Key Elements in a Framework for Land Use Impact Assessment Within LCA (11 pp)

Background, Aim and Scope Land use by agriculture, forestry, mining, house-building or industry leads to substantial impacts, particularly on biodiversity and on soil quality as a supplier of life support functions. Unfortunately there is no widely accepted assessment method so far for land use impacts. This paper presents an attempt, within the UNEP-SETAC Life Cycle Initiative, to provide a framework for the Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA) of land use. Materials and Methods: This framework builds from previous documents, particularly the SETAC book on LCIA (Lindeijer et al. 2002), developing essential issues such as the reference for occupation impacts; the impact pathways to be included in the analysis; the units of measure in the impact mechanism (land use interventions to impacts); the ways to deal with impacts in the future; and bio-geographical differentiation. Results: The paper describes the selected impact pathways, linking the land use elementary flows (occupation; transformation) and parameters (intensity) registered in the inventory (LCI) to the midpoint impact indicators and to the relevant damage categories (natural environment and natural resources). An impact occurs when the land properties are modified (transformation) and also when the current man-made properties are maintained (occupation). Discussion: The size of impact is the difference between the effect on land quality from the studied case of land use and a suitable reference land use on the same area (dynamic reference situation). The impact depends not only on the type of land use (including coverage and intensity) but is also heavily influenced by the bio-geographical conditions of the area. The time lag between the land use intervention and the impact may be large; thus land use impacts should be calculated over a reasonable time period after the actual land use finishes, at least until a new steady state in land quality is reached. Conclusions: Guidance is provided on the definition of the dynamic reference situation and on methods and time frame to assess the impacts occurring after the actual land use. Including the occupation impacts acknowledges that humans are not the sole users of land. Recommendations and Perspectives: The main damages affected by land use that should be considered by any method to assess land use impacts in LCIA are: biodiversity (existence value); biotic production potential (including soil fertility and use value of biodiversity); ecological soil quality (including life support functions of soil other than biotic production potential). Bio-geographical differentiation is required for land use impacts, because the same intervention may have different consequences depending on the sensitivity and inherent land quality of the environment where it occurs. For the moment, an indication of how such task could be done and likely bio-geographical parameters to be considered are suggested. The recommendation of indicators for the suggested impact categories is a matter of future research.     

Societal LCA Methodology and Case Study (12 pp)

