Analysis of Sectoral Environmental Product Declarations as a Data Source for Life Cycle Assessment
The life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology is becoming increasingly prevalent in the quantification of the environmental status in the building sector following new legislative frameworks. Countries need to quantify and assess their environmental impacts as a previous step to regulation and decisio...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-12-01
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| Series: | Buildings |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/13/12/3032 |
| _version_ | 1797381753065701376 |
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| author | María Seila Otero Teresa Garnica Soledad Montilla Marta Conde José A. Tenorio |
| author_facet | María Seila Otero Teresa Garnica Soledad Montilla Marta Conde José A. Tenorio |
| author_sort | María Seila Otero |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology is becoming increasingly prevalent in the quantification of the environmental status in the building sector following new legislative frameworks. Countries need to quantify and assess their environmental impacts as a previous step to regulation and decision-making. In this context, based on a consensus with manufacturers, standardized national data sets are being developed, referred to as sectoral environmental product declarations (EPDs). This study assesses these EPDs with the aim of providing relevant information for global decision-making, focusing on their consistency and shortcomings. An assessment was carried out at both the national level, considering all sectoral EPDs and declared products, and at the international level, with three common building materials (brick, steel, and concrete). The results highlight the lack of traceability in the development and assessment of uncertainty, resulting in substantial discrepancies in reported impacts, especially in the later stages of the life cycle (up to 90% difference). Meanwhile, impacts such as global warming potential or total renewable and non-renewable primary energy use show homogeneous values in the cradle-to-gate stages, with differences generally being under 10%. The analysis of sectoral EPDs should act as a guideline for designing buildings with environmental sustainability criteria, as the last section of this study attempts to highlight. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-08T20:56:01Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-b5c0f4d21fd4442194e4e0a1a028d0c8 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2075-5309 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-08T20:56:01Z |
| publishDate | 2023-12-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Buildings |
| spelling | doaj.art-b5c0f4d21fd4442194e4e0a1a028d0c82023-12-22T13:58:15ZengMDPI AGBuildings2075-53092023-12-011312303210.3390/buildings13123032Analysis of Sectoral Environmental Product Declarations as a Data Source for Life Cycle AssessmentMaría Seila Otero0Teresa Garnica1Soledad Montilla2Marta Conde3José A. Tenorio4Advanced and Sustainable Construction Research Group, Eduardo Torroja Institute of Construction Sciences, Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), 28006 Madrid, SpainERSAF Research Group, School of Agricultural and Forestry Engineering, University of Córdoba, 14071 Córdoba, SpainERSAF Research Group, School of Agricultural and Forestry Engineering, University of Córdoba, 14071 Córdoba, SpainERSAF Research Group, School of Agricultural and Forestry Engineering, University of Córdoba, 14071 Córdoba, SpainAdvanced and Sustainable Construction Research Group, Eduardo Torroja Institute of Construction Sciences, Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), 28006 Madrid, SpainThe life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology is becoming increasingly prevalent in the quantification of the environmental status in the building sector following new legislative frameworks. Countries need to quantify and assess their environmental impacts as a previous step to regulation and decision-making. In this context, based on a consensus with manufacturers, standardized national data sets are being developed, referred to as sectoral environmental product declarations (EPDs). This study assesses these EPDs with the aim of providing relevant information for global decision-making, focusing on their consistency and shortcomings. An assessment was carried out at both the national level, considering all sectoral EPDs and declared products, and at the international level, with three common building materials (brick, steel, and concrete). The results highlight the lack of traceability in the development and assessment of uncertainty, resulting in substantial discrepancies in reported impacts, especially in the later stages of the life cycle (up to 90% difference). Meanwhile, impacts such as global warming potential or total renewable and non-renewable primary energy use show homogeneous values in the cradle-to-gate stages, with differences generally being under 10%. The analysis of sectoral EPDs should act as a guideline for designing buildings with environmental sustainability criteria, as the last section of this study attempts to highlight.https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/13/12/3032environmental product declarationlife cycle assessmentgeneric databasesenvironmental impactsuncertaintyproduct category rules (PCRs) |
| spellingShingle | María Seila Otero Teresa Garnica Soledad Montilla Marta Conde José A. Tenorio Analysis of Sectoral Environmental Product Declarations as a Data Source for Life Cycle Assessment Buildings environmental product declaration life cycle assessment generic databases environmental impacts uncertainty product category rules (PCRs) |
| title | Analysis of Sectoral Environmental Product Declarations as a Data Source for Life Cycle Assessment |
| title_full | Analysis of Sectoral Environmental Product Declarations as a Data Source for Life Cycle Assessment |
| title_fullStr | Analysis of Sectoral Environmental Product Declarations as a Data Source for Life Cycle Assessment |
| title_full_unstemmed | Analysis of Sectoral Environmental Product Declarations as a Data Source for Life Cycle Assessment |
| title_short | Analysis of Sectoral Environmental Product Declarations as a Data Source for Life Cycle Assessment |
| title_sort | analysis of sectoral environmental product declarations as a data source for life cycle assessment |
| topic | environmental product declaration life cycle assessment generic databases environmental impacts uncertainty product category rules (PCRs) |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/13/12/3032 |
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