FWith the growing number of environmental assessment methods, comparing the performance of two products can quickly become complex. Different system boundaries, assumptions, modelling approaches, databases or calculation methods can lead to results that are difficult to compare, even when assessing similar products.
It is precisely to address this challenge that the European Commission developed the Product Environmental Footprint (PEF) method.
What is the PEF method?
The PEF method is a European methodology for assessing the environmental performance of a product or service throughout its entire life cycle.
It is based on the principles of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and therefore considers the different stages of a product’s life cycle: raw material extraction and production, manufacturing, distribution, installation, use and end-of-life.
However, its objective is to go further by providing a common methodological framework at the European level.
The aim is to reduce the variability in results that may arise from methodological choices made during an LCA, while improving their reproducibility, consistency and comparability.
PEF and LCA: What is the connection?
PEF is not a method entirely independent of LCA. Rather, it can be considered a harmonised LCA methodological framework developed for widespread application across Europe.
An LCA conducted in accordance with ISO 14040 and ISO 14044 leaves practitioners with a certain degree of flexibility in methodological choices, depending on the objectives of the study.
The PEF method provides a more structured framework for these choices.
In particular, it establishes rules regarding:
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- The definition of the study’s scope and system boundaries
- The modelling of different life cycle stages: transport, electricity mix, end-of-life, etc.
- The Data Quality Rating (DQR) for assessing data quality
- Environmental impact assessment methods
- Normalisation and weighting of results
A single- or multi-criteria approach?
One of the main advantages of the PEF method is that it does not limit environmental assessment to climate change through the sole Global Warming Potential (GWP) indicator.
The carbon footprint is indeed an important indicator, but it represents only one of the 16 impact categories assessed:
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- Climate change
- Ozone depletion
- Acidification
- Eutrophication, freshwater
- Eutrophication, marine
- Eutrophication, terrestrial
- Photochemical ozone formation, human health
- Resource use, minerals and metals
- Resource use, fossils
- Water use
- Particulate matter
- Ionising radiation, human health
- Ecotoxicity, freshwater
- Human toxicity, cancer
- Human toxicity, non-cancer
- Land use
This multi-criteria approach makes it possible to identify potential impact shifting.
For example, a solution that reduces greenhouse gas emissions may increase the consumption of certain resources or have a greater impact on acidification or freshwater ecotoxicity. A multi-criteria assessment helps make these trade-offs visible.
From multiple environmental indicators to a single score: Is it possible?
One of the particular features of the PEF method is the possibility of going beyond results expressed separately for each impact category.
After characterisation, the results can undergo two additional steps: normalisation and weighting.
Normalisation brings the different impact categories onto a comparable scale by relating the results to their reference values.
Weighting then assigns a relative weight to the different impact categories.
The weighted results can then be aggregated to obtain a single environmental score, generally expressed in points (Pt).
This score facilitates the overall comparison of scenarios or the identification of the main contributors to a product’s environmental footprint.
However, it must be interpreted alongside the detailed results for each impact category.
Aggregation into a single indicator necessarily involves the application of weighting factors and therefore does not replace a multi-criteria analysis.
The role of PEFCRs
For certain product categories, the general PEF method is complemented by Product Environmental Footprint Category Rules (PEFCRs).
These product category-specific rules specify how a PEF study should be conducted for a given product category.
They may define, in particular, the functional unit, the representative product, the life cycle stages to be considered, the data to be collected, or the main parameters influencing the results.
PEFCRs therefore play an essential role when the objective is to improve comparability between products fulfilling a similar function.
Why is the PEF method so important?
Harmonising the measurement of environmental performance is a major challenge for both businesses and public authorities.
Without common rules, a company may struggle to determine whether the observed difference between two products genuinely reflects their environmental performance or simply results from differences in the assumptions used to assess them.
Through the PEF method, the European Commission therefore aims to establish a common language for the environmental assessment of products.
Beyond calculating an environmental footprint, this method can also be integrated into an eco-design approach to identify the most significant contributing stages, compare different raw materials, assess changes to an industrial process, or evaluate different end-of-life scenarios.
However, this harmonisation does not eliminate all the limitations associated with environmental assessment. The quality of the results still depends on the availability and representativeness of the data used. Implementing the method may also require substantial amounts of data and expertise, while PEFCRs are not available for all product categories. Finally, although the single score makes the results easier to interpret, it must remain complementary to the detailed analysis of the different impact categories.
How We Can Support You
Would you like to learn more about the PEF method, adapt or integrate an internal environmental assessment method for your environmental self-declaration projects, or eco-design your products using a standardised methodology recommended by the European Commission? Contact us to benefit from support tailored to your needs!