Speakers
Description
This presentation relates to the activities of the ESA LCA Database project as part of ESA Clean Space Initiative. The main purpose of the project is to build, consolidate and maintain a fully operational and up-to-date environmental LCA database and provide support services to the ESA LCA Database end-users. The presentation will focus on the main development in the project activities in the past year, impacting the users: ESA LCA database updates, new datasets collection, new LCIA methods, preparation of documentation (including requirements for datasets integration), identification of gaps in the DB, development of the Converter Tool (data conversion tool between main LCA software solutions), distribution and foreseen updates. One of the highlights of the presentation will be the guided tour of the ESA LCA DB updates (including the newly implemented LCIA methods), showcasing the background data updates, the structure changes and inclusion of new datasets, explaining the reasoning behind and impact on the user and next steps needed to obtain a robust and consistent database. On another front, the Converter Tool capabilities will be showcased, along with introduction of the need to find common ground in modelling in the different LCA software used in space projects, and the possible limitations triggered by non-compliance.
An invitation is extended to current end-users and conference participants in the consolidation process of the existent database through workshops, end user feedback and dataset wish lists, in order to focus efforts to address priority needs of the industry. Overall, this presentation addresses the steps taken from theory to practice in defining an operational environmental LCA database, emphasizing the advantages that the database can offer to users while also providing them with clear instructions on how to contribute to it, ensuring at the same time compliance with data quality requirements.
