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NON-TRADITIONAL TOOLS FOR LCA AND SUSTAINABILITY
Citation:
Hoagland*, N. T. NON-TRADITIONAL TOOLS FOR LCA AND SUSTAINABILITY. Curran, M.A. (ed.), INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF LIFE CYCLE ASSESSMENT. Ecomed Verlagsgesellschaft AG, Landsberg, Germany, 6(2):110-113, (2001).
Description:
LCA practice focuses on impacts resulting from the release of chemicals into the environment, but consideration of "non-chemical impacts" is as important for LCA, particularly as it relates to sustainability. Methodologies and philosophies exist for addressing non-chemical impacts, particularly in the area of resource depletion and land use, but the problem of comparing or integrating chemical and non-chemical impacts remains. A new approach for identifying and integrating impacts involves using an object-oriented modeling and simulation platform, such as DOE's Argonne National Laboratory's Dynamic Information Architecture System (DIAS). LCA and impact categories can be described as "objects" (at any level of detail or specificity) and any combination of objects can be brought into a DIAS analysis frame. Data input sources and related models that address the objects' state and behavior characteristics are linked only to their respective objects, not to each other. Thus, maximum flexibility and speed is possible. The process of dividing LCA and impact assessment into objects for a DIAS analysis provides new insights into the complex mixture of dynamic things, activities, and relationships inherent in LCA and sustainability. Ultimately, embracing the complexity of LCA may be the way to simplify it.