Background, Aim and Scope Societal assessment is advocated as one of the three pillars in the evaluation of, and movement toward, sustainability. As is the case with the well established LCA, and the emerging LCC, societal life cycle assessment should be developed in such as way as to permit relative product comparisons, rather than absolute analyses. The development of societal life cycle assessment is in its infancy, and important concepts require clarification including the handling of the more than two hundred social indicators. Therefore, any societal life cycle assessment methodology must explain why it is midpoint- or endpoint-based as well as its reasons to be complimentary with, or included within, life cycle assessment. Materials and Methods: A geographically specific midpoint based societal life cycle assessment methodology, which employs labour hours as an intermediate variable in the calculation has been developed and evaluated against an existing LCA comparing two detergents. The methodology is based on using an existing life cycle inventory and, therefore, has identical system boundaries and functional units to LCA. The societal life cycle assessment methodology, much like LCA, passes from inventory, through characterisation factors, to provide an ultimate result. In analogy to economics and cost estimation, societal life cycle assessment combines, into its statistics, both data as well as estimates, some of which are correlated to elements of the LCI. It focuses on the work hours required to meet basic needs.A geographically specific midpoint based societal life cycle assessment methodology, which employs labour hours as an intermediate variable in the calculation has been developed and evaluated against an existing LCA comparing two detergents. The methodology is based on using an existing life cycle inventory and, therefore, has identical system boundaries and functional units to LCA. The societal life cycle assessment methodology, much like LCA, passes from inventory, through characterisation factors, to provide an ultimate result. In analogy to economics and cost estimation, societal life cycle assessment combines, into its statistics, both data as well as estimates, some of which are correlated to elements of the LCI. It focuses on the work hours required to meet basic needs. Results: The societal life cycle assessment of an appended case study indicates that Detergent 2 generates, relative Detergent 1, approximately 20% less employment in Russia, 35% less in France, and approximately five times more in Canada and South Africa, the latter derived from its higher aluminium content. There is essentially no difference in the employment in the use country (Switzerland) nor in Morocco, where some of the waste disposal was assumed to take place. Discussion: Given that housing is more affordable, in terms of shelter units per labour hour, in South Africa, compared to Europe, it is, therefore, of no surprise that Detergent 2 provides a societal benefit in terms of housing. Detergent 2 does, however, result in dematerialization, in that its environmental impact is lower (LCI). Therefore, as less resources are employed and labour required, in extraction, production and transport, the societal benefits in health care, education and necessities, a grouped variable, are lower for Detergent 2. This is despite the employment shift away from Europe and to less 'developed' regions. Conclusions: The assessment of societal impacts involves several hundred specific indicators. Therefore, aggregation is, if not impossible, at least heavily value laden and, therefore, not recommended. The impact of a societal action, derived from a product purchase or otherwise, is also highly local. Given this, societal life cycle assessment, carried through to the midpoints, and based on an existing LCI, has been developed as a methodology. The results, for an existing LCA-detergent case, illustrate that societal life cycle assessment provides a means to investigate how policy and policy makers can be linked to sustainable development. The sensitivity analyses also clarify the decisions in regards to product improvement. Recommendations and Perspectives: The goal of societal life cycle assessment is not to make decisions, but rather to point out tradeoffs to decision- or policy-makers. This case, and the methodology that it is based on, permit such a comparison. Substituting Detergent 2 for Detergent 1 reduces resource use at the expense of an increase in atmospheric and terrestrial emissions. Access to housing is improved, though at the expense of education, health care and necessities. As a recommendation, one would look at the fact that the majority of indicators are superior for Detergent 2 relative to Detergent 1and seek to improve the aqueous emissions in Detergent 2 via a change in the formulation. An energy or fossil fuel substitution at the site of production could also improve the societal benefits in terms of education and health care. While societal life cycle assessment remains in its infancy, a methodology does exist. The field can, therefore, be viewed in a similar way to LCA in the early 1990s, with a need to validate, consolidate and, ultimately, built toward a standard. The contribution is aimed at contributing to such a discussion and therefore proposes that a societal life cycle assessment be LCI-derived, geographically specific, based on mid-points, and use employment as an intermediate variable.     

LCA of Ex-Situ Bioremediation of Diesel-Contaminated Soil (11 pp)

- DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1065/lca2004.09.180.12 Goal and Scope Primary and secondary environmental impacts associated with bioremediation of diesel-contaminated sites were assessed using a retrospective life cycle assessment (LCA) as a function of the duration of treatment and the achievement of regulatory criteria. The case study was the remediation with biopiles of 8000 m3 of subsurface soil impacted with an average of 6145 mg of diesel fuel/kg soil during a two-year period. Methods Two scenarios were compared; the construction of a single-use treatment facility on site or the use of a permanent treatment center that can accept 25000 m3 soil/year. Moreover, since bioremediation is never 100% efficient, different efficiency scenarios, including the transportation of partially treated soil to landfill were analyzed. The primary impact of residual soil contamination was determined by developing a specific characterization factor (ecotoxicity and human toxicity categories in the EDIP method) based on the toxic components of diesel. Secondary impacts were assessed with an LCA software. Results and Discussion One major observation was the fact that the soil itself is responsible for an important fraction of the system's total impact, suggesting that it is beneficial to reach the highest level of remediation. The reutilization of the treatment facility is also an important issue in the overall environmental performance of the system. In the case of a single-use treatment center, the analysis showed that site preparation and site closure were the major contributing stages to the overall impact, mainly due to the asphalt paving and landfilling processes. Results indicated that off-site transport and the biotreatment process did not contribute notably to the level of environmental impact. The use of a permanent treatment center is preferred since it allows a significant decrease of the secondary impact. However, when soil had to be transported for a distance greater than 200 km from the site, global impacts increased significantly. Conclusion – Results from this study allowed identifying several process optimizations in order to improve the environmental performance of the biopile technology including: the achievement of low level of residual contaminants, the minimization of asphalt or the use of a permanent treatment center. Recommendation and Outlook LCA was found to be an efficient tool to manage contaminated soil in a sustainable way. However, because of the major contribution of residual soil contamination, additional spatial and temporal data should be collected and integrated in the substance characterization models.     

