Sustainability Tools in Cultural Heritage: Life Cycle Assessment Examining Crates for Heritage Objects

Abstract

ABSTRACT The Sustainability Tools in Cultural Heritage (STiCH) https://stich.culturalheritage.org project informs cultural heritage professionals about sustainable choices through life cycle assessment (LCA). This paper focuses on one study https://stich.culturalheritage.org/crates/ that examines the environmental impacts of transporting cultural heritage. The study models four crate types crates single trip, round trip, and reusable. For each crate, three major material categories (exterior, interior, and wrapping) were analyzed, giving each configuration an environmental profile. The study compares these crate options over their life cycles, including impacts from material production, transportation, and disposal. The results show that reusable crate have lower impacts than wooden crates across a broad range of environmental considerations. Transportation dominates reusable crates and is relatively less important for single-trip crates. For single-trip and round-trip crates, foams can be a major source of greenhouse gas emissions. Actions that would reduce impacts include reusing the crate itself or its disassembled components. Lowering the weight of the crate, possibly by using lighter materials for the crate shell, would reduce impacts from transport. These findings can encourage further research and exploration of sustainable materials that perform similarly to the items they replace.