Complementing circular economy with life cycle assessment: Deeper understanding of economic, social, and environmental sustainability

This chapter gives an overview of the opportunities and benefits of implementing life cycle assessment (LCA) in circular economy (CE) evaluation. The CE has been designed to create value for both economic and social life by redefining the concept of end-of-life for products through reduce, reuse, and recycle programs. As this strategy is becoming more widespread, it is necessary to scientifically assess how the products or processes effectively correspond to CE and what improvements may arise in terms of the environment and economy. Robust environmental assessment tools, such as LCA, can be beneficial for assessing the success of CE strategies by companies, product designers, and sustainability teams, as well as consumers, since a closed loop system is not always the preferred method from an environmental viewpoint. The combination of LCA and CE can result in more in-depth analysis and better understanding of economic, social, and environmental sustainability.