Describing Values in Relation to Choices in LCA (7 pp)

Intention, Goal, Scope, Background It has gained growing acceptance in recent years that there are values in LCA, and several authors have discussed how value orientations can influence LCA models and results. The aim of this article is to continue this discussion and to focus on value choices in LCA. Objectives To find a way of describing value orientations in relation to choices in LCA. Methods This objective has been pursued in this paper by investigating the relationship between values and traditional science, exploring the concept of values, investigating the relationship between values and choice, and suggesting a way to describe the value base for specific choices in LCA. Results and Discussion Research on how to improve the environmental performance of products resembles peace research in that it aims to achieve a certain value-laden situation in society. The epistemological basis for peace research also seems to apply to LCA research. The term value has many meanings. There are several classification methods for values and I claim that one is more suitable for choices in LCA than the others. The correlation between values and choice is not straightforward, and values can only partially explain choices. Conclusions Describing the value base for choices in LCA increases the consistency and transparency of the value choices and offers a means of justifying them. Recommendations and Outlook It is recommended that the value base is described in terms of 1) what is included in the concern for the environment 2) how tradeoffs are made and 3) how uncertainty is handled.     

内蒙古土地利用变化对生态系统防风固沙功能的影响

土壤风蚀是内蒙古的严重环境问题之一。在对内蒙古2000年到2010年的土地利用变化特征进行分析的基础上,分析了内蒙古土地利用变化的主要特征,以RWEQ模型估算了内蒙古2000年和2010年的固沙物质量,采用空间统计分析评估了固沙功能对土地利用变化的响应,结果表明:(1)2000—2010年土地利用变化以城镇高速发展、草地和湿地面积锐减、林地灌丛有所恢复以及荒漠环境改善为主要特征。(2)2000—2010的十年间内蒙古固沙物质总量增长了17.75%,草地总面积虽有所降低,但是部分区域草地覆盖度的上升增强了草地固沙能力,而林地的固沙物质量则由于农田、草地改为林地的短期内地表保护力的下降而有所降低。(3)十年间农田退耕还草、荒漠环境的改善、草地质量提高等土地利用变化方式有益于生态环境质量的提高,使生态防风固沙功能得以增强,造成固沙物质量提高了约0.25亿t。(4)农田开垦、城镇发展、荒漠化发展、湿地萎缩以及草地的退化等土地利用变化会使生态环境质量降低,生态系统防风固沙功能下降,累计造成的固沙物质量的减少总量约为0.19亿t。从十年间综合来看,内蒙古的土地利用变化对区域固沙功能有一定的增强作用,但是尚存在城镇发展过快、草地湿地转化压力过大、草地退化、荒漠化对固沙功能的弱化问题,需要在今后的土地利用规划和管理工作中予以改进以进一步增强区域固沙功能,构建北方地区生态安全屏障。     

Feasibility of Applying Site-dependent Impact Assessment of Acidification in LCA (8 pp)

