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Product service systems (PSS) are an example of a novel business model billed as having the potential to significantly reduce the environmental burdens of production and consumption processes. However, despite widespread interest in PSS, consensus regarding their actual environmental impacts, particularly with regard to salient issues such as global warming, is lacking. Hence this paper explores existing research to investigate the state of the art regarding the climatic impacts of PSS, alongside the set of factors that influence climatic impacts. The paper comprises a systematic review of peer-reviewed academic literature, quantifying the extent to which different types of PSS have the capacity to reduce greenhouse gas emissions across multiple product categories. Our study shows that significant reductions in climatic emissions are possible, but PSS are in many cases associated with more modest reductions and, in some cases, increased emissions. Further, we observe no clear differences in climatic impacts according to the type of PSS model that is deployed. Rather, differences in climatic impact are influenced by factors such as production and design alongside use-phase impacts and contextual factors such as transportation and the energy mix. The study argues that further research is needed to establish a more robust baseline upon which to draw conclusions regarding the sources of climatic impacts, and outlines fruitful ways for companies to tackle the complexities of climatic emissions that are beyond their control. • In some cases, product service systems can reduce climatic impacts by up to 80%. • In other cases, climatic impacts increase compared to traditional product sales. • Climatic impacts are influenced by use intensity, transportation and production. • Other contextual factors such as the energy mix play a role. • More quantitative assessments are needed with less reliance on estimations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analysed and summarised the significant research outputs published on the environmental impact assessment of mining and mineral processing industries through life cycle assessment. The paper presents valuable insights in identifying the gaps, where should the focus be in the mining and mineral processing industries for a sustainable future. Mining and mineral processing industries have been the key focus of research in many countries due to its increasing sustainability concerns that affect global warming and climate change. Use of heavy equipment that consumes electrical energy, mechanical energy, and an enormous amount of process heat is a key contributor to the overall impacts in the industry. Due to the use of heavy equipment and associated energy consumption, these industrial sectors contribute notably to global warming, human health, ecosystems, and resources. Among the various environmental impact assessment tools which are widely used to identify sustainability indicators, life cycle assessment (LCA) is a well-justified approach among the practitioners and researchers. Though state of the art technological tools and resources are being used now a days, there is still a research gap in identifying the key mining processes which need to be the focus of attention. Renewable energy integration in the mineral processing sector and process heating from green energy sources is becoming the emergent field of research. The review results reveal, the assessment indicators in human health and ecosystems are key factors that are mostly missing in the previous studies which are crucial for people or community living nearby mining area. This review paper identifies the research gaps to the existing literature that can form the base for future research direction in the field of LCA and sustainable energy integration in mining and mineral processing industries. • A review based on life cycle assessment studies in mining and mineral processing. • 16 metal mining industries are reviewed. • Summarised key factors of environmental effects using LCA. • Future research directions are highlighted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The purpose of this paper is to evaluate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of a Chinese highway tunnel in the life cycle. Life cycle assessment (LCA) method is adopted in the paper. Based on rock mass classification and pavement categories, five different functional units have been proposed for the first time. The system boundaries, processes and assumptions are defined. The study results indicate: 1) the GHG emissions of a double-track four-lane Chinese highway tunnel in 100 years can be up to 375.5 thousand tons of CO 2 eq. Cement and electricity contribute to more than 80% of the total emissions in all functional units. 2) The construction stage, operation stage and maintenance stage emit 30.89%, 56.12% and 12.99% of the total GHG respectively. During the construction stage, casting and lining, rock support and road work are the top three GHG emission processes. 3) Rock conditions are discovered to be an important factor of affecting GHG emissions in tunnels. The GHG emissions of the 1-m Chinese highway tunnel are between 82 t to 113 t CO 2 eq. With the increase of rock mass grades, GHG emissions rapidly rise if the pavement design stays the same. The emission differences among the functional units are mainly from materials. 4) Asphalt pavements tend to generate more GHG emissions than concrete pavement due to the more frequent replacements of asphalt pavements. This paper investigates the influences of rock conditions and pavement types on the GHG emissions of Chinese tunnels in the life cycle, which can provide a scientific reference for policy making of the Chinese government. