Sustainability is an emerging concept in product chains and integrates environmental, social, and economic aspects during the product's life cycle. Recently, the demand for environmental quality has required information about the products' life cycle. Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) includes the inventory analysis, where the products´life cycle are systematized, and the Life Cycle Impact Assessment, when the environmental impacts potentials are calculated. A powerful tool to describe the history, use, and lication of a product in called geotraceability..

BATISTELLA, M.

CHUZEL, G.

GUELERE FILHO, A.

OMETTO, A.

VIAU, A.

Repository Open Access to Scientific Information from Embrapa

· .vosior=»-I/I"es Jod Oi;J8!'J~ .'''I/iGeotraceability and life cycle assessment inenvironmentallife cycle management: towardssustainabilityAldo Ometto'", Mateus Batistella'', Américo Guelere Filho", Gérard Chuzel" andAlain Viau·a Professor (Engineering), Enginerring School of São Carlos, University of SãoPaulo, Institute Factory ofMillennium, Brazil.b Researcher (Environrnental Science), Embrapa Satellite Monitoring, Brazil.c Researcher (Engineering), Enginerring School of São Carlos, University of SãoPaulo, Institute Factory ofMillennium, Brazil.dResearcher (Agricultural Science), Cemagref, France.e Professor (Geographic Science), University ofLaval, Canada.Abstract. Sustainability is an emerging concept in product chains and integratesenvironrnental, social, and economic aspects during the product's \ife cycle. Recent1y, thedemand for environrnental qua\ity has required information about the products'\ife cycle.Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) includes the inventory analysis, where the inputs, outputs andfeedback mechanisms of matter and energy for each phase of the product life cycle aresystematized, and the Life Cycle Impact Assessment, when the environrnental impactspotentials are calculated. A powerful tool to describe the history, use, and location of aproduct is called geotraceability. This paper presents an environrnental \ife cyclemanagement for storing and retrieving product life cycle data within a food chain (tracing),as well as following the location ofthe product in real time (tracking), particularly for recalloperations in case of a crisis. Information about inputs and outputs can be structured andintegrated through LCA. Geographic information can be obtained from satellite imagery andpositioning systems. The development and integration of these tools will add value toproducts and enhance food safety to consumers, as well as the environrnental quality withinthe production area, fostering environrnental sustainability to the product \ife cycle.Keywords. Environrnental Life Cycle Management, Geotraceabi\ity, Life CycleAssessment, SustainabilityI Professor (Engineering), Enginerring School of São Carlos, University of São Paulo,Institute Factory ofMillennium, Brazil. Av. Trabalhador São-Carlense, 400, City Code:13566-590 São Carlos/SP - Brazil; Tel: +55 (16) 3373 8608; Fax: +55 (16) 3373 8235;Email: aometto@sc.usp.br; http://tigre.prod.eesc.usp.br/producao/docentes.htm674 A. Ometto, M. Batistella, A. G. Filho, G. Chuzeland A Viau1 IntroductionSustainability presents many definitions but the basic principies and conceptsremain constant: balancing the economy aspects, protection for the environment,and social responsibility, so they together lead to an improved quality oflife forourselves and future generations. "This concept of sustainability encompassesideas, aspirations, and vaIues that continue to inspire public and privateorganizations to become better stewards ofthe environment and promote positiveeconomic growth and social objectives. The principIes of sustainability canstimulate technological innovation, advance competitiveness and improve ourquality oflife" [1].The environmental, social, and economic impacts of the products have to beanalyzed according to their life cycles. Product life cycle thinking is important inthe path towards sustainability by expanding the focus from the production processto the product life cycle (fir==...;;.e...;;cl.L;.. --,F\a","'M le1'll,,<:'&(1 '"lFigure 1. Product Life Cycle [2].The importance of such topic is related to recent demands and regulationstaking place in some countries, especially in the European Community, based onan Integrated Product Policy, including the:• Directive on Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE -2002/96/EC) and Directive on the Restriction of the Use of CertainHazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment(2002/95/EC);• General food law 178/2002, "hygiene package" (Regulation 852-853-854/2004), and implications for non EU Countries of the newlegislation on Food and Hygiene; geotraceability