From the LCA of food products to the environmental assessment of protected crops districts: A case-study in the south of Italy

The Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology has been applied to evaluate the energy consumption and environmental burdens associated with the production of protected crops of an agricultural district in the Mediterranean area. In particular, LCA is here intended as a ‘support tool’ to address the local policies for sustainable production and consumption patterns and to create a ‘knowledge base’ for the environmental assessment of an extended productive area. The proposed approach combined organization-specific tools (as Environmental Management Systems and Environmental Products Declaration), with the environmental management of the district. Questionnaires diffused to producers allowed authors to acquire data concerning the life-cycle of different protected crops (tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, peppers, melons and zucchini) and of different types of greenhouses (tunnel and pavilion). The ecoprofiles of the products of the district have been estimated, in order to identify what elements of the supply chain are responsible of the highest impacts (in terms of global energy requirement, greenhouse gas emissions, eutrophication, water consumption and waste production). The study allowed also to select possible ‘best practices’ and Ecodesign solutions to reduce the impacts of the products. A sensitivity analysis of key LCA issues was performed to assess the variability caused by different parameters, as: the production of vegetables; the use of water, fertilizers and pesticides; the shared use of the greenhouse; the substitution of the plastics coverings; and the recycling of the waste.

CELLURA Maurizio;  ARDENTE Fulvio;  LONGO Sonia; 

2011-11-04

ACADEMIC PRESS LTD- ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD

JRC65133

0301-4797,   

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0301479711003185,    https://publications.jrc.ec.europa.eu/repository/handle/JRC65133,   

10.1016/j.jenvman.2011.08.019,