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The Most Time Consuming Phase Is The Inventory Analysis

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The most time-consuming phase is the inventory analysis. This phase consist of three stages: data collection for each unit process of the system, calculation and allocation. The quantitative and qualitative data of input and output of the system can be measured, calculated or estimated and allocated in different classifications such as: products, co-products and waste; air, water or land pollution; or other ambiental aspects. The calculation of emissions is realized for each process using different methods. 2.1.3 Environmental impact assessment The environmental impact assessment aims study the significance of potential environmental impacts, associating the data obtained in the inventory with categories of specific impact. This phase …show more content…

The methodology used in each study was also compared and analysed to find out if it was compatible between the studies. All the data were put in a table to facilitate comparison and the main results were pointed out. The studies used different functional unit, system boundary and allocation method. It is also recommended to consider that different LCA studies adopt different sampling methods. Moreover, the farmers’ management can have greater influence than the type of production system. Therefore, comparisons should be made with full awareness of the uncertainties. Table 1: Comparison between one Dutch (Boer et al., 2008), one German (Hass el at., 2001) and two Swedish (Cederberg and Mattson, 2000; Cederberg and Flysjo, 2004) LCA studies. 3.1 Environmental impact categories 3.1.1 Acidification Emissions of inorganic substances to the soil and water can occur in nature. One example is the emission of nitrates, sulfates and phosphates that causes acidification in the soil and water. The acidification limits the plant growth and yields as a result of the reduction of essential nutrients availability at soils with low pH. In milk production the main elements that contribute to the acidification process are ammonia (NH3), nitrate (NOX) and sulfate (SO2). Those elements have different potential of H+ ions release (Dias, 2011). In the life cycle assessment those elements are standardized to create a comparability

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