The Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (DG ECHO) recently hosted a webinar on Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to present the first comprehensive mapping of existing LCAs for humanitarian relief items. The study was carried out by the INSPIRE+ Consortium and WORM took part in it, sharing its perspective on the environmental impact of humanitarian items in an interview.
Discover WORM’s deliverables on LCA for bio-based solutions and of waste treatments:
This report presents the main elements, findings, and recommendations of the study on the mapping of existing LCAs of relief items used in humanitarian aid.
A new database to support eveidence-based decisions
A new LCA database was introduced during the webinar, containing 89 LCAs that are organised by product, and that provides key information on each analysis. This tool helps humanitarian organisations understand the environmental impacts of specific items, avoid duplication, and quickly identify whether an existing LCA fits their needs.
Key findings
Key findings show that the main use of LCAs (44%) is to assess the environmental performance of a product. A growing number of LCAs also cover the full life cycle. However, access remains a major barrier, especially when LCAs are held by suppliers, due to cost, confidentiality, data sensitivity, or reputational concerns.
Benefits and challenges of LCAs
The webinar highlighted the benefits of LCAs:
- Identifying environmental hotspots,
- Comparing products or scenarios,
- Informing procurement decisions,
- Improving specifications,
- Increasing accountability.
But limitations were also emphasised: complexity, data gaps, context-dependence, comparability issues, and the risk of outdated results.
A key reminder: LCAs are powerful tools, but they should be used only when necessary and at the most relevant moment. What matters most are the resources used to produce the item, its quality and durability, and the possibilities for reuse or recycling. Download the Life Cycle Assessment: Mapping and Overview of current use by humanitarian organizations below.