inerim milesones), i is
possible o evaluae uure echnologies using an LCA.
However, daa or uure echnologies can never be cerain
and all uncerainies (model uncerainies, subjecive
choices, sensiiviy analysis comparing produc a+b) need o
be documened.
Atemps are being made o address hese uncerainies. The
Prosuie projec[13]is currenly working o develop susain-
abiliy esimaes or our echnology cases (carbon sorage,nanoechnology, bio-refinery and muliuncional mobiles)
in close consulaion wih he sakeholders involved.
The dimensions of C2C in relationto LCA
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The C2C-ness o producs can be measured i hey are
defined using daa ha reflec he C2C design soluion
likely o be used in he uure. However, he measurabiliy
o ha daa is subjec o he abiliy o measure uure
oupus accuraely. LCA is designed o measure a poin
in ime based on exising impacs. I is no designed o
evaluae a companys progress in compleing seps owards
a qualiaive goal.
For example, he prediced percenage o recycled conen
can be calculaed where deailed figures are available (on
how he maerial is ranspored and recycled), and he
expeced oxiciy can be measured i deailed inormaion
on he maerial is available. However, i new maerials andprocesses will need o be developed o mee he qualiaive
goals se, LCA can only evaluae his i environmenal daa
can be esimaed on he basis o a concree scenario.
The same applies o energy producion. Available daa
should be used, i necessary assuming ha some innova-
ions will be achieved (e.g. he complee recycling o solar
cells or wind urbines, including how hey will be recycled).
3.3 Measuring a (posiive) beneficial
environmenal fooprin wih aninsrumen ha is designed o measurea (negaive) environmenally damagingfooprin (C)
The basic goal o he C2C innovaion ramework is o
develop producs ha will leave a beneficial environmenal
ooprin. This posiive ooprin could be achieved by, or
example, using solar income so ha producs generae
more energy han hey consume over heir whole lie cycle.
The hree guiding principles are used o define a beneficial
ooprin: wase equals ood, use curren solar income, and
celebrae diversiy.
..1 Eco-effeciveness under C2C
Wihin he C2C ramework, eco-effeciveness means
produc designs wih an inended beneficial impact and he
developmen processes o achieve hem. A desired sae or
ambiion is ormulaed: implemening he hree basic
guiding principles (wase equals ood, use curren solar
income, celebrae diversiy) wihin he design or he
produc or service. For example, a carpe may be designed
wih a uncional use (covering he floor) as well as oher
beneficial objecives such as cleaning he air , cleaning he
waer, or supporing biodiversiy (wheher during he
producion process or while in use).
Eco-effeciveness does no necessarily exclude eco-efficiency
and in specific cases, eco-efficiency can even lower he
hreshold or eco-effecive soluions. This applies paricu-
larly o energy use:
When eciency increases allow for the decentralized use
o energy (example: office lighing powered by phoo-
volaic cells inegraed ino he building).
The relative contribution of a given amount of energy
derived rom curren solar income in a mix increases as
energy use becomes more efficien.
..2 Measuring C2Cs eco-effeciveness wih LCA
When using LCA o evaluae a produc as par o an
eco-design process, he approach is o measureenvironmenal impac. Under C2C, LCA would no be
used o calculae damage bu o calculae he benefis
o soluions (he evaluaion o ideas) or in oher words,
he exen o which soluions conribue o he saed
inenions.
Measuring C2Cs eco-effeciveness, or example, means
measuring he benefis o collecing fine dus, cleaning
waer, or resoring depleed soil. Some o hese benefis can
be measured using LCA. The benefis o energy-producing
buildings or example can be measured using LCA. However,
measuring he environmenal benefis o relaed C2C resulssuch as design or disassembly and maerials pooling is
limied using LCA.
To conclude, LCA has been developed specifically o
measure he damaging environmenal impac o producs;
however, elemens o LCA can also be used o measure he
esablished beneficial (posiive) ooprin o C2C producs,
alhough here are limis under he curren LCA approach.
These limis relae o LCAs abiliy o measure qualiy: some
aspecs o qualiy can be measured under LCA, bu no all.
LCA aggregaes he maerials emission and resource use
figures on environmenal damage. C2C also addresses he
qualiy o producs as nuriens. This means ha he exen
o which he benefis o C2C can be measured depends on
he exen o which he saed (beneficial) qualiies can be
quanified (conradicion A). How LCA can be used o
measure quanified beneficial qualiies is described in he
shor guide on LCA (appendix 7).
