Researchers spatialize environmental footprint by integrating GIS into LCA
LCA is a comprehensive tool to quantify the potential environmental impact, that is, the environmental footprint (ecological footprint, carbon footprint, resource footprint, etc.), from a cradle-to-grave perspective.
However, the conclusions drawn from the traditional LCA method may be misleading due to the lack of spatial information. Thus, the integration of geographic information system (GIS) into LCA is considered a promising candidate to spatialize the environmental footprint.
Researchers from the Qingdao Institute of Bioenergy and Bioprocess Technology (QIBEBT) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) have proposed a universal methodology framework of GIS-LCA for the first time, which is supposed to improve the standard framework of LCA proposed by the International Standardization Organization (ISO14040).
The study was published in Journal of Cleaner Production on Sept. 29, 2021.
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