EUROPEN: Study Of Life Cycle Assessments published

EUROPEN, the European Organization for Packaging and the Environment (www.europen.be), published in these days the results of an independent study of Life Cycle Assessments (LCAs) that have been used to compare the environmental effects of reusable and single-use packaging.

The study, commissioned by EUROPEN from consultants URS Corporation, looked at LCAs conducted between 1993 and 2003, the way they were carried out, and how their results were interpreted. The study focuses on those LCAs that have had the biggest impact on a particular debate: namely whether reuseable packaging or recycling of single use packaging is the best system from an environmental point of view.

According to the study, LCAs do not provide a single answer to the question of which system is environmentally preferable. The key LCAs in this area vary too much to give a clear picture, in terms of the type of packaging considered, the recovery and recycling technologies that are taken into account, and the geographical scope, transparency and data quality of the assessments.

With the European Commission currently considering further revisions to the Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive (94/62 EC), the URS study raises questions as to the use that is made of LCAs in shaping this type of legislation. In particular, it casts doubt on the suitability of LCA results as a justification for a preference for reusable packaging. LCAs do not provide clear support for the argument that levels of reuse should be increased.

Dr Neil Kirkpatrick, who led the URS Corporation study, told EUROPEN that proper respect for the proportionality principle in environmental policy decision-making was just as essential as the use of sensitivity analysis in LCA studies. "With studies showing such marginal differences between one packaging system and another, it is essential that authorities carefully consider if their policy proposals are in proportion to the perceived problem", said Dr Kirkpatrick.

In the recent revision of the Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive, Council and Parliament mandated the Commission to produce a report by the middle of next year on the Directive's implementation. Among the subjects that the Commission will report on is a proposal to encourage greater levels of reuse, based on a comparison of the costs and benefits of reuse and those of recycling. In preparing its report, DG Environment has commissioned its own study on this and other topics.

EUROPEN has sent copies of the URS study to the European Commission, to help with the analysis of the Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive that the Commission is currently carrying out.

The study is available on the EUROPEN website: www.europen.be/reuse.pdf

1Life Cycle Assessments enable comparisons to be made between different products - they quantify the total environmental impact that a product has, from the extraction of the raw materials used in its manufacture to the effects of its use and disposal.

European Organization for Packaging and the Environment, Brussels/Belgium

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