The Water-Energy Nexus Posted April 10, 2018 by Julie Sinistore Major droughts from California to South Africa have driven awareness of water scarcity. Many organizations are measuring, managing and reporting on their direct water consumption to address drought risks. However, there is not yet an accepted and easy-to-implement methodology for quantifying unseen, upstream consumption of water. With increasing demands for Read More
Buy Clean California Act Creates Incentive to Cut Carbon Emissions by Requiring EPDs Posted February 28, 2018 by Julie Sinistore Background In 2017, California Governor Jerry Brown signed the Buy Clean California Act (AB 262) into law which encourages greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reductions associated with state infrastructure projects. AB 262 requires state agencies to consider embedded carbon from the production of construction materials, such as rebar, during contracting for Read More
Breaking Free from Linear Thinking: Life Cycle Assessment and Circular Economy Posted December 13, 2017 by Julie Sinistore A key theme of the 2017 American Center for Life Cycle Assessment (ACLCA) conference was the need to incorporate circular economy into design principles. Life cycle assessment (LCA) can help identify the areas of a product’s life cycle essential to promoting a circular economy. This appears to be a logical Read More
Takeaways from the 2017 American Center for Life Cycle Assessment XVII Annual Conference Posted October 30, 2017 by Julie Sinistore I have had the pleasure of attending the American Center for Life Cycle Assessment (ACLCA) annual conference for the last several years, wearing many hats as an academic, representative of private industry and as a consultant. This year, set in picturesque Portsmouth, New Hampshire, ACLCA’s conference brought together more than Read More
Full Material Disclosure and Life Cycle Assessment – Keys to Compliance and Market Share Posted August 28, 2017 by Jim Cramer Does it seem like you see an announcement of a new environmental regulation every month? That is exactly right! In today’s global economy many companies have a global component in the supply chain and customer base. One thing you can count on is that concern for the environment and product Read More
How could an LCA help answer the question “what is the carbon footprint of a purchase or email account?” Posted July 7, 2017 by Julie Sinistore Have you ever taken one of those personal carbon footprint calculator quizzes? They calculate the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions based on how you commute, how much you fly, where you get your electricity from, what you buy and what you eat, but what about how you invest and how you Read More
Part 2 – Environmental Product Declarations: What can they do for your organization? Posted May 25, 2017 by Julie Sinistore In the part 1 post, we explained what Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) are and the process for developing one. But why create one for your product or service? How is it used? How can it add value? EPDs are used in a variety of ways and by a variety of Read More
Part 1 – Environmental Product Declarations: What are they? Posted May 18, 2017 by Julie Sinistore An Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) is a verified and registered document that shows the life cycle environmental impacts of a product. Having an EPD does not imply that the declared product is environmentally superior to alternatives, but it does provide a transparent declaration for customers who need confirmation of a Read More
Launching a New Name and a New Logo Posted May 11, 2017 by suzimein The next chapter in the history of our firm begins with a new name – WSP USA – and a mandate to set the firm apart from others in our industry. Known as WSP | Parsons Brinckerhoff since the acquisition of Parsons Brinckerhoff by WSP in 2014, the firm will unite Read More
Life Cycle Assessment and Materiality Assessment Part 3 – What do the numbers mean to you? Posted March 17, 2017 by Julie Sinistore In Part One of this blog series we covered what a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is and the importance of a materiality assessment. In Part Two we delved into how to set up an LCA study. We will now explore what the final results might look like and how they Read More
Life Cycle Assessment and Materiality Assessment Part 2 – Setting up the study Posted March 13, 2017 by Julie Sinistore In Part One of this blog series we covered what a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is and the importance of a materiality assessment. We will now explore some of the aspects that go into an LCA. We’ll work from the milk container example explored in Part One. Which is the most Read More
Life Cycle Assessment and Materiality Assessment Part 1 – Should I cry over spilled milk? Posted March 1, 2017 by Julie Sinistore I do Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) for a living. A lot of people look at my quizzically when I say this. “So… you study butterflies?” Nope, no metamorphosis here. According to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), Life Cycle Assessment is “a tool for the systematic evaluation of the environmental Read More
Five Sustainability and Energy Trends to Watch in 2017 Posted January 9, 2017 by Jordan Chamberlain What’s in store for 2017? We’ve compiled five trends that will be on the move (some quite literally) in the coming year. We hope this list inspires you to explore developing sustainability trends and helps keep a pulse on happenings in this space. Advancing greenhouse gas (GHG) goal setting to Read More
