Cork is used in different product systems and in combination with different by-products as flooring. A "cradle to grave" LCA of 14 different cork floorings shows, that products with PVC overlay imply higher environmental burdens than PU-varnished cork floorings, despite the fact that they need no refurbishing.

The study, realised in co-operation with one of the major manufacturers of cork products in Portugal, collected and assessed the material and energy flows for 1 m2 flooring for fixed and floating laying during the expected service life of 30 years. For the products which are fixed at the building site, impacts of necessary refurbishing (sanding, re-varnishing) are included in the assessment for different intervals.

Summary of the results:

• Floating floorings are causing significantly higher ecological impacts than the fixed floorings. This is due to the high-density fibreboard (HDF) that triples the weight of the flooring.
• Floorings with PVC cover are causing significantly higher ecological impacts than floorings without PVC, even if the refurbishing interval assumed for the PVC free floorings is only 2 years. This is on one hand due to the impacts of the PVC production and the varnishing and edge sealing of the laminates, and on the other hand due to the additional heat and electrical energy needed.
• Compared to those main contributions, impacts of alternative overlay and staining techniques are of minor importance.
• The burdens of the transportation of the product from the factory to the distributors in Central Europe are relevant only in the life cycles of those products which create low impacts in the production phase (PVC free, fixed floorings).
• The potential damage of the raw material extraction to the cork forest ecosystem is assessed as land use. However, the methodology to assess the impacts of land use lacks data about biodiversity in different habitats, thus the assessment might be incomplete.
  

Contact: Hans-Joerg Althaus

    
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