New Practice for Determining the Carbon Footprint of Geosynthetic Applications Using Life Cycle Assessment
1. Scope
1.1 This practice establishes a standardized methodology for quantifying and reporting the carbon footprint of geosynthetic applications throughout their life cycle. The methodology is based on the life cycle assessment (LCA) framework of ISO 14040 and ISO 14044, the carbon footprint of products requirements in ISO 14067, and the greenhouse gas quantification and reporting principles in ISO 14064-1.
1.2 This practice applies to all geosynthetic materials and systems, including but not limited to geotextiles, geogrids, geomembranes, geosynthetic clay liners (GCLs), geocomposite drainage layers, erosion and sediment control products, geofoam, and geosynthetic reinforcement strips, as defined in ASTM D4439.
1.3 The carbon footprint assessment shall be conducted using one of the following system boundaries, selected on the basis of the study goal and intended use of results:
1.3.1 Cradle-to-gate — raw material extraction through manufacturing (most common for product-level assessments and EPDs),
1.3.2 Cradle-to-grave — full life cycle from raw material extraction through end-of-life management,
1.3.3 Gate-to-gate — manufacturing or processing operations only, or
1.3.4 Cradle-to-cradle — full life cycle including closed-loop recycling and material reuse.
1.3.5 The selected system boundary shall be clearly defined, documented, and justified in the carbon footprint study report.
1.4 This practice provides requirements for:
1.4.1 Goal and scope definition,
1.4.2 System boundary establishment,
1.4.3 Life cycle inventory (LCI) data collection and quality assessment,
1.4.4 Greenhouse gas (GHG) emission quantification and characterization,
1.4.5 Carbon footprint calculation methodologies,
1.4.6 Biogenic carbon accounting,
1.4.7 Documentation and reporting requirements, and
1.4.8 Verification and validation procedures.
1.5 This practice is intended for use by geosynthetic manufacturers, project designers, contractors, environmental consultants, procurement specialists, and other stakeholders involved in the specification, production, installation, or environmental assessment of geosynthetic applications.
1.6 Values stated in SI units shall be regarded as standard. No other units of measurement are included in this standard.
1.7 This standard does not purport to address all of the safety concerns, if any, associated with its use. It is the responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appropriate safety, health, and environmental practices and determine the applicability of regulatory limitations prior to use.
1.8 This international standard was developed in accordance with internationally recognized principles on standardization established in the Decision on Principles for the Development of International Standards, Guides and Recommendations issued by the World Trade Organization Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) Committee.
Note: This practice is complementary to, and consistent with, the environmental product declaration (EPD) framework defined in ISO 14025 and the construction product EPD core rules in EN 15804+A2. Practitioners preparing EPDs for geosynthetics based on this practice are encouraged to consult applicable Product Category Rules (PCRs).
Keywords
biogenic carbon; carbon footprint; climate change; embodied carbon; environmental product declaration; geosynthetics; geotextiles; geogrids; geomembranes; geosynthetic clay liner; greenhouse gas emissions; ISO 14067; life cycle assessment; product category rules; recycled content; sustainability; system boundary
Rationale
The use of geosynthetics in infrastructure projects, while not new, is still relatively novel in their breadth of applications and understanding of the carbon efficiency benefits. This practice will serve the users of geosynthetics to measure and leverage the important environmental sustainable benefits of geosynthetic design solutions.
