Life cycle assessment (LCA) is an analytical method used to evaluate potential environmental impacts of a product or service during its entire life cycle (unless otherwise specified) as a result of flows to and from the environment (including emissions to air, water and land, as well as the consumption of energy and other material resources). The boundaries of an LCA should be clearly stated and consistently applied; typically LCAs are “cradle to gate” including impacts from raw material extraction (cradle) to the factory gate, or “cradle to grave” including impacts from raw materials, manufacturing, use, and end of life.
LCIA (Life Cycle Impact Assessment) is the interpretation of the raw data in terms of their environmental impact towards different environmental impact categories (for example global warming potential and eutrophication potential).