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the Chemical Process Industry (CPI) only hydrogen production from steam methane reforming produces more greenhouse gas emissions than light olefins production. Various solutions have been proposed to reduce the CO2 emissions from olefins production. It is not clear which solution is best, particularly when you consider other sustainability factors. In this paper we report the results of our cradle-to-gate life cycle assessment (LCA) of three highly promising solutions: a so-called low-emission steam cracking furnace, the electrically driven RotoDynamic reactor (RDR), and a blue hydrogen-fired furnace. Life cycle inventory data is obtained from a first principles model for steam cracking, validated with industrial data, and combined with data obtained from process simulation. Our study shows that if the electrical supply is grey then the RDR-based cracking process has a 41% higher impact on climate change than the reference base case, a conventional plant with state-of-the-art furnaces. The low-emission furnace is only 7.2% higher. When using a mixed electrical grid, like Belgium's, the climate change impact for the RDR is 1.5% higher and the low emission furnace is 6.6% lower. With a grid that uses fully renewable power generation the RDR solution is an impressive 27% lower than the base case and the low-emission furnace 17% lower. We also analysed the impact of firing the furnaces with blue hydrogen from (a) a conventional steam-methane reformer and (b) an innovative gas-heated reformer: both (a) and (b) using carbon capture and storage (CCS). The climate change impact is reduced by 8% and 18% respectively compared to the base case. Since the blue hydrogen solution uses very little electricity, the climate change impact is insensitive to the method of electrical power generation. • Prospective LCA of 3 promising steam cracking concepts has been performed. • RotoDynamic reactor results in 27% lower carbon footprint if powered by a "green" grid. • Low-emission furnace has a 16% lower carbon footprint in a "green" grid. • Low-emission furnace is preferable if the case of "grey" or mixed grid. • "Blue" hydrogen combustion allows a reduction of carbon footprint up to 18%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biscuits are a major product category in the global confectionary sector. Despite this, their environmental impacts are poorly characterised. Therefore, this paper sets out to evaluate the life cycle environmental sustainability of the following widely-consumed types of biscuit, both at the product and sectoral levels: crackers, low fat/sugar, semi-sweet, chocolate-coated and sandwich biscuits with chocolate or vanilla cream. The results obtained through life cycle assessment demonstrate that, in addition to being healthier, low fat/sugar biscuits have the lowest impacts across most of the 18 categories considered. Chocolate-coated biscuits are environmentally the least sustainable. The most significant life cycle stage for all types is the raw materials production, causing 41%–61% of the total impacts, with flour, sugar and palm oil being the key hotspots. Replacing palm with rapeseed oil would improve five impacts but worsen another five, including a 34% increase in agricultural land occupation and marine eutrophication. Therefore, the cultivation and production of palm oil, rather than its replacement, should be targeted for improvements. The second most crucial stage is manufacturing, contributing up to 54% of the impacts, followed by transport with up to 35%. Reducing energy consumption by 25% in manufacturing would reduce primary energy demand by 8%–12%, fossil fuel depletion by 9%–12% and global warming potential by 6%–9%. The latter would increase by 55% if land use change related to cocoa was involved, despite a very small amount of cocoa in the biscuits (∼1%). The analysis at a sectoral level in the UK, the leading consumer of biscuits in Europe, reveals that biscuits contribute 7.4% of primary energy demand and 0.5% of greenhouse gas emissions of the whole UK food sector. These results can help guide manufacturers in mitigating the hotspots in the supply chain and consumers in selecting environmentally more sustainable biscuits. • The environmental sustainability of six types of biscuit is evaluated for the first time. • Low fat/sugar biscuits have the lowest impacts and chocolate-coated the highest. • Global warming potential of chocolate biscuits is 55% higher with land use change. • Flour, sugar and palm oil are the key hotpots, followed by biscuits manufacturing. • Biscuits contribute 7.4% of energy demand and 0.5% of GWP of the UK food sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Energy for society is an important element globally. Policy discussions in relation to climate change, suggest a transition from fossil-carbon-based systems to those based primarily upon renewable sources. The authors of this paper focused on a technical approach that can help to make that transition, namely pilot photovoltaic net metering installation for a business-residential entity in Slovenia, including its environmental perspectives. Results of the pilot photovoltaic net metering system installation revealed that the most cost effective solution is a photovoltaic installation with peak power of 6 kW, producing excess energy during the daytime. This has demonstrated that, with a proper planning, an optimum balance between energy production and consumption can be reached, and achieving a minimum price per kWh of the system. Regarding the environmental performance of the system, the results indicated that the most significant environmental impacts during its life cycle are related to global warming followed by human toxicity and terrestrial eco-toxicity. Photovoltaic net metering represents an option for producing and consuming cleaner energy, compared to conventional generation and usage, lowering the total price of the electrical energy (including fees and taxes) in comparison with the market purchases. This case study suggested that employing photovoltaic net metering in Slovenia is a reasonable option from the financial and environmental points of view, especially in the event of future increases of electricity price. Highlights • A new technical solution for PV net metering and its environmental performance. • PV net metering is an option of cleaner energy production and consumption. • Developed solution could be further utilized by the smart communities and cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The use of biomass for production of chemicals is gaining interest because of its potential to contribute towards a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and