Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: Life cycle assessments (LCA) have two long-balanced ambitions: to describe physical systems objectively, and to inform policy and investment decisions (Baitz et al. 2013 ). When these purposes blur, methodological choices can become instruments of advocacy rather than analysis. Already in the late 1990s, several scholars warned that this could undermine analytical integrity. They emphasized that methodological choices in LCA, whilst inevitably containing normative elements, must be linked to the context of decisions they are meant to inform (Ayres 1995 ; Hertwich et al. 2000 ; Tillman 2000 ; Finnveden 2000 ).
Author: Jan Sandstad Næss
Institution: Norwegian University of Science and Technology
Language: English
Subfield: Environmental Engineering
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $3,990
OpenAlex ID: W7140202138