Land use and land transformation modeling are essential components of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) when analyzing the environmental impact of land occupation and conversion. In Earthster, there are three key exchanges relevant to land use modeling:
Key Exchanges
Exchange Name | When to Use | Example |
Land use (m²·year) | Used when modeling the occupation of a particular land type over time, without transformation. | Operating a copper mine over 5 years, occupying a total area of 1,000,000 m². The model should include the exchange:
Value for the exchange: 5 years × 1,000,000 m² = 5,000,000 m²·year |
Land transformation (before, from)
and
Land transformation (after, to) (m²) | Used to represent the land use types before and after the transformation. | Transforming 100 m² of natural forest into a mining site. The model includes the exchanges:
Values for the exchanges: Both with the value of 100 m² |
Summary of Usage
Land use is used alone when occupation is modeled without transformation.
Land transformation always requires both a before and after exchange.
Both can be combined when land transformation occurs before occupation (e.g., clearing a forest before operating a mine).
Combining Land Use and Land Transformation
In some cases, both land transformation and land use exchanges are required. For example, if a company clears a forest to operate a copper mine for 5 years, the model should include:
Land transformation: Converting forest into a mining site.
Land use: Mining site occupation for 5 years.
Land Use Types in Earthster
Earthster's land use classifications closely follow standard LCA nomenclature, mapping well with ecoinvent and FEDEFL categories. Below is a reference table:
Land use type in earthster (sub context of | Ecoinvent equivalent land use type |
human-dominated | unspecified |
human-dominated/agricultural | arable land, unspecified use |
human-dominated/agricultural/annual crop | annual crop |
human-dominated/agricultural/annual crop/flooded crop | annual crop, flooded crop |
human-dominated/agricultural/annual crop/greenhouse | annual crop, greenhouse |
human-dominated/agricultural/annual crop/irrigated | annual crop, irrigated |
human-dominated/agricultural/annual crop/irrigated/extensive | annual crop, irrigated, extensive |
human-dominated/agricultural/annual crop/irrigated/intensive | annual crop, irrigated, intensive |
human-dominated/agricultural/annual crop/non-irrigated | annual crop, non-irrigated |
human-dominated/agricultural/annual crop/non-irrigated/extensive | annual crop, non-irrigated, extensive |
human-dominated/agricultural/annual crop/non-irrigated/intensive | annual crop, non-irrigated, intensive |
human-dominated/agricultural/heterogeneous | heterogeneous, agricultural |
human-dominated/agricultural/pasture, man made | pasture, man made |
human-dominated/agricultural/pasture, man made/extensive | pasture, man made, extensive |
human-dominated/agricultural/pasture, man made/intensive | pasture, man made, intensive |
human-dominated/agricultural/permanent crop | permanent crop |
human-dominated/agricultural/permanent crop/irrigated | permanent crop, irrigated |
human-dominated/agricultural/permanent crop/irrigated/extensive | permanent crop, irrigated, extensive |
human-dominated/agricultural/permanent crop/irrigated/intensive | permanent crop, irrigated, intensive |
human-dominated/agricultural/permanent crop/non-irrigated | permanent crop, non-irrigated |
human-dominated/agricultural/permanent crop/non-irrigated/extensive | permanent crop, non-irrigated, extensive |
human-dominated/agricultural/permanent crop/non-irrigated/intensive | permanent crop, non-irrigated, intensive |
human-dominated/agricultural/rural |
|
human-dominated/agricultural/urban |
|
human-dominated/agricultural/cropland fallow (non-use) | cropland fallow (non-use) |
human-dominated/agricultural/field margin or hedgerow | field margin/hedgerow |
human-dominated/commercial |
|
human-dominated/commercial/rural |
|
human-dominated/commercial/urban |
|
human-dominated/construction site | construction site |
human-dominated/dump site | dump site |
human-dominated/dump site/inert material landfill | dump site, inert material landfill |
human-dominated/dump site/residual material landfill | dump site, residual material landfill |
human-dominated/dump site/sanitary landfill | dump site, sanitary landfill |
human-dominated/dump site/slag compartment | dump site, slag compartment |
human-dominated/industrial | industrial area |
human-dominated/industrial/rural |
|
human-dominated/industrial/urban |
|
human-dominated/mineral extraction site | mineral extraction site |
human-dominated/residential |
|
human-dominated/residential/rural |
|
human-dominated/residential/urban |
|
human-dominated/rural |
|
human-dominated/traffic area |
|
human-dominated/traffic area/rail network | traffic area, rail network |
human-dominated/traffic area/rail or road embankment | traffic area, rail/road embankment |
human-dominated/traffic area/road network | traffic area, road network |
human-dominated/urban |
|
human-dominated/urban or industrial fallow (non-use) | urban/industrial fallow (non-use) |
human-dominated/urban/continuously built | urban, continuously built |
human-dominated/urban/discontinuously built | urban, discontinuously built |
human-dominated/urban/green area | urban, green area |
terrestrial | unspecified, natural (non-use) |
terrestrial/barren land | bare area (non-use) |
terrestrial/forest | forest, unspecified |
terrestrial/forest/extensive | forest, extensive |
terrestrial/forest/intensive | forest, intensive |
terrestrial/forest/primary (non-use) | forest, primary (non-use) |
terrestrial/forest/secondary (non-use) | forest, secondary (non-use) |
terrestrial/grassland |
|
terrestrial/grassland/livestock grazing | grassland, natural, for livestock grazing |
terrestrial/grassland/natural (non-use) | grassland, natural (non-use) |
terrestrial/shrubland | shrub land, sclerophyllous |
terrestrial/snow and ice | snow and ice (non-use) |
terrestrial/wetland |
|
terrestrial/wetland/coastal (non-use) | wetland, coastal (non-use) |
Important Considerations
Additional Environmental Flows: Land transformation often involves CO₂, methane, and particulate matter emissions (e.g., due to deforestation). These should be included in the model.
Matching Transformation Values: Every
Land transformation (before, from)must be coupled with one or moreLand transformation (after, to)exchanges, as long as the total magnitude remains equal. This is important because impact assessments depend on the reference land type and vary based on the impact method used.