other environmental benefits linked to the substitution of fossil resources. But, conversely to biofuels, studies focusing on environmental impacts of biomass-derived chemicals are scarce. This paper uses life cycle assessment to evaluate the environmental sustainability of bio-ethylene from poplar produced by the following three thermo-chemical routes: direct and indirect dehydration of ethanol and production of olefins via dimethyl ether. The indirect route is the best option for most impact categories for all three allocation methods considered: system expansion, economic and energy basis. However, the dimethyl ether-to-olefins route has the lowest global warming potential. In comparison to ethylene produced bio-chemically from sugar beet, the thermo-chemical indirect route has lower impacts for all categories except human, terrestrial and freshwater toxicities. All three thermo-chemical alternatives show a significant reduction in global warming potential (up to 105% in the case of dimethyl ether-to-olefins) and depletion of fossil fuels when compared to conventional ethylene production from fossil fuels. However, the results also suggest that bio-ethylene produced by any of the three thermo-chemical routes would lead to a significant increase in most other impact categories relative to fossil fuels. Therefore, while trying to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the overall environmental sustainability of bio-ethylene suffers from the increase in other environmental impacts. Highlights • Three thermo-chemical bio-ethylene processes are compared environmentally. • Indirect route is best for several impacts but the dimethyl ether is better for GWP. • Indirect route is better than 1st generation ethanol dehydration except for toxicities. • Net saving in GHG emissions of 44%–105% achieved compared to fossil alternatives. • However, other impacts are higher than for the fossil alternatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydrogen could be used as a ‘cleaner’ cooking fuel, particularly in communities that rely on biomass and fossil fuels, to reduce local pollution and related health effects. However, hydrogen must be produced using sustainable feedstocks and energy sources to ensure that local impacts are not reduced at the expense of other impacts generated elsewhere in the life cycle. To this end, this paper evaluates life cycle environmental impacts of renewable hydrogen produced in a proton-exchange membrane electrolyser using solar energy. The aim of the study is to find out if hydrogen produced in this system and used as a cooking fuel is environmentally sustainable in comparison with conventional cooking fuels typically used in developing countries, such as liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), charcoal and firewood. The results suggest that hydrogen would reduce the climate change impact by 2.5–14 times to 0.04 kg CO 2 eq./MJ compared to firewood (0.10 kg CO 2 eq./MJ) and LPG (0.57 kg CO 2 eq./MJ). Some other impacts would also be lower by 6%–35 times, including depletion of fossil fuels, summer smog and health effects from emissions of particulates, both locally and across the rest of the life cycle. However, some other impacts would increase by 6%–6.7 times, such as depletion of metals and freshwater and marine ecotoxicity. These are mainly due to the solar photovoltaic panels used to generate power for the electrolyser. In terms of the local impacts, the study suggests that hydrogen would reduce local pollution and related health impacts by 8%–35 times. However, LPG is still environmentally a better option than hydrogen for most of the impacts, both at the point of use and on a life cycle basis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

GHG emissions are important footprints because of increasing concern over climate change. Remediation methods produces GHGs in varying quantities based on which activities are involved through its entire life cycle and which contaminants are present, often because some contaminants are more difficult to remove from soil than others. Accounting for emissions from all phases of the project requires a life cycle assessment (LCA) approach. LCA can help in choosing the best available technology to reduce the environmental burden of the remediation technology or to improve the sustainability of the technology by implementing systematic approaches to ensure that future developments are optimized for environmental performance throughout the life cycle. The primary objective of this paper is to review existing LCA studies that report GHG emissions (CO 2-eq ) or Global warming potential (GWP) from six ex-situ soil remediation technologies (ESRTs), including excavation and disposal, ex-situ thermal desorption, ex-situ soil vapor extraction, ex-situ bioremediation, excavation and incineration, and soil washing, and present the variability in GHG/GWP results and how this data can help in selecting an ex-situ soil remediation technology with a lower global warming potential. A second objective of this study is to compare the GWP levels of ex-situ remediation to the GWP levels of typical in situ remediation methods. Our results showed a large variation in GHG emissions of treated soil from six ESRTs varying from 3.1 × 10 −7  t to 8.2 t CO 2 -eq/m 3 . Incineration had the highest mean GHG emissions (0.7 t CO 2 -eq/m 3 ) and thermal desorption the lowest (0.07 t CO 2 -eq/m 3 ). It was also found that there was a large variation range of GHG emissions from the ex-situ excavation and disposal method soil treatment technologies, varying from 3.1 × 10 −7  t to 8.2 t CO 2 -eq/m 3 of treated soil. This knowledge provides opportunities to increase sustainability of soil remediation throughout the investigation, design, construction, operation, and monitoring phases of site remediation regardless of the selected cleanup remedy. This shows data on LCA GHGs are useful to assess the impact of different scenarios and management practices on ESRTs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Collaborative approach and infrastructures sharing are key industrial symbiosis initiatives adopted in clusters of SMEs. Several studies have dealt with the environmental benefits of industrial symbiosis however only a