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This chaper has shown ha he exen o which he defined
qualiies o a C2C produc can be measured using LCA
depends on how ar hey can be quanified or LCA
measuremen. In oher words, i depends on how ar hey
can be described in erms o curren LCA measuremens
raher han concepually or in non-LCA measuremen
erms.
Remaining questions
Furher exploraion is needed on wheher and howC2C-defined qualiies can be quanified in concree curren
LCA erms. These qualiies are defined on he basis o C2Cs
guiding principles, so exploring he usabiliy o LCA or C2C
purposes hereore brings us back o C2Cs guiding
principles and how compaible hey are wih LCA assess-
men. In oher words, which indicaors, based on he
guiding principles o C2C, can be measured? Chaper 4 will
consider his quesion.
Quality Quantity
Future Present
Benefits Damage
CC
Qualitativesaemens are he saring poin.
Futuresoluions.
Create and developa beneficialenvironmenal
fooprin.
LCA
Quantitative assessmen.
Current daa generally used.
Measurement tool developed o measure
damagingenvironmenal impac.
3.4 Summary
Findings of this chapter
An overview o he conradicions beween C2C and LCA:
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The C2C innovaion framework is based on hree
guiding principles, and hese also form he basis for
C2C cerificaion. A closer look a hese guiding
principles can indicae wheher LCA can be used o
measure he C2C-ness of a produc. I should be noed
ha in his paper we only focus on he firs wo
principles of C2C. The hird guiding principle,
Celebrae diversiy, was no sudied during he exper
sessions due o ime consrains.
4.1 The firs guiding principle of C2C:Wase equals food
According o C2C, wase should serve as ood, meaning
ha nuriens remain nuriens or everyhing should
become a resource or somehing else. I is undersood as
the right material, at the right place at the right time , where
right means he suiabiliy o maerials or a defined use in
a defined conex. This evaluaion depends on he inerac-
ion o boh he soluion-offering side (he produc) and he
soluion-using side (he user and is environmen). The
produc and he maerials i conains may have an impac in
a sric sense (is effec on he user) and in a wider sense
(such as erilizing he soil afer use).
For example, in he caseo he paper cascade(biosphere,
see also figure 1), office paper can be recycled up o seven
imes as office paper. When he fibres become oo shor,
he nex sages in he cascade include reuse as cardboard,
issues or oile paper beore he maerial reurns o he
biosphere as a nurien (via wase waer, compos or ash).
This requires all producs in he cascade o be developed in
such a way ha hey can saely ener he biosphere and be
used or erilizaion and soil reconsrucion. This helps he
culivaion o new rees, and a new cascade sars.
The example o he paper cascade illusraes ha he righ
maerial in he righ place a he righ ime is highly
conex-dependen and localized. I also shows ha all used
maerials are defined as ood (=resource) or somehing
else and ha emissions can nourish organisms ha hey
come ino conac wih. In case o he paper cascade, he
design and composiion o office paper already akes ino
accoun he subsequen sages o he paper cascade, i.e. all
he ingrediens used o manuacure he office paper mus
be suiable as nuriens/resources or he nex seps o he
cascade, including he las sep which could be composing,defined combusion or digesion.
All his requires a very clearly defined use scenarioor a
produc. Afer use, every par or subsance in he produc
should serve as a nurien or somehing else. A nurien
is a resource, a subsance ha conribues owards he
producion o a new beneficial produc in a new conex.
This means ha he maerials used mus be suiable o all
he conexs ha i will pass hrough, rom he exracion o
raw maerials, he producion process o he various usage
cycles ha are planned or he maerials. I will hus be
decided a an early sage wheher a maerial will be used in a
echnical conex or in a biological conex. C2Cs suiabiliy
o conex is a careully balanced combinaion o cascading
and oxiciy. C2Cs nurien managemen hus relaes o
resource managemen, which akes accoun o recycling
and oxiciy rom a susainabiliy perspecive. The ollowing
secions will examine boh o hese opics more closely.
The guiding principles of C2C and their measurability with LCA
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Figure 1: Example of a cradle to cradle paper cascade.
forestry
field
return nutrients
to agriculture
and forestry
paper use
paper collectionpaper recycling
production of virgin paper
recycled paper
recycled
paper
recycled
paper
recycled
paper
usable
fibres
usable
fibres
usable
fibres
unusable fibresunusable
fibres
unusable
fibres
unusable
fibres
unusable fibres
OLD
OLD
OLD
OLD
energy
possible routes:
combustion
digestion
compost
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emissions (LCA), his is a oally differen viewpoin hen
he conen approach o C2C. In effec, hese wo oxiciy
approaches are no comparable wih one anoher a all.
