A Life-Cycle Analysis Model for Dimensional Lumber and Magazines

Greenhouse gases (GHG) are important by-products of the production of wood and paper products. Here we report the GHG life cycle analysis (LCA) for three forest product chains: a weekly (Time) and a monthly (InStyle) magazine, and dimensional lumber. In this study we show (i) one ton of Time magazine or InStyle magazine releases a net 1.17 and 1.11 t CO2-eq, respectively, with GHG emissions from the pulp and paper mills comprising 61-77% of total GHG emissions (Figure 1), and (ii) one ton of dimensional lumber releases a net 0.83 t CO2-eq, with transportation and distribution from the sawmill to consumer comprising 94% of the total GHG emissions (Figure 2). CO2 comprised greater than 99% of the total CO2-eq (CO2 + CH4 + N2O) emissions for both product chains. We identify opportunities to reduce GHG shadows for the magazine and dimensional lumber chains and emphasize the important role of the industrial forest C cycle in forest C management.

The figure below shows greenhouse gas emissions, expressed as CO2 equivalents, for the different stages of the life cycle of Time (open bar) and InStyle (black bar) magazines. H = harvest of wood fiber, TM = transportation of wood fiber to the mill, ME = mill emissions to make the paper, TP = transporation of paper to the printer, PE = printer emissions, TC = transportation of magazine to the consumer, FF = final fate (i.e. landfill, incineration, recycled). The number above each bar represents the fraction of the total emissions.

Figure 2. Greenhouse gas emissions (expressed as CO2 equivalents) for the different stages of dimensional lumber. H = harvest of wood fiber, TM = transportation of wood fiber to the sawmill, ME = sawmill emissions to make the lumber, TC = transportation of dimensional lumber to the consumer, FF = final fate (i.e. landfill, incineration, recycled). The number above each bar represents the fraction of the total emissions.