LCA: a key tool for assessing and reducing plastic footprints

This week, Busan, South Korea, hosts the fifth and final round of negotiations for a legally binding global treaty to tackle plastic pollution.

178 countries are coming together to discuss critical measures such as capping plastic production and banning toxic chemical additives. The decisions made this week could have a profound impact on the future of our planet and public health.

At EVEA, we are closely monitoring the developments in Busan. Since March 2022, we have dedicated significant research and development efforts to our Plastic Footprint Project, aiming to better understand the environmental and human health impacts of plastic pollution using the life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology.

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A major challenge for the future

The numbers speak for themselves:

• 69.5 million tonnes of mismanaged plastic waste – meaning waste that is neither recycled, incinerated, nor contained in sealed landfills – could end up in the air, water, or soil during its end-of-life phase (sources: Plastic Overshoot Day, Earth Action, OECD).
• Without decisive action, global plastic production is projected to double by 2050, placing even greater strain on ecosystems and human populations.

These challenges highlight the urgent need for reliable tools to evaluate and mitigate the impacts of plastic pollution. This is where life cycle assessment (LCA) becomes indispensable: it analyses every stage of a product’s life cycle, from production to end-of-life, identifying the key sources of plastic pollution and enabling the development of effective reduction strategies.

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Our expertise in action

Through the Plastic Footprint Project, we are integrating plastic pollution impacts into traditional LCA tools. This work involves close collaboration with R&D specialists such as Robin Sales, LCA and eco-design project manager at EVEA, who provides an in-depth explanation of these critical issues in this [video - in French].

The Busan negotiations represent a pivotal moment in the fight against plastic pollution. Meanwhile, at EVEA, we continue our research to deliver robust, science-based tools that empower organisations to meet this global challenge. ■