Anoher poin is ha very low levels o emissions are ofen
omited rom an LCA i hey seem irrelevan. However, i
very low emissions occur over he enire lie cycle, hey mus
be included. In his case, where no daa is available, an
esimae mus be made. This brings uncerainy in an LCA.
Under C2C, i hese low emissions also represen scarce
resources, he risk or he uure availabiliy o resources
(nurien managemen) mus also be esimaed.
Around 145,000 chemicals are used in indusry (REACHpreregiser). Abou 6,000 o hese are subjec o regulaion
due o proven oxiciy. Some chemicals are no regulaed
because hey have been deemed o be non-oxic. The vas
majoriy, however, are simply no classified. The mos
comprehensive LCA impac assessmen mehod, Useox,
includes profiles or 5,000 subsances. Much less emphasis
is pu on oxiciy issues compared wih C2C. Under LCA, ISO
generally requires a cu-off ha fis he goal and scope o
he LCA sudy. Normally 99% o all environmenal impac
mus be accouned or. This means ha any subsance ha
is relevan in erms o is environmenal impac will be
included in an LCA, regardless o he level o emissions.In C2C, maerial composiion is known o a level o a leas
100 ppm (pars per million).
Cerain health issuesare imporan in C2C ha have ye o
be defined under LCA. For example, aspecs relaing o he
sensiizaion poenial or skin or he respiraory sysem
are excluded in an LCA. No all aspecs o C2C can be
included in an LCA.
Local effects: LCA impac assessmen can be criicized or is
lack o sie-specificiy, and is lineariy. This is a simplifica-
ion, alhough much work is now being done o ackle his.
Fuure daabases will suppor GIS-based (Geographic
Inormaion Sysem) coordinaes or beter modelling.
I is difficul o measure oxiciy wih precision and his
problem is no LCA-relaed bu exends o all sysems ha
aim o assess oxiciy. The wo main problems are:
Exposure: wha racion o an emission is ingesed or
inhaled? This depends on he climae, populaion
densiy, and in he case o indoor emissions, venilaion.
Indoor exposure is no assessed as sandard under LCA,
bu i is being worked on.
Toxic impact: once he exposure has been esablished, he
oxic impac needs o be assessed. Human esing is noeasible, so oxicologiss exrapolae on daa or lower
organisms or es animals. Exrapolaion o humans
involves uncerainy o up o hree orders o magniude.
4.1.3 Nurien (mis)managemen: he example o CO2Under LCA, CO2and is role in climae change play a very
imporan role. Major releases o CO2are relaed o energy
producion rom ossil uels. Energy is also required o
esablish maerial flows. Under C2C, energy should be
produced rom sources derived rom curren solar income.
The energy necessary or maerials pooling (ranspor and
recycling processes) should come rom hese sources as
well. So energy consumpion and producion is par o he
C2C supply chain parnership. Secion 4.2 examines C2Cs
second guiding principle on energy.
From a C2C poin o view, CO2is a nurien ha has been
mismanaged during recen decades. There is oo much CO2in he amosphere, which is causing climae change. When
CO2is released during he coninuous maerial flows
surrounding producs, his CO2also needs o be managed
as a maerial. For example, greenhouses or growing
vegeables and rui will benefi rom CO2. They could be
posiioned near a acory ha emis CO2as a by-produc.
Algae urn CO2ino valuable nuriens which can be
convered ino plasics, uels and many oher maerials.
Amospheric carbon can be sequesered hrough he plan
cycle and urned ino sable humus carbon, where i can be
sored long erm.
4.1.4 Findings: Wase equals ood
I is very difficul or impossible o quaniy he wase equals
ood principle using LCA:
Recycling and C ascading:
Under LCA, part of thematerials cascade is usually
calculaed, bu is difficul o calculae when recycling is
involved. Who is credied or he recycling process he
recycler, he user or he source o he recycled maerial?
Among he commissioners o LCA sudies, here is no
consensus on his ye.
LCA cannot measure the recyclability of a product.
Furhermore, recyclabiliy has no meaning under LCA.
The recycling process can only be aken ino accoun in an
LCA i realisic assumpions can be made abou he
anicipaed recycled percenage.
So, if a C2C product (which is part of a materials cascade)
is assessed using LCA, his should be clearly described in
he goal and scope definiion. In he assumpions and
scenario definiion, he percenage o recycling and
figures in he ranspor and recycling processes can be
included.
