Green Banana, a Gujarat-based company, manufactures building materials using plastic waste and spent sand. This mixture is shredded and moulded into various products such as blocks, planks, bricks, tiles and solar tiles of different sizes. Green Banana partnered with Monk Spaces to quantify the environmental impacts through a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). This assessment followed stringent standards such as ISO 14040, ISO 14044 and EN 15804+A2.

The assessment followed the requirements of Product Category Rules (PCR) defined by the International EPD System. For Green Banana, PCR 2019:14 – Construction Products defines the mandated stages of the life cycle and requirements of impact indicators to be included. The life cycle stages included raw materials processing, transportation & production of moulded products (A1-A3), end-of-life (C1-C4) and benefits beyond the system boundary (D). The PCR specified impact indicators such as global warming potential (GWP-Total), acidification potential (AP), and many others.

Once the requirements were defined, a detailed input sheet was prepared for the pilot and commercial phases. The sheet collected details on raw material procurement, electricity consumption, water consumption, the manufacturing process, and production specifics for both phases. The functional unit chosen for the LCA study was standardised to 1kg of moulded product, accounting for the varying thickness and weights of the different products. The LCA results are quantified using OneClick LCA software and the Ecoinvent database across core categories, natural resources, wastes and output flows. The estimated results were documented as an LCA report. The LCA report provided a detailed explanation of impact quantification.

The results were analysed to identify the key contributors to environmental impacts during the commercial phase. The study also compared the environmental impacts of both phases, focusing on the product’s entire life cycle and evaluating the benefits of recovery processes. Since raw materials are post-consumer and post-industrial waste, they were classified as burden-free, leading to significant reductions in environmental impacts. The relative performance of both phases was thoroughly examined, highlighting areas where environmental impacts were reduced.   

Based on the analyses, recommendations were provided. The assessment concluded with checks on completeness, consistency and sensitivity. The assessment helped Green Banana identify environmental impacts and improve its operations.