Life cycle assessment of non-hazardous Construction and Demolition Waste (CDW) management in Lombardy Region (Italy)

Construction and Demolition Waste (CDW) has been identified as a priority waste stream by the European Union due to its significant generation level and its high recycling potential. The purpose of the present study, which was supported by the local government of Lombardy Region (Italy), is to apply the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology to evaluate the environmental performance of the current regional management of CDW and to identify critical aspects and possible improving actions. The focus has been placed on the waste fraction mostly present in CDW that is the mixed non-hazardous waste (identified by the European Waste Code 170904). In the recycling plants, this is usually blended with cement, tiles and ceramics, and, to a lesser extent, with bituminous mixture and gypsum-based waste to obtain mixed recycled aggregates. These are mostly used in road construction works and in environmental fillings/restoration. The LCA of the current CDW management system showed that the induced environmental impacts are in general higher than the benefits arising from recycling activities. At the same time the current system performs better than a scenario where all the CDW is sent to landfill. On the basis of several sensitivity and scenario analyses, a best-case scenario has been defined by optimizing all the main system parameters. Finally, recommendations were formulated to improve the environmental performances of the system.