Goal, Scope and Background Taking into account the location of emissions and its subsequent, site-dependent impacts improves the accuracy of LCIA. Opponents of site-dependent impact assessment argue that it is too time-consuming to collect the required additional inventory data. In this paper we quantify this time and look into the added value of site-dependent LCIA results. Methods We recalculated the acidifying impact for three existing LCA studies: linoleum, stone wool, and water piping systems. The amount of time needed to collect the required additional data is reported. The EDIP2003 methodology provides site-generic and site-dependent acidification factors. We used these factors to recalculate acidification for the case studies. We analyzed differences between site-generic and site-dependent acidification and reported problems experienced. Results and Discussion Finding the location of processes and emissions was easy. The reports of the three case studies contained most of this information. Far more time was needed to disaggregate processes to the level where emissions can be localized. Although the overall conclusions with regard to acidification did not change in the case studies, the relative importance of processes shifted when considering sub-levels. This is especially important for improvement analysis. Site-dependent acidification assessment was hampered in the linoleum case study where about 40% of the acidification originates from non-European emissions. However, EDIP2003 provides no site-dependent factors for these countries and site-generic factors had to be used instead. Thus, calculating site-dependent acidification is only feasible for LCA studies in which the majority of the emissions originate in Europe. We could not reproduce all parts of the three case studies using the report and additional public resources. This hindered our recalculation. In fact, any additional analysis will be hampered by this lack of reproducibility. ISO recommends such reproducibility for comparative assertion disclosed to the public. Conclusion Spatially differentiated acidification is feasible for each of the three case studies. Finding the location of processes and emissions was easy, but quite some time was needed to disaggregate processes and emissions to the appropriate level. Overall conclusions on acidification remained the same for the case studies, but the relative contribution of basic processes changed when applying site-dependent impact assessment. Though the three case studies were all rather detailed and complete, none of them was fully reproducible. This complicated recalculation of acidification, and will in fact make any additional analysis difficult.     

基于RS与GIS的海南西部土地沙化/土地退化动态趋势研究

遥感和地理信息系统技术的发展为研究沙化／土地退化动态趋势变化提供了有效手段,以１９８７年和１９９８年的ＴＭ遥感资料为信息源,综合ＧＩＳ参与监督分类及目视读的方法,以ＧＩＳ为工具提取土地沙化／土地退化动态信息。结果表明海南省西部研究区土地沙化面积在减少,严重沙化区已基本得到整治,但由于对部分地区生态环境的保护不力,使得这些地区继续沙化同;同时,该研究区土地 化区明显的向着逆转的方向发展,但季雨林面积     

LCA of Danish Fish Products. New methods and insights (9 pp)

Goal, Scope and Background This article presents the main results from a PhD dissertation about environmental impacts from Danish fish products. The focus is on LCA results for flatfish, but the article also gives an overview of screenings of other fish species. Furthermore, it includes an analysis of the energy consumption in the fishing stage – as a function of fish species and fishing methods. Alternative impact categories that have not been included in the quantitative LCA and policy perspectives are elaborated in the discussion part of the paper. Methods The study represents a consequential LCA approach (opposed to attributional) and the functional unit is one kg consumed flatfish filet in units of 300 gram (cardboard boxes). Data are obtained from statistics, interviews, literature, and databases – mainly ETH-ESU 96 and the Danish LCA food database. The EDIP 97 method has been applied for life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) and the results have been verified by Ecoindicator 99. Results The results of the flatfish LCA show that the fishing stage has the largest impact potential for the investigated impact categories. This is mainly due to a relatively high fuel consumption and significant emissions of biocides from anti-fouling agents (contributing to ecological toxicity). But large reductions in fuel intensity (fuel consumption per kg caught fish) can be obtained by changing the type of fishing gear – particularly in flatfish fisheries. The consumption and retail stages represent significant impact potentials as well, while processing is insignificant. LCA screenings of other fish species show the same picture, but there are cases (herring, mackerel and mussels) where the fishing stage is less important, while the opposite is the case for processing – mainly due to energy intensive packaging materials. Discussion A limited number of impact categories have been investigated, but a 'qualitative' LCA, focusing on other fishery specific impacts, emphasises that the fishing stage is indeed the overall most important. In this regard, it is argued that fuel requirements in many cases are proportional to environmental impacts related to 'discard' and 'seafloor damage'. Hence, it is worth focusing on energy for many reasons. In a policy context, it is a paradox that mainly the fish processing industry has been subjected to environmental regulations. Recommendation and Perspective Future scenarios indicate that energy consumption will remain one of the most important environmental aspects in the fishing stage – partly due to regulations of anti-fouling biocides (e.g. TBT) and partly because of the continued depletion of fish stocks. From an environmental policy perspective, it is therefore recommended to broaden the perspective of existing fishery regulations and increase the focus on fishing gear and energy in the primary production (fishing stage).     