systems can complywith requirements along the whole food chain;• European action plan for organic food and farming: the principie of a"trace and track" decisional operational system based 00 amuIticriteria approach couId be appIied to organic farming and furtheraway, for example, to landscape management or risk assessment;Environmental Technology Action Plan (ETAP), which encouragesdeveloping countries to use environmentaI technologies, for theirpotential to improve both the environment and economiccompetitiveness; a geotraceabiIity system can promote newcommunication technologies to provide management tools allowingGeotraceability and life cycle assessment in environmentallife cycle management 675impact mitigation on natural resources and fostering best land usepractices.This paper focuses on a cutting edge aspect related to environmentalmanagement taking in account the life cycle thinking. In fact, our goal is tointegrate geotraceability and life cycle assessment as tools for an environmentallife cycle management.2 Environmental ManagementEnvironmental management can be detined as the management ofhuman activitiesso that natural resources are used adequately to meet human needs and theenvironment's continuing capacity to provide those resources is sustained [4].This approach is illustrated in figure 2, which shows the phases required toachieve the environmental viability of an activity.Environmental ManagementEnvironmentalCharacterization Human ActivityEnvironmentalII 11•• • MitigationFigure 2. Environmental management diagram [3]Knowledge about the environmental aspects of a production area, includingphysical, chemical, biological, social, economic, and cultural characteristics, is ofprimary importance to determine the potential of such area regarding the product'slife cycle. Knowledge about the human activity is also crucial, as it will indicatepotential impacts on matter cycles and energy fluxes. The environmental analysisevaluates the need of impact mitigation.676 A. Ometto, M. Batistella, A. G. Filho, G. Chuzeland A Viau3 GeotraceabilityGeotraceability is the ability of describing the history, the use, and the location of aproduct, allowing tracing and tracking from its production to its consumption.Thus, it is necessary to retrieve and store information about the characteristics andthe history ofthe product (tracing), as well as to follow its real time location(tracking), in particular for recall operations in crisis situations, such as the avianinfluenza.The importance of such tools is evident, as they integrate a spatial componentto the product life cycle, adding value to market products, to certification andlabeling in retail business, and to communication with consumers, with thepotential. to subsidize future policies for the sector.Geotraceability may be used to increase confidence in products being acquiredby consumers through the knowledge oftheir trajectory, safety, and quality fromproduction to consumption. The process is carried out through standard spatialindicators, in conformity with defined norms, to integrate information from varioussources, quality, and scales of observation. Much has to be improved in terms ofstandardization, but efforts have been made in several countries. All these issuesare associated with the availability of information and knowledge about theproduct chain.Some food chains are particularly important due to the emerging sanitary risksattached to intemational commercial relations [6]. For obvious reasons, beef isamong the most important products to be tracked and traced using a spatiallyexplicit system.In Brazil, various sectors are interested in such tools, as they may becomecrucial in the near future. Recently, a specific support action proposed by apartnership among Cemagref (France), University of Laval (Canada), Embrapa(Brazil), and Cirad (France) was funded by the European Commission. Its goal isto develop an operational management and geodecisional prototype to track andtrace agricultural production, with a major focus on the beef chain (figure 3). Theprototype will be implemented in Campo Grande, where Embrapa Beef Cattle islocated.Geotraceability and life cycle assessment in environrnentallife cycle management 6771i fi~ ~l....l~Cattle Mobility~I .(Tag+RFIDOecisional.~ Polygon(iPSCollarReference) Tag+RFTDCentroid-:Operational areaFigure 3, Framework for an operational management and geodecisionalprototype to track and trace beef production .4 Life Cycle AssessmentThe first examples of environrnental assessments of products were carried out forpackaging in the 1960s. Twenty years later, the interest about environrnentalimpacts grew and Life Cycle Assessments (LCA) were used in several Europeancountries to compare different packaging processes. Recently, many complexproducts have been assessed through LCA andocompanies have used it in productdevelopment, environrnental management, marketing, and labeling. Consumerorganizations have also used LCA in counseling consumers [7].Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a tool for the systematic evaluation ofenvironrnental aspects related to a product or service system through alI stages ofits life cycle. LCA provides an adequate instrument for environrnental decisionsupport. Life cycle assessment has proven to be a valuable tool to document theenvironrnental considerations that need to be part of decision-making towardssustainability. A reliable LCA performance is crucial to achieve a life-cycleeconomy [5].The Intemational Organization for Standardization (ISO) defines themethodological structure ofLCA in four phases [5] (figure 4):Goal and scope definition: the product(s) or service(s) to be assessed are defined,a functional basis for comparison is chosen and the required level of detail isdefmed.Inventory of extractions and emissions, called Life Cycle Inventory (LCI): theenergy carriers and raw materiaIs used, the emissions to atmosphere, water andsoil, and different types of land use are quantified for each process, then combined678 A. Ornetto, M. BatistelIa.,A. G. Filho, G. ChuzeIand A Viauin the proeess flow ehart and related to the funetional basis.Life Cycle Impact assessment (LCIA): the effeets of the resouree use andemissions generated are grouped and quantified into a limited number of impacteategories whieh may then be weighted for importanee.Interpretation: the results are reported in the most informative way possible andthe need and opportunities to reduce the impaet ofthe produet(s) or serviee(s) onthe environrnent are systematieally evaluated./' '\Goal and scopedefinition1Inventory ofInterpretationextractions andemissions1Impact -assessmentFigure 4. The phases ofLCA [5]The main expeeted results from the LCA are to identify and quantify theenvironrnental loads involved; e.g. the energy and raw materiais consumed, theemissions and wastes generated; to evaluate the potential environrnental impaets ofthese loads and to assess the options available for redueing these environrnentalimpaets [5].5 Environmental Life Cycle ManagementEnvironrnental Life Cycle Management (ELCM) is the environrnental managementbased on life eycle thinking.The applieation of geotraeeability and LCA ean be praetieal tools for anELCM. Based on figure 2, the environrnental eharaeterization, loeation, theenvironrnental analysis whieh takes in aeeount the earing eapaeity, and monitoringean be earried out through geotraeeability. The human aetivity analysis ean beearried out through LCA, as following: the Aetivity Analysis ean be made by theLCA seope definition and LCI; the Environrnental Analysis ean be made by theLCIA, eonsidering the earing eapaeity; and the Mitigation options ean be made bythe LCA interpretation (figure 5).Geotraceability and life cycle assessment in environrnentallife cycle management 679GeotraceabilityFigure 5. Geotraceability and LCA application in ELCM6 ConclusionGeotraceability and LCA are important tools with the potential to introduce, in apractical way, the life cycle thinking in enviromnental management (i.e., ELCM).The adoption of geotraceability systems and LCA can enhance product safetyand quality, providing industries, consumers, and alI stakeholders with a leveI ofinformation compatible with the demands of a global market and with the need ofeffective enviromnental management, taking in account the enviromnentalcharacteristics and the product life cycle.7 References[I] Environrnental Protection Agency EPA USo Available at:<http://www.epagov/sustainability/>. Accessed on: Jan, 15th 2007.[2] Franke, C. Product Life Cycle. CRI. TUBerlin: 2004.[3] Souza, M.P. Instrumentos de Gestão Ambiental: teoria e prática Riani: 2000[4] Tolba, M.K. Development without destruction: involving environrnental perceptions.Dublin, lreland: Tycooly Intemational Publishing Ltd. 1982[5] United Nation Environrnent Programme - UNEP. Evaluation of EnvironrnentalImpacts ofLife Cycle Assesment. Available at: <http://www.unep.orgllci/>. Accessedon: Jan. 25th 2007.2003.[6] Vinholis, M. B., Azevedo, P. F., 2000, Efeito da rastreabilidade no sistemaagroindustrial da carne bovina brasileira, World Congress of Rural Socology, Rio deJaneiro, v.l, pp.I-14.Wenzel, H.; Hauschild, M. And Alting, L. Environmental Assessment of Products.1997

Geotraceability and life cycle assessment in environmental life cycle management: towards sustainability.

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Geotraceability and life cycle assessment in environmental life cycle management: towards sustainability.

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