LCA is a technique which assesses the environmental impacts of a building component right the way through its life. It is becoming increasingly important as more and more specifiers are required to consider the environmental impacts of the products and materials they select, taking into account where the material comes from, how it is used or converted into a product and its use in a building, right through to its disposal or re-use/recycling. It considers the impact of a material or product’s use during 3 specific phases:

Please click on each of the phases above for more detail.

Wood and wood products generally have a low environmental impact compared with products manufactured from other materials. Indications suggest that most wood products will score A+ or A in the forthcoming BRE Green Guide.