Including albedo in time‐dependent LCA of bioenergy

Albedo change during feedstock production can substantially alter the life cycle climate impact of bioenergy. Life cycle assessment (LCA) studies have compared the effects of albedo and greenhouse gases (GHGs) based on global warming potential (GWP). However, using GWP leads to unequal weighting of climate forcers that act on different timescales. In this study, albedo was included in the time‐dependent LCA, which accounts for the timing of emissions and their impacts. We employed field‐measured albedo and life cycle emissions data along with time‐dependent models of radiative transfer, biogenic carbon fluxes and nitrous oxide emissions from soil. Climate impacts were expressed as global mean surface temperature change over time (?T) and as GWP. The bioenergy system analysed was heat and power production from short‐rotation willow grown on former fallow land in Sweden. We found a net cooling effect in terms of ?T per hectare (?3.8 × 10^–11 K in year 100) and GWP₁₀₀ per MJ fuel (?12.2 g CO₂e), as a result of soil carbon sequestration via high inputs of carbon from willow roots and litter. Albedo was higher under willow than fallow, contributing to the cooling effect and accounting for 34% of GWP₁₀₀, 36% of ?T in year 50 and 6% of ?T in year 100. Albedo dominated the short‐term temperature response (10–20 years) but became, in relative terms, less important over time, owing to accumulation of soil carbon under sustained production and the longer perturbation lifetime of GHGs. The timing of impacts was explicit with ?T, which improves the relevance of LCA results to climate targets. Our method can be used to quantify the first‐order radiative effect of albedo change on the global climate and relate it to the climate impact of GHG emissions in LCA of bioenergy, alternative energy sources or land uses.     

科尔沁沙地不同造林类型对土壤动物多样性的影响

为深入认识流沙生境中种植人工林对土壤动物多样性的影响,选择科尔沁流动沙地及其周围灌木林和乔木林地(生长年龄均为30年左右)为研究样地,对土壤动物群落与土壤环境进行调查,分析了土壤动物群落结构对流动沙地种植人工林的响应及影响因素.结果表明:流动沙地种植人工林对土壤性状产生显著影响,尤其是灌木林覆盖流动沙地显著改善了土壤环境,增加了土壤水分,提高了土壤营养条件.在3种林地中共捕获土壤动物485只、11个类群.优势类群为蜱螨目和弹尾目,常见类群为啮目,其他8个类群为稀有类群.从流动沙地到灌木林地和乔木林地,土壤动物密度减少,类群数和Shannon指数增加,而均匀度指数下降.但土壤动物密度、类群数、Shannon指数和均匀度指数在3种样地间均无显著性差异.土壤电导率是影响土壤动物类群数分布的重要因素.在科尔沁沙地,流动沙地种植人工林能够改善土壤环境和影响土壤动物多样性,但以30年的人工林研究其对流动沙地土壤动物群落的影响存在局限性.     

LCA Study and Environmental Benefits for Low Temperature Disinfection Process in Commercial Laundry (12 pp)

Background, Aims and Scope

This study aims to compare the energy requirements and potential environmental impacts associated with three different commercial laundry processes for washing microbiologically contaminated hospital and care home laundry. Thermal disinfection relies mainly on a 90°C washing temperature and hydrogen peroxide, while the chemothermal disinfection uses a combination of chemicals (mainly peracetic acid) and 70°C washing temperature. The chemical disinfection process relies on a combination of chemicals used at 40°C. Currently, chemothermal processes are the most commonly used in professional laundries. Traditional chemical processes are uncommon due to drawbacks of longer residence time and high chemical requirements. However, the innovative Sterisan chemical process based on phthalimidoperoxyhexanoic acid (PAP) – which is the key subject of this Life Cycle Assessment – was designed to overcome these technical limitations.

