Life cycle sustainability assessment

Since an assessment on the level of the material is not complete, an assessment on the level of products is required, which covers all life cycle phases, i.e. production, use and end-of-Ufe. Such a Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment (LCS) should be the core of an assessment, while it has to be completed by a variety of other tools, which address e.g. compliance with local emission limits and consumer protection regulations. Legal compliance requires other efforts than an overall sustainability assessment. Since compliance is an issue companies have to... 

Fig. 15 Data collection on level of the unit process for complete Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment...

FIGURE 61.2 Information flows needed for a complete LCA. (From UNEP/SETAC LCI, Towards a life cycle sustainability assessment Making informed choices on products. Job Number DTI/1412/PA, Stockholm, 86p, 2011.)... 

Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment A Holistic Evaluation of Social, Economic, and Environmental Impacts... 

THREE PILLARS OF SUSTAINABILITY AND THE NEED FOR LIFE CYCLE SUSTAINABILITY ASSESSMENT... 

Finkbeiner M, Schau EM, Lehmann A, Traverso M. Towards life cycle sustainability assessment. Sustainability 2010 2(10) 3309—22. 

Halog A, Manik Y. Advancing integrated systems modelling framework for life cycle sustainability assessment. Sustainability 2011 3(2) 469—99. 

Life cycle sustainability assessment (LCSA) adds two elements to an environmental LCA social and economic factors. The term refers to "the evaluation of all environmental, social and economic negative impacts and benefits in decision-making processes towards more sustainable products throughout their life cycle" [93]. 

LCA concepts are applied in various contexts. Life cycle thinking or perspective incorporates LCA principles into the design or optimization of a product in order to minimize and balance the possible impacts. Life cycle sustainability assessment adds social and economic factors to LCA. Finally, certain regulations reflect elements of LCA, as we explore in Chapter 3. 

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