We found a match
Your institution may have access to this item. Find your institution then sign in to continue.
- Title
Application of life cycle sustainability assessment (LCSA) in the gold mining sector: a systematic review.
- Authors
Konaré, Zan Mary; Ajayi, Dickson Dare; Ba, Sidy; Aremu, Ademola Kabiru
- Abstract
Purpose: Gold mining is one of the most generative economic activities in many developing countries. Gold mining operations are generally recognized not only as being too energy and material intensive, but also as a source of pollution, social insecurity, and instability. Faced with this challenge and the challenge of integrating gold mining into the framework of sustainable development, life cycle sustainability assessment (LCSA) seems to be an option, the most comprehensive assessment method to facilitate decision-making. LCSA is a tool based on life cycle assessment (LCA), life cycle costing (LCC), and social life cycle assessment (SLCA). This study, as a systematic review, analyzes whether and how LCA is applied in the gold mining sector. Methods: A systematic review was conducted for the LCSA studies published between 1st January 2010 and 20th May 2022 in the gold mining sector. And the resulting studies were reviewed following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta Analyses (PRISMA) as a guideline. Results and discussion: Review of the studies resulted in the selection of 16 publications in the gold mining sector. The content results showed that 94% of the publications, i.e., 15 out of 16 applied LCA and 6% of the publications, i.e., 1 out of 16 applied SLCA. However, the results showed that no publications were found not only on LCC but also on studies integrating LCA, LCC, and SLCA together. There were discrepancies between the selected studies in the definition of system boundaries and the selection of indicators, and diversity between studies in the choice of impact assessment methods and data quality. It was also noted that other methodological approaches were combined with the LCA approach. Conclusion: This work reveals the absence of LCSA and LCC studies and the scarcity of SLCA studies in the gold mining sector. Therefore, further studies in this sector should be encouraged, particularly on LCC and SLCA, which could focus on integrating the LCA, LCC, and SLCA approaches together (LCSA), defining the boundaries of the system and harmonizing impact assessment methods and indicators constituting the major challenges of applying LCSA in the gold mining sector.
- Subjects
PRODUCT life cycle assessment; LIFE cycle costing; GOLD mining; SUSTAINABLE development
- Publication
International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment, 2023, Vol 28, Issue 6, p684
- ISSN
0948-3349
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1007/s11367-023-02160-2