Methods

This study is based on a screening Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) prepared in 2002 by Öko-Institut (Germany), which was carried out following the requirements of the ISO 14040 series standards. It includes energy resource consumption, water resource consumption, climate change, eutrophication and acidification potential as relevant environmental indicators. In 2004/2005, the study was further updated and broadened to include the aquatic eco-toxicity potential, photochemical oxidant formation and ozone depletion potential in order to represent the environmental burdens associated with the chemicals used.Based on available data, the system boundaries include detergent manufacturing, the professional wash process, waste water treatment, but excluding the laundry finishing process. The selected functional unit was 1kg washed hygiene laundry.

Results and Discussion

The LCA indicates that the Sterisan chemical process has a lower potential environmental impact than thermal or chemothermal treatment for six out of seven key indicators. This includes a 55% lower energy and a 46% lower water consumption. The global warming potential and acidification potential are approximately halved, while the photochemical oxidant formation potential and eutrophication potential are almost reduced to one third. By contrast, for the aquatic eco-toxicity, the thermal- and chemothermal processes have an approximately 17 fold lower impact. The worse aquatic toxicity score for the Sterisan process is mainly caused by a solvent component in the formulation.

Conclusion

The comparison of the thermal, chemothermal and Sterisan commercial laundry processes shows that the Sterisan process allows for very substantial reductions in energy and water consumption, as well as significant reductions in climate change, photochemical oxidant formation potential, air acidification potential and eutrophication potential. Yet, Sterisan has a clear disadvantage with regards to aquatic eco-toxicity potential.

Recommendation and Perspective

Based on a current hygiene laundry volume of approx. 584000 tons of linen washed per year by commercial laundries in Germany, a full substitution of the market to the Sterisan process could potentially allow a primary energy saving of ~750000 GJ/year (roughly equivalent to the residential primary energy consumption of 23500 German citizens or the overall energy demand of approx. 6000 German citizens). In terms of improvements to the respective processes, the chemothermal and thermal process could benefit from a reduction of water volume, and change of detergent composition to reduce the eutrophication potential. As the washing temperature is an essential factor, only slight improvements for the energy consumption indicator can be obtained, e.g. by choosing green electricity and reducing the amount of water to be heated. The Sterisan process could be improved by lowering the solvent use, although for perspective, the current aquatic eco-toxicity score of the Sterisan process is still lower than that of a typical domestic laundry product.

     

Scenario Modelling in Prospective LCA of Transport Systems. Application of Formative Scenario Analysis (11 pp)

Background Tools and methods able to cope with uncertainties are essential for improving the credibility of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) as a decision support tool. Previous approaches have focussed predominately upon data quality. Objective and Scope. An epistemological approach is presented conceptualising uncertainties in a comparative, prospective, attributional LCA. This is achieved by considering a set of cornerstone scenarios representing future developments of an entire Life Cycle Inventory (LCI) product system. We illustrate the method using a comparison of future transport systems. Method Scenario modelling is organized by means of Formative Scenario Analysis (FSA), which provides a set of possible and consistent scenarios of those unit processes of an LCI product system which are time dependent and of environmental importance. Scenarios are combinations of levels of socio-economic or technological impact variables. Two core elements of FSA are applied in LCI scenario modelling. So-called impact matrix analysis is applied to determine the relationship between unit process specific socio-economic variables and technology variables. Consistency Analysis is employed to integrate unit process scenarios, based on pair-wise ratings of the consistency of the levels of socio-economic impact variables of all unit processes. Two software applications are employed which are available from the authors. Results and Discussion The study reveals that each possible level or development of a technology variable is best conceived of as the impact of a specific socio-economic (sub-) scenario. This allows for linking possible future technology options within the socio-economic context of the future development of various background processes. In an illustrative case study, the climate change scores and nitrogen dioxide scores per seat kilometre for six technology options of regional rail transport are compared. Similar scores are calculated for a future bus alternative and an average Swiss car. The scenarios are deliberately chosen to maximise diversity. That is, they represent the entire range of future possible developments. Reference data and the unit process structure are taken from the Swiss LCA database 'ecoinvent 2000'. The results reveal that rail transport remains the best option for future regional transport in Switzerland. In all four assessed scenarios, four technology options of future rail transport perform considerably better than regional bus transport and car transport. Conclusions and Recommendations. The case study demonstrates the general feasibility of the developed approach for attributional prospective LCA. It allows for a focussed and in-depth analysis of the future development of each single unit process, while still accounting for the requirements of the final scenario integration. Due to its high transparency, the procedure supports the validation of LCI results. Furthermore, it is well-suited for incorporation into participatory methods so as to increase their credibility. Outlook and Future Work. Thus far, the proposed approach is only applied on a vehicle level not taking into account alterations in demand and use of different transport modes. Future projects will enhance the approach by tackling uncertainties in technology assessment of future transport systems. For instance, environmental interventions involving future maglev technology will be assessed so as to account for induced traffic generated by the introduction of a new transport system.     