few have adopted a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to assess the benefits of these initiatives on the typical product of the cluster. Our paper presents the case of an Italian tannery cluster located in Tuscany. Through the calculation of an LCA with average data, our study compares the impact category results between two scenarios: the existing scenario where the IS initiatives are implemented and the other where these initiatives are less developed. The results show the positive contribution of these initiatives in several LCA impact categories such as climate change and terrestrial eutrophication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims at quantifying the most relevant technological and environmental indicators associated with the operation of organic and inorganic packed biofilters treating diffuse methane emissions. The use of different packing materials including a mixture of pine bark, perlite and compost for the organic biofilter and polyurethane foam for the inorganic one was evaluated. The influence of other major variables on the removal efficiency such as nutrient requirements, operational conditions and long-term stability were also assessed in both configurations. The analysis of the biofilters operation proved that both configurations provided a feasible and stable performance in the treatment of diffuse methane emissions. Once the operational feasibility of both systems was proved, the environmental assessment was performed. The main hotspots found in the analysis were attributed to the requirement of nutrients, infrastructure, waste disposal and direct emissions to the atmosphere. A sensitivity analysis was performed in terms of nutrient supply and infrastructure material which revealed that special attention needs to be paid to the formulation of the nutrient solution in terms of concentration and source of nitrogen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nitrate concentration and runoff are site-specific and driven by climatic factors and crop management. As such, nitrate emissions may increase in the future due to climate change, affecting the marine eutrophication mechanism. In this context, and considering the case of spring barley production in Denmark, the paper has two objectives: (i) to estimate the present and future marine eutrophication impacts by combining a novel Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA) modelling approach with a quantification of the effects of climate change on its parameterisation, and (ii) to discuss the implications of different normalisation references when comparing future Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) scenarios with current production systems. A parameterised characterisation model was developed to gauge the influence of future climatic-driven pressures on the marine eutrophication impact pathway. Spatial differentiation was added to the resulting ‘present’ and ‘future’ characterisation factors (CFs) and calculated for the Baltic and North Sea. The temporal variability of both midpoint normalised impact scores and damage scores reflect a 34% and 28% increase of the CFs in the North Sea and Baltic Sea, respectively. The temporal variability is mostly explained by CF variation and increasing future nitrogen flows. The marine eutrophication indicator scores at both midpoint and damage levels suggest that the differentiation of impacts to various receiving (and potentially perturbed) ecosystems is relevant. Damage scores are quantified with a factor 2.5 and 2.3 differentiation between the Baltic (higher) and North Seas (lower) for the present and future scenarios, respectively. The comparison of the normalisation methods, either based on total annual impacts (domestic inventory of background interventions), on ecological carrying capacity, or on the presently proposed method, point to the value of adding spatial differentiation to LCIA models. The inclusion of time variation and spatial differentiation in characterisation modelling of marine eutrophication and the identification of a paucity of adequate inventory data for future scenario analysis constitute the main outcomes of this study. Further research should aim at reducing the uncertainty of the parameterisation under future conditions and strengthening emissions projections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The aim of the present work is to estimate the carbon footprint of the Greek electricity sector and the associated damages. This is being realized by quantifying the external cost related with the climate change airborne emissions (i.e. carbon dioxide) generated during all stages of the power plants life cycle in Greece. For this purpose, the paper applies the EcoSenseLE tool, together with the basic principles of the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) approach. The examined external cost has been calculated for seven types of power plants. Results show that hydro and wind power plants have an excellent performance; close to them is the performance of PV and biomass-fired power plants. The performance of natural gas-fired power plants is good, while the performance of oil-fired power plants is, as it is expected poor. Lignite clearly has the worst performance, which affects the average external cost of the sector, since it is the dominant energy source in electricity production in Greece. Regarding the life cycle stages, for thermal systems, the climate change external cost is primarily made of CO2 emitted at the power plant, while in hydro, wind and PV systems, it is totally associated with the plant construction stage. Moreover, the paper includes also issues regarding the evolution of the examined footprint within the next years, considering the various Greek national policies and measures that have been announced and started to be realized; the cost/benefit analysis (CBA) of these policies and measures based on this footprint; and the investigation if this CBA is being affected by the CO2 abatement cost associated with the various external cost estimation approaches. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The cement industry is facing important challenges regarding the reduction of raw materials and energy demands, and CO2 emissions. Although many advances have been reached in the last decades through technology improvements, the use of alternative materials and fuels still can be further explored. The Brazilian cement industry is considered energetically efficient. Nevertheless, there are only few scientific studies regarding environmental concerns in the cement production in Brazil. This paper aims to analyze the environmental impacts of the Brazilian cement industry, such as resource depletion and toxicity. The life cycle assessment was used as a methodology to estimate impacts on climate change, ozone depletion, photochemical oxidant formation, particulate matter, terrestrial acidification, freshwater and marine eutrophication, metal and fossil depletion and human, terrestrial, freshwater and marine toxicity. Results clearly show that the transportation step has the largest contribution to those impacts, followed by fossil fuels production and clinkering. Together, these steps are responsible for more than 70% of CO2 equivalent and 90% of CFC-11 equivalent. Thus, the replacement of fossil fuels by alternative fuels can be an option to decrease impacts regarding fossil fuels consumption and atmospheric emissions from the kiln. However, the distances from the source of these alternative fuels to the plant must be taken into account. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As economies in the European Union are ultimately driven by the final consumption of citizens, policy makers need proper indicators to monitor the environmental impacts associated with this consumption. These indicators can be constructed using two different approaches, each having their strengths and limitations. The top-down approach is based on environmentally extended input–output analysis and quantifies the environmental impacts of product groups and services provided by industrial sectors. The bottom-up approach is based on Life Cycle Assessment and quantifies the environmental impacts of a selection of representative products. The bottom-up approach has already been used by the European Commission's Joint Research Centre to calculate the impacts of the final consumption per capita in the European Union in 2006. In this paper, we calculated these impacts through a top-down approach, using the Exiobase database. The covered household activities are food, consumer goods, mobility, shelter and services. The goal was to calculate all the impact categories recommended by the International Reference Life Cycle Data handbook, and compare both approaches. However, the categories ionizing radiation, toxicity and abiotic resource depletion could not be included, as some relevant emissions and resources are not available in Exiobase. To study more profoundly the impact on natural resources, we added the Cumulative Exergy Extraction From the Natural Environment to the impact assessment. When comparing both approaches, it can be concluded that there is a considerable shift in the results. This means that the information obtained by a top-down approach could supplement the information base for policy support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a state-of-the-art method for conducting environmental assessments of systems, whether these consist of goods or services, or a combination of the two. However, current LCA guidelines focus on assessing tangible products and lack specific attention to more complex systems, such as Product/Service-Systems (PSS), which also consist of intangible elements. PSS imply a shift in business paradigm from selling specific products to delivering a function, through a mix of products and services, thereby incentivising resource efficiency as well as user satisfaction. Despite their potential to reduce environmental impacts, PSS are not by default more environmentally benign compared to conventional systems, and quantifications of their environmental performance are called for. This paper contributes by showing that specific challenges need to be addressed when using LCA to evaluate the environmental performance of PSS. We identify a set of PSS characteristics that can challenge an LCA study. Three relevant scopes are distinguished, where LCA may be applied: (1) evaluating options within the PSS itself; (2) comparing a PSS with an alternative; and (3) modelling the actual contextual changes caused by the PSS. We derive three pronounced challenges when conducting LCA within the three scopes: (i) identifying and defining the reference system; (ii) defining the functional unit; and (iii) setting system boundaries. We elaborate on how these challenges are discussed in current literature. Recommended future work includes developing adapted guidelines and further empirical case studies that quantify the environmental changes and impacts caused by introducing PSS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to propose an alternative methodology for aggregation in a life cycle assessment (LCA). The comprehensive aggregation method is based on a damage approach and done through an analytical hierarchy process. Consistency analysis is also presented to justify the reliability of the judgements and the magnitude of change in the values developed. A case study of electricity generation is applied to demonstrate its applicability in LCA study within a Malaysian context. Results from this case study show that the weighting value is higher compared to global and European values; however, they are consistent as in the case of product ranking towards greener products. Regional impacts such as particulate matter formation and photochemical oxidant formation have higher score compared to global impacts such as climate change. The results show that the method is simple and replicable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Subsurface power grids constitute one of the largest copper stocks in many industrialized cities. Over time, parts and zones of these systems have been continuously disconnected and abandoned, resulting in the emergence of urban infrastructure ores. This study aims to assess how current conditions and practices influence economic and environmental motives of cable recovery from such power grids. By applying an infrastructure manager's perspective and evaluating 16 scenarios involving different