Toxicity:
Very differen approaches are aken o oxiciy under C2Cand LCA. C2C looks a he suiabiliy o a maerial o he
conex in which i is used and a he properies o he
maerial. LCA ocuses on emissions o he maerial during
is lie cycle.
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LCA bases toxicity on emissions into the environment.
C2C on he oher hand looks a he oxiciy o he
maerials. LCA ofen omis minor subsance flows, which
appear o be irrelevan in comparison o he overall
environmenal impac along he whole lie cycle. The C2C
sraegy is o choose maerials which are suiable or heir
pre-defined use and conex. There is a lack o daa, which
means ha producs wih a low impac measured wih
LCA, can include highly oxic chemicals which consiue
a subsanial local risk. LCAs can hereore appear
inadequae when i comes o oxicology.
Toxicity as a general theme is relatively unimportant
under LCA compared o C2C. I oxiciy accouns or less
han 1% o he oal environmenal impac in an LCA, i isno aken ino accoun. Under C2C he composiion o a
maerial should be known o a leas 100 ppm (pars per
million).
So, the suitability of a material to its context cannot be
calculaed under LCA. A very specific LCA can only be
made in some very well-defined cases. For insance,
calculaing he impac o a maerial on indoor air qualiy
wih an LCA is difficul a he iniial phase o develop-
men, bu no impossible.
4.2 The second guiding principle of C2C:Use curren solar income
The principle o using curren solar income is largely
consisen wih he concep o renewable energy as i is
generally undersood. Sources ha use curren solar income
include wind urbines, solar panels, wave-powered,
bio-powered, kineic and shallow geohermal energy
sysems.
Around 10,000 imes more solar energy is available on earh
oday han is consumed. Hihero, he only limiaion has
been our abiliy o harness his energy. In effec, his is
anoher issue ha relaes o he managemen o maerial
flows and as such he second principle o C2C is closely
linked o he firs: renewable energy is only renewable when
he maerials used or producing energy are renewed in he
same period as hey are used. The implemenaion o C2Cs
second principle ends owards increasingly decenralized
energy producion.
Companies can incorporae he second principle ino heir
sraegy by using renewable energy, bu jus as imporan is
heir capaciy o influence suppliers by including i as par o
heir purchasing crieria or raw maerials. C2C hus
encourages making curren solar income usable by indusrywhile applying he wase equals ood principle o all
maerials including hose used o generae and disribue
energy.
The approach o using renewable energy in he whole
produc chain is one o greaes challenges and also one o
he main reasons why C2C producs do no always perorm
well in an LCA. The curren underuilizaion o curren solar
income in he supply chain ofen generaes a negaive
oucome under LCA. C2C aims or a qualiy saemen which
considers how energy is produced and how effecively i is
used, whereas LCA considers he amoun o energy used
hroughou he liespan o he produc. In LCA, he
producion and use o ossil energy is seen as a main source
o many o odays environmenal problems. Energy use
hroughou he lie cycle appears o be he mos imporan
cause o environmenal damage or many producs.
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Clarification to the figure:
Comparing the energy system for each impact category: = wind (EU average); = biofuel, in his case wood (Sweden);
= solar (he Neherlands); = nuclear (EU average) and = coal (EU average).
The chart compares the production of 1KWh using dierent energy sources.
Please note: the highest alternative is rated at 100% for each impact category. This does not mean each impact category scores equally
highly or ha boh are equally imporan. The impac of solar cells occurs mainly during producion and disposal. The laes echnologyenables solar panels to be 85% recycled, but this is not included.
4.2.1 Measuring energy producion sysems wih LCA
The environmenal impac o differen energy producion sysems (solar panels, wind mills, regular mix
(coal ec.) and nuclear) was calculaed using currenly available daa. The char below shows he resuls.
Figure 2: Comparison of environmental impact of energy production systems in SimaPro.
Fossil depleion
Meal depleion
Naural land ransformaion
Urban land occupaion
Agriculural land occupaion
Marine ecooxiciy
Freshwaer ecooxiciy
Terresrial ecooxiciy
Freshwaer europhicaion
Terresrial acidificaion
Climae change Ecosysems
Ionising radiaion
Pariculae maer formaion
Phoochemical oxidan formaion
Human oxiciy
Ozone depleion
Climae change Human Healh
10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
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4.2.2 Energy and LCA
The opion ha has he leas environmenal impac varies
according o he locaion. The daa on he char shows ha
using curren echnology, German wind power has less
environmenal impac han German solar power, bu in he
Sahara solar power may be much beter han wind or
example. Also i can be seen ha under an LCA comparison,
renewable sources like solar power sill have an impac. This
impac occurs mainly during he producion and disposal o
solar panels. Furhermore, solar panel echnology is
developing rapidly and his is hard o keep up wih in LCA
daabases. So a he momen o calculaion, daa can quickly
become ou-daed compared o he newes solar
echnology.
