Wastepaper in Mumbai (India) an approach for abridged life cycle assessment

In this study, the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of waste-paper was conducted in Mumbai (India). The wastepaper cycle was divided into four main life stages - Generation, Collection, Utilisation and Disposal. A survey of major stakeholders involved in this cycle, namely informal waste-pickers, buyers, wholesalers and paper manufacturers, was carried out to determine the socio-economic and environmental aspect of each stage. The LCA Abridged Matrix Method was applied for Life Cycle Assessment. The resulting LCA matrix showed that, while there was a moderate environmental impact of wastepaper during generation, collection and disposal stages, the utilisation stage had a significant impact on the environment, especially during manufacturing in paper factories