extraction technologies and procedures, surface materials, urban locations and types of cables, we identify key areas where solutions or changes to increase incentives for cable recovery are needed. The assessed scenarios display significantly different cable extraction costs, where excavation in city centers with asphalt or cobblestone pavements generates the highest costs while greenbelts offer the best conditions. In most cases, cable revenues are not even close to outweighing the extraction costs. This is especially true for paper-coated cables or cables with aluminum conductors, for which the revenues are much lower than for plastic-insulated copper cables. Although economic conditions could be improved by integrating cable recovery to regular system upgrade projects or by applying non-digging technologies, clear incentives rely on the cable in question being especially valuable. Most of the cable recovery scenarios display environmental motives in terms of net savings in GHG emissions due to metal recycling. In contrast to the economic results, recycling of aluminum power cables is here more awarding than that of corresponding copper cables. We conclude that under current conditions urban mining does not make economic sense to infrastructure managers unless it is integrated as an added value to system upgrade projects. Apart from such re-arrangements in infrastructure provision, several other practice-related changes to cut cable extraction costs are possibly within reach for the managers. Still, an economically motivated practice relies on several external performance drivers such as market diffusion of non-digging technologies, improved cable recycling processes, and increased scrap metal prices. Our conclusion that the arguments for urban mining are currently more environmental than financial, points towards changed perspectives where such activities are seen as a way for infrastructure managers to contribute to societal goals such as climate change mitigation and reduced mineral resource dependence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Nowadays rigorous methodologies for performing ecodesign of process plants are still missing in current industrial practices and in the literature. The use of a fully integrated Process Modelling and Life Cycle Assessment (PM-LCA) tool combined with appropriate mathematical analysis methods seems to be an audacious approach. A technical procedure for process ecodesign is formalized in this paper in order to address this issue. The proposed methodological approach is applied to a drinking water treatment plant. The EVALEAU tool, a PM-LCA integrated simulator based on a computational library of models for water treatment processes, is used including a tool box for sensitivity analysis. At first, a ground modelling scenario, representing the regular functioning of the plant is established and validated. An in-depth analysis of this plant model highlights the major environmental issues. Secondly, several technological solutions are tested in alternative modelling scenarios, which are derived from the ground one. Interesting technological solutions are then combined in one optimal scenario, which manages to decrease the environmental impacts (e.g. reduces “Climate Change” by 17.2%). At the same time, operational costs are increased by 10.8% showing opposite behaviour. Compared with field reality, the solutions proposed are realistic and demonstrate that the studied plant functioning is close to the optimum. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) predicts an increase of 0.2 °C per decade for the next two decades in global temperatures and a rise of between 1.5 and 4.5 °C by the year 2100. Related to the increase in world temperatures is the increase in Greenhouse Gases (GHGs) which are primarily made up of carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrous oxide (N2O), methane (CH4) and fluorinated gases. In 2004, the GHGs from agriculture contributed 14% of the overall global GHGs made up mainly of methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions. In Australia, the dominant source of CH4 and N2O emissions for the year ending June 2012 was found to be from the agricultural sector. With the recent introduction of the Clean Energy Act 2011, the agricultural sector of Australia is expected to develop appropriate GHG mitigation strategies to maintain and improve its competitiveness in the green commodity market. This paper proposes the use of Integrated Spatial Technologies (IST) framework by linking Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), Remote Sensing (RS) and Geographical Information Systems (GIS). The IST approach also integrates and highlights the use of Cleaner Production (CP) strategies for the formulation and application of cost-effective GHG mitigation options for grain production in Western Australia (WA). In this study, the IST framework was tested using data from an existing study (the baseline study) and two mitigation options. The analysis results revealed production and use of fertiliser as the “hotspot”, and for mitigation purposes was replaced with pig manure in option 1, whereas option 2 emphasised crop rotation system/s. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Normalization and weighting steps used in life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) are often ignored as the weighting factors currently available are seen as being uncertain, subjective and unreliable. This article aims to contribute to the development of a new approach towards weighting, exploring the application of the concept of a planetary safe operating space for human welfare. Based on this approach, the boundaries included in this study relate to: climate change, rate of biodiversity loss, nitrogen cycle, phosphorus cycle, stratospheric ozone depletion, global freshwater use and change in land use. The weighting factors are then applied to a case study comparing environmental impacts of organic, conventional and integrated farming systems with alternative land uses. An integrated farming system that uses a part of the land for natural forest was found to have the lowest total impact score. Conventional farming systems with Miscanthus and managed forest had the highest total impact scores. The main source of uncertainty in the results arose from the wide range of assessments for the safe boundary of the biodiversity loss impact category. As the weighting factors proposed in this paper are not based on the common LCA impact categories, more work is needed to adjust the weighting factors to be suitable for use in LCA studies. More research is also needed for further defining the safe planetary boundaries. