Life cycle assessment of Austrian and Slovenian raw wood production

Abstract

Forestry will play an increasingly important role as a raw material contributor since climate change mitigation requires a shift from fossil-based materials to renewable, bio-based materials. Consequently, an increase in wood demand is expected. Slovenia has a forest coverage of 59% while almost half of Austria is covered by forest (43 %). In these countries, the forest-based sector has an important role. We look at the environmental impact of forestry in Slovenia and Austria under an increase in wood demand. This contribution has a twofold purpose: 1) to describe the environmental impact of Slovenian and Austrian forestry and forest products with a focus on sawlogs, and 2) to provide life cycle inventory data for Slovenian and Austrian forestry and importing countries for other LCA needs, for example, LCAs in the construction or biorefinery sectors and for benchmarking purposes. This contribution explores the use of the European Life Cycle Inventory of Forestry Operations (EFO-LCI) database [1]. The life cycle impact assessment applies the 16 impact categories as recommended by the European Commissions for LCA/Environmental Footprint in Europe [2] and provides additional indicators important for bio-based materials.