Development of a conceptual framework to take the dissipation of non-energetic abiotic resources into account within Life Cycle Assessment (LCA)

Abstract

Recent developments for the Natural Resources Area of Protection (AoP) in Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) (eg. Dewulf et al. (2015); Sonderegger et al. (2017))Existing methods for abiotic resource use have been discussed and criticized by many in recent years (eg. Swart, Alvarenga, & Dewulf (2015); Drielsma et al. (2016); Sonderegger et al. (2017)).Safeguard subject for non-energetic abiotic resources has been defined as “the potential to make use of the value that mineral resources, as embedded in a natural or anthropogenic stock, can hold for humans in the technosphere” (Berger et al., 2018. Damage to the safeguard subject happens when abiotic resources are dispersed in a way which make them unavailable for future use or when they are rendered inaccessible in technosphere through different mechanisms.Dissipation approach is a promising way forward to account for this damage, and should be investigated further (Zampori & Sala (2017); Berger et al. (2018))