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March 22, 2010  |  Login
Coca Cola Dilemma
By Eric Corey Freed
 

Life cycle assessment (LCA) is the formal study of the environmental impact of products, processes, or services, through analysis of their production, usage, and disposal. In other words, LCA is the process of looking at where a product, process, or service came from; how people will use that product, process, or service; and what happens to the product, process, or service when people are done with it.

The concept of life cycle assessment dates back to a famous case from 1969. The Coca-Cola Company was trying to determine the better bottle: glass or plastic. Because glass is a natural material, most people expected glass would be the better environmental choice. Using a form of life cycle assessment, they determined that a plastic bottle would ultimately be the best environmental choice. Although contrary to expectations, Coca-Cola made its decision based on the following environmental considerations:

  • Coca-Cola could produce plastic bottles in its own factory, reducing the need for transportation and the energy transportation would use.
  • The lower weight of plastic bottles would reduce the energy needed to ship the bottles. Glass is heavier and more breakable than plastic.
  • At that time, plastic was easier to recycle than glass.

As you can see, neither container is perfect. Plastic is made from petroleum (oil) and glass must be shipped long distances. This type of exploration of the life cycle of each material allows you to make a choice based on all the variables. Maybe by looking at the damage from this life cycle analysis, you can find ways to lessen the impact.

 
 

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