Life cycle assessment of advertising folders

Purpose Pulp and paper manufacturing constitutes one of thelargest industry segments in term of water and energy usageand total discharges to the environment. More than manyother industries, however, this industry plays a key role insustainable development because its most important raw material,wood fiber, is renewable. Actually, even if the communicationis dominated by electronic media, paper-based communicationhas a role to play due to its unique practical andaesthetic qualities. This research aims to assess the environmentalimpact of advertising folders produced with differentpapers and distributed by a system of Italian consumers’cooperatives in order to indicate the possible options ofimprovement and to assess the CO2 (eq) emitted during theentire life cycle.