What is Life Cycle Assessment?

A Life Cycle Assessment (LCA, also known as life cycle analysis, eco-balance, and cradle-to-grave analysis) is the investigation and valuation of the environmental impacts of a given product or service caused or necessitated by its existence.

Life Cycle Energy Analysis (LCEA) is an approach in which all energy inputs to a product are accounted for, not only direct energy inputs during manufacture, but also all energy inputs needed to produce components, materials and services needed for the manufacturing process. Early expression used for the approach is energy analysis.