Page 185 -

The Beginning and the End? • 159

LCA has several possible uses, including establishing a baseline of envi-
ronmental impacts and forming the basis of eco-labeling, but identifying
opportunities for improvement is a key application. Used with other infor-
mation, the results of an LCA can be used to support decision making and
provide the basis for achieving sustainability. This is the “begin with the
end in mind” philosophy as promoted by Steven Covey. What do you want
to get out of the LCA? Following are example outcomes taken from the
U.S. EPA, which can help define the goals and scope of an LCA project:

• Support broad environmental assessments: The results of an LCA
are valuable in understanding the relative environmental burdens
resulting from evolutionary changes in given processes, products, or
packaging over time; in understanding the relative environmental
burdens between alternative processes or materials used to make,
distribute, or use the same product; and in comparing the environ-
mental aspects of alternative products that serve the same use.
• Establish baseline information for a process: A key application of an
LCA is to establish a baseline of information on an entire system
given current or predicted practices in the manufacture, use, and
disposal of the product or category of products. In some cases, it
may suffice to establish a baseline for certain processes associated
with a product or package. This baseline would consist of the energy
and resource requirements and the environmental loadings from the
product or process systems that are analyzed. The baseline informa-
tion is valuable for initiating improvement analysis by applying spe-
cific changes to the baseline system.
• Rank the relative contribution of individual steps or processes: The
LCA results provide detailed data regarding the individual contribu-
tions of each step in the system studied to the total system. The data
can provide direction to efforts for change by showing which steps
require the most energy or other resources, or which steps contribute
the most pollutants. This application is especially relevant for inter-
nal industry studies to support decisions on pollution prevention,
resource conservation, and waste minimization opportunities.
• Identify data gaps: The performance of an LCA for a particular sys-
tem reveals areas in which data for particular processes are lacking
or are of uncertain or questionable quality. Inventory followed by
impact assessment aids in identifying areas where data augmenta-
tion is appropriate for both stages.