bioplasticsMAGAZINE_0902

Opinion
End of Life
for Biodegradable &
kg CO 2
eq.
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
-10
-20
-30
Attributional LCA
Non Compostabel Cutlery
Cutlery
Organic Fraction
LCA ‘Cradle to grave’ results for the ‘GHG’ impact
category of ‘B&C’ cutlery vs. non compostable cutlery
(‘Attributional LCA’) including the treatment phase of
the organic waste (‘Consequential LCA’)
Christian Garaffa,
Project Manager, Waste Management Area
Novamont S.p.A., Novara, Italy
www.novamont.com
Total
Consequential LCA
B&C Cutlery
In our modern consumer society especially for short life cycle
products, their end of life phase becomes a key issue and
providing as many flexible and environmentally friendly recovery
options as possible becomes imperative: products made
of MaterBi ® by Novamont can be recovered through different
ways as they meet the essential requirements of the European
Directive on Packaging and Packaging Waste (94/62/EC) and
satisfy the relevant standards EN 13430 (recycling), EN 13431
(energy recovery), EN 13432 (organic recovery).
Organic Recovery
When organic recovery is considered, we are talking about
the treatment of organic waste sent to composting alone or
preceded by an anaerobic digestion stage with subsequent
aerobic stabilization of the digestate and final production
of a quality amendant suitable for soil improvement or peat
replacement in agriculture and horticulture.
In this context, the goal of biodegradable & compostable
plastic products is to replace conventional plastic contaminants
and improve the quality of the organic waste turning it into a
homogeneous feedstock. Classic examples for such products
are biowaste bags, shopping bags or products used in the
agricultural sector like clips, pots etc.
On the other hand, biodegradable & compostable plastics can
play a key role where products get usually heavily contaminated
by organic waste (e.g. food service ware, food packaging waste,
unopened packaging containing expired food). Mechanical
recycling and incineration (where available) are difficult due to
the wet organic contamination.
In order to better understand the benefits related to
biodegradable & compostable products, we need to broaden
the focus from the single item to the larger system where
this item is operating. Life cycle assessment (LCA) is often
used for direct comparisons between products, without really
considering the indirect effects on the surrounding systems.
This ‘product vs. product’ approach is called ‘Attributional
LCA’. However, there is a high risk to overlook indirect impacts
that could be stronger compared to direct ones. In order to
avoid misleading conclusions it is essential for these hidden
impacts to be taken into account. This ‘product into the system’
approach is called ‘Consequential LCA’. The main benefits of
biodegradable & compostable products emerge when the
increased environmental performance of the system where
they operate is analyzed. This is clearly shown in the study
32 bioplastics MAGAZINE [02/09] Vol. 4