However, LCA does no claim o be exac or comprehensive,
as he discussion on nuclear energy demonsraes. LCA
usually excludes he possibiliy o accidens and considers
only he environmenal impac o normal operaion. I does
no consider he birds killed by wind urbines or he
beween 10,000 and 100,000 deahs ha occur in coal
mining every year, or example. As such, LCA canno be
ollowed blindly. Decision makers use a range o ools and
approaches and he scope o any LCA should be considered
careully.
4.2.3 Energy and C2C
The hree basic principles o C2C clearly incenivize he
developmen o cerain energy opions and he eliminaion
o ohers.
Nuclear energy is no an opion under he C2C approach
because i is inconsisen wih boh he firs principle
(wase equals ood) and he second (use curren solar
income). Furhermore, nuclear power is associaed wih
risks which are unaccepable wihin he C2C innovaion
ramework (as illusraed by he nuclear accidens in
Chernobyl, Ukraine and Fukushima, Japan), which are no
included in he curren LCA model.
Neiher is energy sourced rom burning ossil uels
accepable under C2C because i is inconsisen wih boh
he second principle (coal is no curren solar income) as
well as he firs (he wase producs rom ossil uel
combusion do no currenly find a producive ae in he
environmen, quie he conrary). There are also oher
significan aspecs such as he injuries and aaliies ha
occur in he mining indusry. This kind o damage is no
included in he curren LCA model. Under C2C, CO2is a
nurien ha should be managed by supplying i o green
houses or sequesering i ino organic orms or use inopsoil, or example.
The impac figures associaed wih supplying renewable
energy are calculaed using he non-renewable energy orms
ha are currenly used o produce he required inrasruc-
ure (wind urbines, solar panels and so on). As such, hey
represen a snapsho or a given poin in ime. As he
inrasrucure needed o capure renewable energy becomes
more widespread, he share o renewable energy used o
produce he nex generaion o renewable energy inrasruc-
ure will also increase, causing a reducion in is impac
profile. The apparen objeciviy o curren (or slighly
ou-daed) figures can impac negaively on decisions o
develop his inrasrucure. This endency o slow down he
inroducion o a poenially effecive shif in energy
producion is inrinsic o he more conservaive LCAapproach. An observer is never objecive. He influences a
sysem by he way he observes i. I is hereore imporan
o describe he goal and scope o he LCA. The Prosuie
approach[13], which involves calculaing easible uure
scenarios (including he recyclabiliy o he energy delivery
sysems), may help o inroduce more objeciviy.
4.2.4 Findings: Use curren solar income
Energy producion: A quick LCA shows ha solar energy has
he lowes overall environmenal impac; his is consisen
wih C2Cs second guiding principle, Use curren solar
income.Resricions wih curren LCA mehodology: measuring
solar energy wih LCA does no include he laes echno-
logical developmens; inormaion on he recyclabiliy o
producion sysems is also missing.
4.3 Maerials managemen, energy used andLCA measuremen
Under C2C, he prevailing lack o energy derived rom solar
power in an indusrially usable orm is no a valid excuse
or ailing o develop he Wase equals ood dimension
o producs in areas oher han energy supply. For example,
ransporaion energy, which currenly mees neiher he
Wase equals ood nor he Use solar income crieria, is
no reason or no beginning he pos-use managemen o
producs o recover he scarce resources hey conain.
The applicaion o LCA invenory mehods or mapping
energy demand in supply chains makes a grea deal o
sense rom a C2C perspecive when i comes o ideniying
opporuniies or he raional use o energy (irrespecive
o wheher i is obained rom curren solar income or no)
and changing how energy is supplied.
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This posiion paper has explored no only wheher
LCA can be useful a key momens in he process of C2C
business developmen (seting goals, monioring and
exernal communicaion), bu also he limiaions ofhe compaibiliy beween he wo sysems. This secion
sums up our findings and includes a number of
recommendaions for companies and expers in C2C
and LCA abou he usabiliy of LCA for C2C purposes.
5.1 Conclusions
Cradle o Cradle is a ramework or innovaion based on
hree guiding principles. Lie Cycle Assessmen, by conras,
is an assessmen ool and no a universal design approach.
I is designed or use as a measuremen ool in eco-designprocesses.
