This chapter addresses aspects that are related not to a single building life cycle stage but to several, and therefore represent common LCA questions. Also, these aspects typically relate both to buildings and to products. They provide provisions, rules and guidance for the goal and scope definition, the inventory analysis, the impact assessment and the interpretation steps according to ISO 14040-44. The following list describes the aspects addressed, which cover issues that typically need to be addressed when conducting an LCA study on a building product or a building.
- 5.2 Goal and scope.
- G-01 Goal definition for building and product LCA.
- G-02 Classifying the decision context as situation A, B, and C for building and product LCA
- G-03 Future technical developments and innovation.
- G-04 Comparative assertion for building or product LCA.
- G-05 Scope definition for building and product LCA.
- G-06 Functional equivalent
- G-07 Functional equivalent vs. functional unit vs. declared unit
- G-08 Reference study period.
- G-09 Object of assessment with regard to energy-efficient buildings
- G-10 Definition of system boundaries for new buildings
- G-11 Definition of system boundaries for existing buildings
- G-12 Cut-off rules for screening, simplified, complete LCA.
- G-13 Infrastructure machinery and capital equipment for material production, energy, water, waste and transport for screening and simplified LCA.
- G-14 Infrastructure machinery and capital equipment for material production, energy, water, waste and transport for complete LCA.
- G-15 Transport of goods in LCA studies
- G-16 Accounting for carbon storage/carbon sequestration.
- G-17 Differences in background data system boundaries
- G-18 Allocation.
- G-19 Allocation case: production of renewable energy on-site.
- G-20 Allocation case: reuse, recycling and recovery.
- 5.3 Life cycle inventory analysis
- G-21 Background databases in LCA studies
- G-22 Data quality.
- G-23 Choice of LCI/LCIA datasets for screening LCA.
- G-24 Choice of LCI/LCIA datasets for simplified LCA.
- G-25 Choice of LCI/LCIA-datasets for complete LCA.
- G-26 Use of building physical description data.
- 5.4 Life cycle impact assessment (LCIA)
- G-27 Choice of environmental indicators – screening and simplified LCA.
- G-28 Choice of environmental indicators – Complete LCA.
- G-29 Abiotic resources depletion indicator
- G-30 Land use indicator
- G-31 Biodiversity indicator
- G-32 Human toxicity and ecotoxicity indicators
- G-33 Ionizing radiation indicator
- G-34 Water consumption as a new impact category.
- 5.5 Interpretation.
- G-35 Normalization of indicators
- G-36 Weighting of indicators
- G-37 Uncertainty analysis for comparative assertion.
- G-38 Sensitivity analysis
- G-39 Scenario analysis
- 5.6 Reporting.