within one therapeutic/pharmacological subgroup using the same product-PCR) and
improve the reliability of future pharma-LCAs. Additionally, it paves the way for
EPDs to establish themselves within the sector, with potentially significant social
implications (e.g. doctors/consumers opting for ‘greener’ drug alternatives).
5 Conclusions and Outlook
Despite recent efforts of the pharmaceutical industry to integrate green chemistry
and green engineering principles into their production processes and drug designs,
the utilization of LCA to monitor and measure progress towards ‘greener’ pharmaceutical products remains far from common practice. A review of available
pharma-LCAs revealed a considerable degree of inconsistency and inhomogeneity
in their modelling choices, often leading to quite unreliable results. The problem is
compounded by the fact that existing life cycle impact assessment methods fail to
include a variety of pharma-specific impact pathways within their toxicity modelling (e.g. endocrine disruption or antibiotic resistance) and provide a noticeably
limited number of characterization factors for pharmaceutical compounds.
The development of product category rules for pharmaceutical products and
processes is regarded as a necessary development to harmonize, facilitate and
expand the future use of LCA in the sector. Additionally, calculating new CFs for
pharmaceutical compounds within established toxicity models or developing new
characterization models that reflect pharma-specific toxicological effects is imperative to delivering a comprehensive and accurate quantification of the environmental impacts of human drugs.
Only when an applicable and robust LCA-based environmental sustainability
assessment approach is adapted to the needs and specificities of the pharmaceutical
industry can life cycle management establish itself within the sector and truly guide
eco-innovation towards ‘green pharmacy’.
References
1. Taylor D, The Pharmaceutical Industry and the Future of Drug Development, In Pharmaceuticals
in the Environment, Hester, R. E., Harrison, R. M., Eds., Issues in Environmental Science and
Technology No. 41, The Royal Society of Chemistry, 2015, pp 1–33.
2. Christen V, Hickmann S, Rechenberg B, Fent K, Highly active human pharmaceuticals in
aquatic systems: A concept for their identification based on their mode of action, Aquatic
toxicology, Vol. 96, No. 3, 2010, pp 167–181.
3. Arnold, K. E, Brown A. R, Ankley G. T, Sumpter J. P, Medicating the environment: assessing
risks of pharmaceuticals to wildlife and ecosystems, Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B, Vol. 369, 2014.
4. Caldwell D. J, Sources of Pharmaceutical Residues in the Environment and their Control, In
Pharmaceuticals in the Environment, Hester, R. E., Harrison, R. M., Eds., Issues in
Environmental Science and Technology No. 41, The Royal Society of Chemistry, 2015,
pp 92–119.
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Y. Emara et al.
improve the reliability of future pharma-LCAs. Additionally, it paves the way for
EPDs to establish themselves within the sector, with potentially significant social
implications (e.g. doctors/consumers opting for ‘greener’ drug alternatives).
5 Conclusions and Outlook
Despite recent efforts of the pharmaceutical industry to integrate green chemistry
and green engineering principles into their production processes and drug designs,
the utilization of LCA to monitor and measure progress towards ‘greener’ pharmaceutical products remains far from common practice. A review of available
pharma-LCAs revealed a considerable degree of inconsistency and inhomogeneity
in their modelling choices, often leading to quite unreliable results. The problem is
compounded by the fact that existing life cycle impact assessment methods fail to
include a variety of pharma-specific impact pathways within their toxicity modelling (e.g. endocrine disruption or antibiotic resistance) and provide a noticeably
limited number of characterization factors for pharmaceutical compounds.
The development of product category rules for pharmaceutical products and
processes is regarded as a necessary development to harmonize, facilitate and
expand the future use of LCA in the sector. Additionally, calculating new CFs for
pharmaceutical compounds within established toxicity models or developing new
characterization models that reflect pharma-specific toxicological effects is imperative to delivering a comprehensive and accurate quantification of the environmental impacts of human drugs.
Only when an applicable and robust LCA-based environmental sustainability
assessment approach is adapted to the needs and specificities of the pharmaceutical
industry can life cycle management establish itself within the sector and truly guide
eco-innovation towards ‘green pharmacy’.
References
1. Taylor D, The Pharmaceutical Industry and the Future of Drug Development, In Pharmaceuticals
in the Environment, Hester, R. E., Harrison, R. M., Eds., Issues in Environmental Science and
Technology No. 41, The Royal Society of Chemistry, 2015, pp 1–33.
2. Christen V, Hickmann S, Rechenberg B, Fent K, Highly active human pharmaceuticals in
aquatic systems: A concept for their identification based on their mode of action, Aquatic
toxicology, Vol. 96, No. 3, 2010, pp 167–181.
3. Arnold, K. E, Brown A. R, Ankley G. T, Sumpter J. P, Medicating the environment: assessing
risks of pharmaceuticals to wildlife and ecosystems, Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B, Vol. 369, 2014.
4. Caldwell D. J, Sources of Pharmaceutical Residues in the Environment and their Control, In
Pharmaceuticals in the Environment, Hester, R. E., Harrison, R. M., Eds., Issues in
Environmental Science and Technology No. 41, The Royal Society of Chemistry, 2015,
pp 92–119.
86
Y. Emara et al.