Sammanfattning

The modeling of land use impacts on biodiversity is considered a priority in life cycle assessment (LCA). Many diverging approaches have been proposed in an expanding literature on the topic. The UNEP/SETAC Life Cycle Initiative is engaged in building consensus on a shared modeling framework to highlight best-practice and guide model application by practitioners. In this paper, we evaluated the performance of 31 models from both the LCA and the ecology/conservation literature (20 from LCA, 11 from non-LCA fields) according to a set of criteria reflecting (i) model completeness, (ii) biodiversity representation, (iii) impact pathway coverage, (iv) scientific quality, and (v) stakeholder acceptance. We show that LCA models tend to perform worse than those from ecology and conservation (although not significantly), implying room for improvement. We identify seven best-practice recommendations that can be implemented immediately to improve LCA models based on existing approaches in the literature. We further propose building a "consensus model" through weighted averaging of existing information, to complement future development. While our research focuses on conceptual model design, further quantitative comparison of promising models in shared case studies is an essential prerequisite for future informed model choice.

Nyckelord

Life cycle assessment; land use; biodiversity; UNEP/SETAC Life Cycle Initiative; ecological modelling

Publicerad i

Environmental Science and Technology
2016, Volym: 50, nummer: 6, sidor: 2782-2795

SLU författare

• Maia De Souza, Danielle

  • Institutionen för energi och teknik, Sveriges lantbruksuniversitet
    
  • Lethbridge Research and Development Centre
  • University of Alberta

Globala målen

SDG15 Skydda, återställa och främja ett hållbart nyttjande av landbaserade ekosystem, hållbart bruka skogar, bekämpa ökenspridning, hejda och vrida tillbaka markförstöringen samt hejda förlusten av biologisk mångfald


UKÄ forskningsämne

Miljöledning
Ekologi
Miljövetenskap


Publikationens identifierare

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.5b04681

Permanent länk till denna sida (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/69163