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Review: the availability of life-cycle studies in Sweden

The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment volume 24, pages 6–11 (2019)Cite this article

Abstract

Purpose

An online review was conducted on the availability of life-cycle assessment (LCA), water, and carbon footprinting studies in Sweden. The main purpose was to quantify the number of available studies, which may be of general interest to non-specialists or as background data for LCA practitioners. Additionally, results from the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) reports were also included.

Methods

The study used online searches conducted in Google and Google Scholar to obtain the publically available reports. Additionally, searches in ScienceDirect, Scopus, and Wiley were performed to obtain other peer-reviewed academic papers. Only English language results were included.

Results and discussion

LCAs and carbon footprinting studies were the most commonly conducted studies (13 LCA and 12 carbon footprinting studies), whereas water footprinting reports, while still largely available, were fewer in number. A number of GRI reports were also available with the majority of studies conducted for the financial services and real estate sectors. Several studies were in the form of university theses, while companies and research organizations conducted the remainder of research projects.

Conclusions

While several life-cycle assessments, carbon, and water footprinting studies were accessible via Google searches, given the interest in LCA in the country, e.g., the LCM2013 conference in Gothenburg and The Swedish Life Cycle Centre, more studies were expected.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Chemical and Metallurgical Engineering, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa

    Joel Croft, Shaun Engelbrecht, A. O. Ladenika, O. S. MacGregor, Mpho Maepa, Michael Oluwatosin Bodunrin, Nicholas W. Burman, Taahira Goga & Kevin G. Harding

  2. Sustainable Process Engineering Unit, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa

    Joel Croft & Shaun Engelbrecht

  3. DST-NRF Centre of Excellence in Strong Materials, African Materials Science and Engineering Network, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa

    O. S. MacGregor & Michael Oluwatosin Bodunrin

  4. Industrial and Mining Water Research Unit (IMWaRU), University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa

    Mpho Maepa, Nicholas W. Burman, Taahira Goga & Kevin G. Harding

  5. Centre in Water Research and Development (CiWaRD), University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa

    Mpho Maepa, Nicholas W. Burman, Taahira Goga & Kevin G. Harding

  6. Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, Federal University of Technology, Akure, Ondo State, PMB 704, Nigeria

    Michael Oluwatosin Bodunrin

Authors
  1. Joel Croft
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  2. Shaun Engelbrecht
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  3. A. O. Ladenika
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  4. O. S. MacGregor
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  5. Mpho Maepa
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  6. Michael Oluwatosin Bodunrin
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  7. Nicholas W. Burman
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  8. Taahira Goga
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  9. Kevin G. Harding
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Kevin G. Harding.

Additional information

Responsible editor: Mary Ann Curran

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Croft, J., Engelbrecht, S., Ladenika, A.O. et al. Review: the availability of life-cycle studies in Sweden. Int J Life Cycle Assess 24, 6–11 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11367-018-1510-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11367-018-1510-4

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