I had a conversation with a friend not too long ago on my way home from work. As the sun was setting and the weather beginning to embrace colder climates, I mentioned how I was going to need a new parka for Polar Vortex 2.0 (it’s a Canadian thing..). I suggested maybe looking into buying a Canada Goose jacket or an equivalent but the response I received was “why bother, with that money you could buy a new jacket every year for 10 years for the same price.” It got me thinking, sure why buy one when you can buy 10? I mean the idea of a brand new coat a year seemed enticing, but what was unaccounted for in this scenario was the life cycle analysis of one jacket vs. 10…its just not sustainable to own a product and dispose of it so quickly when there are alternatives that can last much much longer. The issue of unnecessary extraction of our minimal natural resources thus begins to surface. It occurred to me at this point that not everyone is aware of this concept, and I believe it is extremely important to understand.
Welcome to North America..we live in a consumerist society. I am a big shopper myself so I can’t say I’m the perfect human being, but lately I’ve gotten really into the idea of the life cycle analysis of products because of the noticeably “buy cheap, dispose quickly” notion we as a nation have acquired. There are however many products that are meant to be disposed of quickly (such as items within the food industry) but sustainable practices can help eliminate the impact on the earth of many consumer goods. This is accounted for within a sustainable life cycle. According to the US Environmental Protection Agency;
Life-cycle assessment (LCA) is a systems-based approach to quantifying the human health and environmental impacts associated with a product’s life from “cradle to grave.”
To put it into basic terms, an LCA is a tool to help figure out how sustainable a product is. It analyzes the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions associated with the product throughout its entire lifetime. Keep in mind the product’s life doesn’t start on the store shelf… it begins at the roots of its existence.
Coca-Cola
Let’s start at a product everyone is familiar with, Coca-Cola. When looking into their company, I came across the basic requirements they use to perform their Life Cycle Analyses. Coca-Cola takes into consideration these few elements:
• Ingredients: Includes CO2 emissions produced during the agricultural production & transportation of all raw materials, including sugar and water. • Packaging: Includes CO2 emissions produced during the creation of all packaging • Manufacturing: Includes CO2 emissions resulting from the electricity and fuel used • Distribution: Includes CO2 emissions produced when transporting products • Storage and refrigeration: Includes CO2 emissions resulting from the electricity and fuel used by the retailer and shop, plus the electricity used to run the vending machines and fridges used to keep drinks chilled. • Consumer use and disposal: Includes CO2 resulting from consumers cooling the drink at home and subsequent disposal of the empty packaging.
Pretty simple, but crazily insane when you think about it eh? It’s just a can of coke!! Who knew my energy bill to run my fridge would contribute to such an insignificantly sized product. But there’s much much MUCH more to it than just that. Going into just one subsection of the Packaging element listed above shows that a 330-mL can of Coca-Cola has on average a carbon footprint of 170g, while the same-sized can of Diet Coke or Coke Zero has a footprint of 150 g. However, a 330-L glass bottle of Coca-Cola has a footprint of 360 g. How does a glass bottle reflect in the doubled amount of carbon production you ask? The packaging. The packaging for a Coke can account for up to 70% of the total carbon footprint. This element would supply different results if you were looking at a different type of product such as a winter jacket, therefore it’s important to take that into consideration; in that case, the life cycle analysis would be comprised mostly of the care and maintenance of the product and less of the packaging and disposal.
Now that you’re all LCA experts in understanding the concept and all that it embodies, let me equip you with the proper tools to carry it forward in your future endeavours!!
It’s actually pretty simple. A quick Google search of Coca-Cola gave me all the answers I needed to see the LCA’s of a few of their products. It is an easy method, but can be a bit time consuming; to be properly educated and aware of this means it is vital that you do your research. For the average consumer that doesn’t have the time, all I ask is to start to become aware. You don’t have to read full reports of LCA’s for products of certain companies or perform your own LCA on your free time to be sustainable, that’s unrealistic for most. The first step to buying consciously is simply to be aware, maybe next time you pick up a coke bottle you will think “maybe I should get a can instead”. It’s all about becoming aware; hopefully this will trigger an interest in the more complex systems that operate behind the scenes of consumer products.
Sustainability is about steps… so take the first one. Become aware.
Make the concept of Life Cycle Analysis a lifetime thing :)
References:
http://www.epa.gov/sustainability/analytics/life-cycle.htm
http://www.linkcycle.com/beginners-guide-life-cycle-assessment-tools-and-data/
http://www.greenerpackage.com/metrics_standards/coke%E2%80%99s_carbon_footprints_are_revealed
Living Sustainably 