Overall, i has proved very difficul o make an objecive
comparison beween LCA and C2C, because he wo
conceps do no share he same aims:
C2C states clear objectives at the beginning of the design
process and is an innovaion driver ha aims o bring
abou qualiy improvemens. C2C objecives are based on
hree guiding principles and C2C amouns o a way o
hinking, creaing normaive guidelines and giving credi
or wha are deemed o be seps in he righ direcion and
hereby conribuing o a uure where producs have a
posiive environmenal ooprin.
LCA measures the environmental burden of a product or
service (which may or may no have been designed wih
he environmen in mind), ideniying hospos and/or
comparing he environmenal impac o poenial design
soluions. I leaves he inerpreaion o hese measure-
mens o hose assessing he findings and ses down no
normaive sandards. Under LCA, normaive conclusions
are lef o he analys.
Considering his, we can conclude:
C2C and LCA can be used to complement one another.
LCA can only be used to evaluate clearly dened quantita-ive goals.
The usefulness of LCA for measuring specic indicators
based on he guiding principles o C2C depends on he
flexibiliy o LCA models. The rigid Produc Caegory
Rules o EPDs in paricular ofen ail o reflec C2C
qualiies properly, since some imporan esablished
environmenal benefis are no included (e.g. recycling
and healh benefis). Overall, LCA cannot be used to assess or communicate the
C2C-ness o a produc. The Wase equals ood principle
in paricular, which is abou nurien managemen,
canno be measured effecively using LCA. Cascading and
oxiciy, which are given paricular emphasis in C2C,
canno be considered adequaely using LCA.
Furhermore, i may be useul o know how a C2C design
scores under LCA in order o compare i o governmen
crieria (susainable procuremen) and oher LCA-based
communicaion such as EPDs, an indusry-sandard LCA
wih secor-owned produc crieria.
Daily pracice has augh us ha once a company has
reached he sage o delivering a cerified C2C produc,
an LCA is much simpler o carry ou.
5.2 Recommendaions
On he basis o his exploraion, we can make wo
recommendaions o improve he usabiliy o LCA or C2C
purposes. A recommendaion is also made on he usabiliy
o C2C or LCA purposes.
5.2.1 Recommendaion on using LCA ools o monior
a C2C process
Future applicability of selected LCA tools to the C2C Roadmap
The milesones on a C2C Roadmap (secion 2.1.2) are
measurable, bu do no usually require a ull LCA. More
argeed ools can be used.
Expers in he field o C2C and LCA should joinly indicae
how seleced LCA ools could be used o evaluae
milesones on a C2C roadmap. The selecion o ools
could help companies o avoid cosly repeiion a ull LCA
a various sages o a roadmap i a ull LCA is no
necessary.
Conclusions and recommendations
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Improving the measurability of C2C, beginning with its
guid ing pri ncip les
Progress is necessary on making C2C more measurable,
or companies and governmens ha wan o commi o
he C2C ramework. Transparency on wha can and wha
canno be measured will enable companies applying C2C
o communicae wih heir cusomers and wih governmen
bodies.
Expers in he field o C2C and LCA should invesigae he
exen o which C2Cs guiding principles can be quani-
fied. Which o he inenions saed in advance (based on
he guiding principles) can be measured using LCA, and
how can his be done. The guide (appendix 4) and
Chaper 4 (guiding principles) are a firs sep in hisdirecion.
5.2.2 Recommendaion on using EPDs o compare
producs on he marke
App lyin g EP Ds to c omp are pro duct s on the mar ket
Purchasers who wan o compare producs on he marke,
should be very careul i hey are aiming or C2C or oher
C2C-relaed objecives, such as a healhy environmen or a
circular economy. The rigid Produc Caegory Rules o EPDs
(ha are being defined in a muli-sakeholder process) do
no usually reflec beneficial C2C qualiies effecively.
Purchasers should look a he uncionaliy o heproduc, and hink o which environmenal, social and
healh benefis hey wan o achieve by buying and using
he produc in he firs place, especially i hey wan o
avour a paricular end-o-use sraegy (re-use, recycling,
incineraion, land-fill) or a healhy (working)
environmen.
5.2. Recommendaions on developing a sandard or
communicaion including he benefis o C2C
A n ew sta ndar d f or c omm unic atio n
For companies developing C2C producs ha are looking
or ways o communicae he benefis achieved wih a C2C
produc, i would be useul o develop a new common
sandard or communicaion.
These companies are used o working wih EPDs, which
generally do no include aspecs ypical o C2C. C2C
aspecs can only be described in he remarks secion.