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A commonly agreed methodology for weighting the relative importance of different environmental impacts in Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is lacking, although it is becoming a typical phase in LCA. Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) provides an avenue to develop weighting tools applicable in LCA. The purpose of this paper is to describe a process of assessing environmental impacts of two alternative raw materials and to present the problems related to it. A panel which includes experts in measuring the environmental impacts of biomass production was requested to identify and weight impact categories to assess environmental impacts of biomass production. The panelists identified new environmental impacts (such as biodiversity) not included to the standard LCA. The highest weights were given by the panelists to climate change, natural land use change and biodiversity. The environmental impacts were analyzed for four case biomass production chains producing biodiesel and pulp in Finland. In case chains, the raw material for biodiesel is Asian palm oil or Finnish rapeseed oil, while the raw material for pulp is South American eucalyptus or Finnish birch. The calculations of the LCA impacts were limited to the impact categories for which inventory data were available. In calculations, different types of normalization procedures were tested to receive information on their effects on the LCA results. According to the results, in some cases normalization have considerable impact on the magnitude of the results. In general, the results imply that biomass imported from developing countries has less environmental impacts compared to the local forest and field biomass produced in Finland. However, due to the several sources of uncertainties included in the results, they are only to be used for illustrative purposes. In the future, applying the MCDA in LCA may deepen the applicability of the analyses, if valid and reliable data is available. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The food system is a significant source of rising greenhouse gas emissions in Bangladesh due to increasing food demand, and ongoing economic growth. The country needs to develop low carbon pathways for the food system that strengthen food security, reduce vulnerability to climate change, and help to achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. In this paper we analyse the historical trajectory of greenhouse gas emissions of the food system in Bangladesh, and identify various strategies for reducing those emissions. Our analysis reveals that greenhouse gas emissions from Bangladesh's food system doubled from 1990 to 2017, and from the processes included in this study are projected to rise up to 250% by 2050 under a business as usual scenario. Compared with that scenario, a 'National Policy-Based Circular Economy' scenario could achieve a 75% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions in the same period for same level of food supply and production. Major reductions in greenhouse gas emissions could be achieved through activities such as alternative wetting and drying in rice cultivation, and the valorisation of organic waste generated by the food system. [Display omitted] • Application of macro level LCA for food system in a developing country setting. • The carbon footprint from food system projected to rise in Bangladesh by 2.5 times in 2050. • Around 75% decarbonization can be achievable under the circular economy based national strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The implementation of new high-speed transport technologies re-shapes the demand balance between transport modes and rebound effects may occur. In this paper first a definition of environmental rebound effects of high-speed transport is presented and various cases are discussed. Second, a method is developed to determine and quantify the environmental rebound effects employing life cycle assessment. The method is illustrated in a case study by investigating the greenhouse gas emissions of a frequently discussed future underground maglev train system for Switzerland. The environmental rebound effect expresses the size of environmental impact changes due to demand corrections in relation to the plain substitution effect. The latter expresses efficiency substitution effects due to the substitution of existing transport services with a high-speed transport service; i.e. passenger-kilometre performance remains constant in a world with and without the new transport service. Demand corrections are determined employing the notion of the constant travel time budget, assuming that if travel speed increases, the time saved will be exclusively used to travel more and further. In order to quantify the environmental rebound effect we determined the environmental efficiency – including operation, energy supply, vehicle supply and infrastructure supply – for all important transport services of the current passenger transport system as well as for the new transport technology. In addition, we generated and quantified a set of cornerstone scenarios to address possible changes in mobility patterns and technological options of passenger car transport at the time when the new high-speed transport technology would be in operation. The results show an increase of per capita environmental impact for all considered scenarios even without accounting for additional transport demand due to time saving effects. All scenarios show additional environmental impacts due to rebound effects on top of pure substitution effects. The case study demonstrates that taking into account demand changes, i.e. rebound effects is essential to evaluate emerging transport technologies. New technologies allowing for higher travel speed, even if energy-efficient on a passenger-kilometre basis, might lead to higher environmental impacts. This is ignored by the traditional approach of environmental transport assessment, which compares environmental efficiency of each transport mode separately. The presented approach allows to better understand the consequences of new transport services, and facilitates the assessment of future transport technologies on the level of the transport system as a whole. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Life cycle assessment (LCA) is increasingly being used as a tool to estimate environmental impacts in the sheep sector. Policymakers have been keener on developing policies and recommending best management practices from a life cycle perspective. This paper reviews the key LCA studies of the sheep sector within the last fifteen years to assess the state of the art of the environmental impacts of the sheep supply chain. Peer-reviewed LCAs as well as global, organizational efforts on the subject have also been reviewed and discussed. Discussions are categorized by products, hotspots, methodologies and system boundaries, and impacts of interest. The vast majority of studies have utilized a "cradle-to-farmgate" system boundary, where impacts associated with production of major farm inputs, management/applications of inputs and direct emissions from livestock are included. The sole focus of the majority of studies in terms of the category of impact has been climate change, quantified through greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The impact results are difficult to generalize due to wide discrepancies in farming practices, production efficiencies, product allocation and emission modeling methods. The GHG emissions, however, associated with sheep meat, milk and wool fall in the range of 3.5–25 kg CO 2 -eq/kg live weight, 2–5 kg CO 2 -eq/kg fat and protein corrected milk (FPCM), and 20–60 kg CO 2 -eq/kg greasy wool, respectively. The overwhelming consensus is that the single largest contributor to GHG emissions is direct methanic emission from livestock, generally contributing to 50%–75% of overall GHG emissions. More research needs to be conducted on determining impacts of "post-farm" activities such as processing of sheep products before it reaches the consumers, inclusion of the benefits of carbon sequestration, and consideration of environmental impacts other than climate change. • Most articles have focused on estimating greenhouse gas emission from sheep farming. • Enteric emission is the most significant contributor to greenhouse gas emissions. • Intensive farming leads to lower life cycle emissions per functional unit. • No consensus exists on the effects of carbon sequestration on the overall impacts. • Knowledge gaps and research needs in the state-of-the-art are highlighted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The bioenergy sector is showing a recent development in Lebanon, a Mediterranean country, where the valorization of forestry and agricultural waste through briquetting consists one of the mostly applied and targeted applications. This study aims at analyzing the life cycle environmental impacts of biomass briquettes produced from olive pruning residues and used for heating purposes in traditional Lebanese stoves. The biomass briquettes are mainly introduced as a replacement for the light fossil fuels widespread used in similar stoves for the same purpose. Consequently, this paper also extends the literature-found comparison of the consumption phases between biomass briquettes and light fossil fuels to a comparative gate-to-gate LCA of these products. For the briquette itself, the results indicate that the "consumption" life cycle stage is the one that contributes to the most to all damage categories. Its contribution is 61%, 94%, 80% and 79% of the total contribution to "Human Health", "Ecosystem quality", "Climate change", and "Resources" damage categories respectively. When compared to light fossil fuels, biomass briquettes present overall better environmental results with exceptions for "Non-carcinogens" (6.28E-04 kg C 2 H 3 Cl eq), "Aquatic ecotoxicity" (1.01E-02 kg TEG water), "Terrestrial ecotoxicity" (5.04E-02 kg TEG soil), and "Land occupation" (9.37E-03 m2org.able) impact categories. This overall outcome is mainly linked to the fact that biomass briquettes are used as a replacement to traditionally adopted energy sources while reducing burning activities in the field. Moreover, sensitivity and uncertainty analyses are also conducted to verify the robustness of the results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coupling life cycle assessment (LCA) and energy systems models (ESM) is a suitable approach to assess energy systems from both life cycle and energy systems perspectives. However, methodological challenges need to be taken into account due to differences between both modeling approaches considering system boundaries, databases, and different levels of detail of their input data. This paper brings these challenges into discussion and introduces the Environmental Assessment Framework for Energy System Analysis (EAFESA), which enables to identify life cycle based non-climate environmental impacts of energy scenarios consistently. EAFESA is applied to analyze potential future decarbonized European electricity systems with a focus on flexibility options using ELTRAMOD as an example of an ESM to test the conceptual approach of combining ESM and LCA. The application confirms the importance and benefits of "integrated thinking" proposed by EAFESA, which allows minimizing the pitfalls of combining both models comprehensively. At the same time, EAFESA has the potential to bring awareness of issues not discussed among policy-makers. One example is the insight that the decarbonized electricity system will be accompanied by increased metal demand and urban land occupation. • The challenges of coupling LCA and ESM are discussed. • EAFESA is proposed as a general and holistic framework to overcome the challenges. • EAEFSA is applied to assess the future EU28 + 2 electricity system with flexibility options. • Policy implications beyond climate change are proposed in the application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]