Environmental Impacts of Wild Caught Cod and Farmed Salmon - A Comparison with Chicken (7 pp)

Goal, Scope and Background The objective of this study was to assess environmental impacts of Norwegian cod fishing and salmon farming and compare these with chicken farming in order to find reference levels for environmental performance and identify problem areas and potentials for improvements. Methods A Life Cycle Screening following the production of 0.2 kg fillets as a functional unit through the respective food chains is performed for all 3 products. The analysis is partly quantitative and qualitative focusing on energy use, antifouling and land use impacts. Case studies are performed to investigate potentials for improvements within the fisheries and aquaculture industry. Results and Conclusions It can be concluded that the fishing phase for the cod and the feeding phase for both salmon and chicken dominate for all environmental impacts considered. Chicken is most energy effective followed by salmon and cod, which are almost on the same level. The area of sea floor affected by bottom trawling is around 100 times larger than the land area needed to produce the chicken feed for production of the 0.2 kg fillet. - The case studies show potentials for improvement of environmental performance, both for salmon farming and cod fishing, especially when it comes to energy use. The environmental impacts on the sea floor imposed by bottom trawling are not fully explored, but based on the precautionary principle a reasonable conclusion is that bottom trawls with less impact on the sea floor should be developed. Recommendation and Perspective LCA methods have initially been developed for land based industrial applications. More effort should be given to adapt these to fishing applications in order to obtain more accurate assessment of environmental impacts from seafood products. It is recommended to put more emphasis in finding improved indicators for impacts imposed by over-fishing, fuel emission from combustion at sea, use of antifouling and seafloor ecosystem disturbance.     

Uncertainty Analysis in Life Cycle Assessment (LCA): Case Study on Plant-Protection Products and Implications for Decision Making (9 pp + 3 pp)

Goal, Scope, and Background Uncertainty analysis in LCA is important for sound decision support. Nevertheless, the actual influence of uncertainty on decision making in specific LCA case-studies has only been little studied so far. Therefore, we assessed the uncertainty in an LCA comparing two plant-protection products.Methods Uncertainty and variability in LCI flows and characterization factors (CML-baseline method) were expressed as generic uncertainty factors and subsequently propagated into impact scores using Monte-Carlo simulation. Uncertainty in assumptions on production efficiency for chemicals, which is of specific interest for the case study, was depicted by scenarios. Results and Discussion Impact scores concerning acidification, eutrophication, and global warming display relatively small dispersions. Differences in median impact scores of a factor of 1.6 were sufficient in the case study for a significant distinction of the products. Results of toxicity impact-categories show large dispersions due to uncertainty in characterization factors and in the composition of sum parameters. Therefore, none of the two products was found to be significantly environmentally preferable to the other. Considering the case study results and inherent characteristics of the impact categories, a tentative rule of thumb is put forward that quantifies differences in impact scores necessary to obtain significant results in product comparisons.Conclusion Published LCA case-studies may have overestimated the significance of results. It is therefore advisable to routinely carry out quantitative uncertainty analyses in LCA. If this is not feasible, for example due to time restrictions, the rule of thumb proposed here may be helpful to evaluate the significance of results for the impact categories of global warming, acidification, eutrophication, and photooxidant creation.