Title: Gate-to-gate environmental life cycle assessment of hardwood lumber production

Authors: Tanveer Ahmad; Uzma Noreen; Adam Taylor; Majid Hussain

Addresses: Department of Forestry and Wildlife Management, University of Haripur, Hattar Road Haripur City, 22620, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan ' Department of Environmental Sciences, Abdul Wali Khan University, Mardan City, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan ' Center for Renewable Carbon, Department of Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996-4570, USA ' Department of Forestry and Wildlife Management, University of Haripur, Hattar Road Haripur City, 22620, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan

Abstract: The objective of this study was to conduct a gate-to-gate life cycle assessment of hardwood lumber production in selected districts (Haripur and Abbottabad) of the Hazara region, Pakistan. Primary data regarding inputs and outputs from sawmills were collected through questionnaire surveys of twenty-two (22) sawmills in the Haripur district and eighteen (18) sawmills in the Abbottabad district of Pakistan during the year 2017-2018. Gate-to-gate life cycle assessment was conducted for a reference unit of 1.0 m³ of planed dry hardwood lumber. Production-weighted average data were modelled in SimaPro v.8.5 for ten environmental impact indicators. Diesel consumption in the transport of raw materials, purchased electricity consumed at the sawmills and urea formaldehyde resin used for filling cracks in the hardwood lumber product had the highest contributions to all the environmental impact categories evaluated. The carbon stock can be used to offset the carbon footprint of hardwood lumber production in Pakistan.

Keywords: carbon stock; environmental impacts; hardwood; lumber; LCA; Pakistan.

DOI: 10.1504/IJGW.2020.108177

International Journal of Global Warming, 2020 Vol.21 No.2, pp.173 - 188

Received: 31 Jul 2019
Accepted: 05 Jan 2020
Published online: 03 Jul 2020 *

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