For communicaion purposes, i may be useul o develop
a sandard or carrying ou EPDs or C2C producs. The
guiding principles used in C2C could hen be inegraed
ino hese EPDs by describing heir own specific Produc
Crieria Rules.
The erm EPD is resriced o he environmen. The scope
o C2C, however, is overall produc qualiy wih environ-
menal qualiy as a specific enry. A disincion could be
inroduced beween convenional LCA-based EPD and a
C2C Qualiy Declaraion (C2C QD) o avoid conusion.
C2C expers should reflec on a meaningul srucure or
a C2C QD, and ideniy which condiions would need o
be ulfilled beore issuing hem.
5.2. Recommendaions on he usabiliy o C2C
or LCA purposes
Usability of C2C for LCA purposes
For companies ha have no ye adoped he ull C2C
ramework, no elemens were idenified during hisassessmen ha could be added o he environmenal
analysis oolki. This is because i is presened as an overall
approach wihin C2C, in which all aspecs are conneced.
I is hereore impossible o pick ou specific pars in
isolaion.
For companies amiliar wih LCA, i migh be ineresing
o reormulae he quesion as: In wha way can LCA
praciioners benefi rom C2C?.
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K. Chrisiansen (Dansk Sandard)
I do no agree ha i is no possible o develop a LCA-based
C2C assessmen mehodology, bu I do agree ha i is no
available now. I do agree on he noion o keeping differenassessmen mehodologies apar bu as in lie cycle cosing
(economic LCA) or social LCA, he boundary seting and daa
qualiy ec. should be he same or all mehodologies o
assure a common basis or decision making.
ISO 14040/44 clearly saes o be or environmenal aspecs
and impacs only, bu also ha he mehodology can be
used or assessmen o oher aspecs or impacs e.g. social
and economic. I he qualiies o C2C can be quanified, hey
can be included in he LCA, and i no how can you hen
assess an improvemen?
ISO 14040/44 inroduces shorly differen approaches o LCA
and consequenial LCA is acually uure oriened. Thisapproach is no assessed in he documen.
ISO 14040/44 is abou poenial environmenal impacs.
Using wording like exising environmenally damaging
or curren impacs is hereore misleading and mis-
inerpreing he sandards.
ISO 14000 series uses impac as boh poenially posiive
and negaive. ISO 14040/44 does no explicily include
posiive impac caegories bu his can be done wihou
conflicing wih he sandards. Adequae mehods have
been described e.g. in he Danish EPA unded mehodology
or he handling o recyclabiliy and in consequenial LCA.
ISO 14025 ses a ramework or EPD including Addiional
environmenal inormaion hereore i would easily be
possible o add inormaion rom a C2C assessmen as
qualiaive or semi-quaniaive daa.
M.Z. Hauschild and A. Bjrn
(Technical Universiy o Denmark)
This is a very imporan documen or companies inspired
by C2C ha look or guidance on synergeic effecs and
conflics beween C2C and Lie Cycle Assessmen. We hink
he documen has a high level o deail and addresses he
main issues on he subjec in a proessional manner. Overall
he documen does end o be somewha biased owards
C2C and does no always describe LCA objecively (mosnoably he secions on oxiciy and energy use). Also he
classificaion o C2C as qualiaive (as opposed o he
quaniaive LCA) is arificial, since mos aspecs o C2C can
in ac be quanified.
E.J. van Hatum (O2 Global Nework)
The conclusions and recommendaions are o high ineres
or (indusrial) designers, innovaors and any oher person
involved in Eco-design, LCA and C2C. Also worhwhile omenion are he discussions and schemes in he paper as
suppor or he design process.
L. Heine (Clean Producion Acion, Alaska, USA)
This paper makes he imporan disincion beween resuls
rom produc design and developmen based on design
principles inended o provide social and environmenal
benefis including susainable maerial flows- and produc
design and developmen opimized o minimize cerain
measurable environmenal and/or human healh-relaed
impacs. I illusraes he challenge o using efficiency-based
merics when no all benefis are angible or efficien especially when new maerial flow sysems are firs being
esablished. A he same ime i recognizes he imporance
o merics or communicaion and or driving progress
oward any goal. This paper will provide odder or
discussion abou he various exising and developing ools
or measuring atribues o chemicals, maerials, producs
and business sysems, and how hey can bes be used eiher
independenly or in combinaion o achieve desired resuls.
Scholars in he field o decision heory and susainabiliy-
relaed sciences may be amiliar wih he inheren synergies
and conflics described beween ools such as LCA and
principle based innovaion rameworks such as C2C design.
