LCA of Italian and Spanish bovine leather production systems in an industrial ecology perspective

This paper presents the LCA-based results of a research programme called Cicle Pell: Industrial ecology in the animal-to-leather chain funded by the EU in the framework of the Community Program Interreg III C, Regional Framework Operation, "Ecosind". The main aim of the Ecosind is to define the basis to implement a new strategy of industrial sustainable development in the Southern Europe regions. In the Ecosind framework, the general aim of the Cicle Pell project is to identify the economic and environmental improvements which can be achieved by companies in the leather industry and the related supply-chain by applying the industrial ecology principles and tools. In this paper the results of the LCA of bovine leather manufactured in Italy and Spain will be described in order to put in evidence the eco-profile of the two systems and to find out if the difference in the adopted technologies and cooperative management solutions have led to significant environmental differences.