274 A. Brekke et al.
environmentally preferable products or services, EPDs are easily confused as
proof of a product being greener. The main merits of LCA and EPD results
are not in the simple, binary answer that something is good or bad, but rather
the ability to compare different products, services or product systems fulfilling
the same function. Whereas an environmental label can guide decisionmakers in the choice of environmentally friendlier products, it does not
quantify the product’s environmental impact. If one wants to compare functionally equivalent products or services by, for instance, calculating the total
emissions from construction projects, LCAs and EPDs are needed.
14.2.2 Product benchmarking
An EPD contains results for a defined set of environmental impacts. Presently, the BREEAM scheme has included extra points if the EPDs that are
actually used to choose among alternatives and tenders also start to include
numerical benchmarks based on LCAs. The construction sector has been an
early mover in applying environmental information in development and
procurement processes (Frischknecht, Wyss, Knöpfel & Stolz, 2015), but the
use of LCA for governance purposes is not confined to this sector. For
instance, the Renewable Energy Directive states that biofuels’ greenhouse gas
emissions are to be compared to fossil fuels’ emissions of 83.8 grams of CO 2e
per MJ throughout their life cycle – from extraction of raw materials to combustion when used as a fuel (EU, 2009), or, if revised sustainability criteria are
agreed upon, 94 grams of CO 2e in 2021 (European Commission, 2017). Any
biofuel producer or importer who wants to certify their fuel for a market in
Europe must relate to these numbers, at least if they want their biofuel to be
part of the targeted use of biofuel.
The aforementioned Product Environmental Footprints (PEFs) (European
Commission, 2013) take the comparison of product life cycles one step
further. The European Union has initiated several pilot projects on PEFs for
different product categories with a methodology based on LCA. Every
product should have a label with information on the environmental impacts
related to its manufacturing, much like a label on nutritional facts, to give
consumers the possibility to demand environmentally friendlier products.
Environmental Product Declarations, the sustainability criteria in the
Renewable Energy Directive, and Product Environmental Footprints, are all
examples of tools for informing on environmental performance for different
product categories. There are also many examples of companies and governments commissioning LCAs for specific areas to make environmental decisions. The first LCA was made for comparing different beverage containers
for Coca Cola, and LCA has helped decisions on packaging alternatives for
both companies and governments ever since. For instance, this includes the
Danish Environmental Protection Agency commissioning an LCA on packaging systems for beer and soft drinks in 1995 to support regulations on
beverage containers.
environmentally preferable products or services, EPDs are easily confused as
proof of a product being greener. The main merits of LCA and EPD results
are not in the simple, binary answer that something is good or bad, but rather
the ability to compare different products, services or product systems fulfilling
the same function. Whereas an environmental label can guide decisionmakers in the choice of environmentally friendlier products, it does not
quantify the product’s environmental impact. If one wants to compare functionally equivalent products or services by, for instance, calculating the total
emissions from construction projects, LCAs and EPDs are needed.
14.2.2 Product benchmarking
An EPD contains results for a defined set of environmental impacts. Presently, the BREEAM scheme has included extra points if the EPDs that are
actually used to choose among alternatives and tenders also start to include
numerical benchmarks based on LCAs. The construction sector has been an
early mover in applying environmental information in development and
procurement processes (Frischknecht, Wyss, Knöpfel & Stolz, 2015), but the
use of LCA for governance purposes is not confined to this sector. For
instance, the Renewable Energy Directive states that biofuels’ greenhouse gas
emissions are to be compared to fossil fuels’ emissions of 83.8 grams of CO 2e
per MJ throughout their life cycle – from extraction of raw materials to combustion when used as a fuel (EU, 2009), or, if revised sustainability criteria are
agreed upon, 94 grams of CO 2e in 2021 (European Commission, 2017). Any
biofuel producer or importer who wants to certify their fuel for a market in
Europe must relate to these numbers, at least if they want their biofuel to be
part of the targeted use of biofuel.
The aforementioned Product Environmental Footprints (PEFs) (European
Commission, 2013) take the comparison of product life cycles one step
further. The European Union has initiated several pilot projects on PEFs for
different product categories with a methodology based on LCA. Every
product should have a label with information on the environmental impacts
related to its manufacturing, much like a label on nutritional facts, to give
consumers the possibility to demand environmentally friendlier products.
Environmental Product Declarations, the sustainability criteria in the
Renewable Energy Directive, and Product Environmental Footprints, are all
examples of tools for informing on environmental performance for different
product categories. There are also many examples of companies and governments commissioning LCAs for specific areas to make environmental decisions. The first LCA was made for comparing different beverage containers
for Coca Cola, and LCA has helped decisions on packaging alternatives for
both companies and governments ever since. For instance, this includes the
Danish Environmental Protection Agency commissioning an LCA on packaging systems for beer and soft drinks in 1995 to support regulations on
beverage containers.