Likewise, here is opporuniy or scholars and praciioners
o urher advance merics and indicaors or C2C design and
o coninue o prooype producs based on he C2C
principles and o measure and compare resuls over ime.
G. Korevaar (Technical Universiy o Delf,
he Neherlands)
This repor shows very well he useulness o one o he
undamenal ools on environmenal impac analysis, Lie
Cycle Assessmen (LCA), or a more pracical and business-
oriened approach like Cradle o Cradle (C2C). In his way,
environmenal science mees susainable innovaion and
ha combines he bes o wo worlds. I also showsweaknesses o LCA a he one hand and C2C a he oher
hand, which gives relevan opporuniies o improve a
boh sides:
The LCA community could be more open and exible
Opinions from the Sounding Board
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Usabiliy of LCA for C2C purposes | 27
o alernaive inerpreaions o susainabiliy, like C2C,
and could work more on how o incorporae hose new
insighs along he exising impac caegories.
The C2C community could be more specic in seing
a clear baseline wihin heir projecs and reporing
undispuable resuls owards susainabiliy, on which
he LCA field could share insighs in defining sysem
boundaries, goal, scope, and measurable impac
reducion in a srucured and scienific way.
Wih his posiion paper, he C2C communiy in The
Neherlands obains a clear challenge o cooperae more
wih exising fields o experise on environmenal analysis,
susainable design, and innovaion managemen. So, I am
highly ineresed in geting involved in ha new uure pahha we have sared here.
P. Luscuere (Technical Universiy o Delf,
he Neherlands)
The curren ile: Usabiliy o LCA or C2C purposes gives
a proper reflecion o he conen o he repor.
The objecive as saed in he Terms o reerence is
limiing isel o producs. Though i is saed in he repor
ha boh C2C as LCA can suppor processes, he C2C
approach gives a more holisic and goal oriened suppor
o hese processes as LCA can, which C2C is no credied or
due o his limiaion.The summary o findings gives a good overview o he
shorcomings o LCA in C2C perspecive as well as a proper
idenificaion o hose areas where i can be supporive.
Much o he difficulies in quaniying effecs using LCA
reer o he basic concep o using exising daa, where C2C
provides a ramework or innovaion. Some o he resuling
improvemens can be quanified where ohers canno or a
leas i is, in LCA erms, unclear who should be credied or
he improvemen.
The recommendaions are useul and relevan, especially
he las one: How can LCA praciioners benefi rom C2C?
M. Sevenson (World Wildlie Fund)
I have worked wih boh sysems C2C and LCA and
heir applicaion oward he design o beter producs
and sysems. I consider neiher approach a panacea oward
susainabiliy assessmen and find boh o be oo produc-
ocused o resul in significan, sysemic change given our
curren global crises. This repor has resuled in a solid se
o recommendaions ideniying C2C and LCA as differen
approaches, bu complemenary and his requires urher
inquiries ino he inerace o qualiaive and quaniaive
assessmen. Globally, many discussions are underway ha
suppor hese same conclusions when examining he
nexus o various assessmen mehods and cerificaions.Unorunaely, in his repor I ound he pah o hese
conclusions heavily biased oward he posiive aspecs o
C2C and a misinerpreaion o he LCA mehodology
(e.g., he daa collecion sysems could be incredibly
powerul when combined, opporuniies in PCR develop-
men o represen boh approaches). Many o he asserions
made abou LCA conradiced is mehodology. I was
hopeul ha his posiion paper would resul in he
idenificaion o useul complemenary inormaion
one sysem ocused on final produc and he oher on
he producs supply chain. However, his opporuniy
was no realized in avor o deending C2C as an approach.
O. Vilaca (World Business Council Susainable
Developmen)This Posiion Paper will dramaically help businesses willing
o incorporae susainabiliy in heir core sraegy beter
undersand how LCA and C2C differ and overlap. In ac,
urning susainabiliy ino sraegy can be quie challenging
and complex as i requires a firm grip on new measuremen
ools, such as LCA, and a shif oward new sraegy rame-
works, such as C2C. The links beween hese differen
conceps and mehodologies are no always obvious and
easy o ideniy, and I am glad o see some o he mos
advanced companies in he field o susainable develop-
men willing o share he findings o heir work on his
specific opic. This working group is he kind o complexcoaliions ha are needed o speed up he ransiion
oward a more susainable world. I hope his example will
be ollowed by many oher businesses and sakeholders.
8/14/2019 Pos