European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC), Ispra, Italy.
Integr Environ Assess Manag. 2022 Sep;18(5):1221-1232. doi: 10.1002/ieam.4586. Epub 2022 Feb 21.
The European Green Deal and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) ask for a more holistic approach to production and consumption along value chains. The role of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) in supporting policy design and monitoring is then pivotal to achieving policy ambitions. This paper explores the potential support of LCA to EU (European Union) policies and the SDGs, considering also the Planetary Boundaries (PBs) framework. The assessment focuses on (a) the relationship between LCA, the SDGs, and the European Green Deal; (b) the potential use of LCA in support of the monitoring of SDG12 and the environmental impacts of production and consumption; and (c) the relevance of an absolute sustainability dimension, including the integration of the PBs framework in EU policy and the SDGs. Results highlight that the interlinkages between LCA, EU policy, SDGs, and the PBs can be classified as existing, missing, or existing depending on the LCA framework. In general, LCA was identified to strengthen and further enable EU policies toward achieving the SDGs while remaining within the physical limits of the planet. This is because LCA can be a pivotal method to quantify and assess environmental impacts of value chains and consumption patterns, enabling the evaluation of their implication on environment-related SDGs and assessing them against the PBs. The example of the Consumption Footprint highlights that the concept and Life Cycle Impact Assessment method of an LCA framework can determine the linkage among EU policy, SDGs, and the PBs. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2022;18:1221-1232. © 2022 The Authors. Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Society of Environmental Toxicology & Chemistry (SETAC).
欧洲绿色协议和可持续发展目标（SDGs）要求在价值链上采取更全面的生产和消费方法。生命周期评估（LCA）在支持政策设计和监测方面的作用对于实现政策目标至关重要。本文探讨了 LCA 对欧盟（EU）政策和 SDGs 的潜在支持，同时也考虑了地球界限（PBs）框架。评估重点关注：（a）LCA、SDGs 和欧洲绿色协议之间的关系；（b）LCA 在支持监测 SDG12 和生产与消费的环境影响方面的潜在用途；以及（c）绝对可持续性维度的相关性，包括将 PBs 框架纳入欧盟政策和 SDGs。结果表明，LCA、欧盟政策、SDGs 和 PBs 之间的相互关系可以根据 LCA 框架分为存在、缺失或存在。总体而言，LCA 被确定为加强和进一步推动欧盟政策实现 SDGs，同时仍在地球的物理极限内。这是因为 LCA 可以成为量化和评估价值链和消费模式的环境影响的关键方法，从而能够评估它们对与环境相关的 SDGs 的影响，并根据 PBs 对其进行评估。消费足迹的例子表明，LCA 框架的概念和生命周期影响评估方法可以确定欧盟政策、SDGs 和 PBs 之间的联系。综合环境评估与管理 2022；18:1221-1232。© 2022 作者。综合环境评估与管理由 Wiley 期刊 LLC 代表环境毒理与化学学会（SETAC）出版。
