A Life Cycle Assessment of Three Department of Defense Airfield Paving Projects

Abstract

Following Executive Order (EO) 14008 Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad, the Department of Defense (DOD) began implementing strategies to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to net-zero by 2050. In support of these goals, this thesis uses life cycle assessment (LCA) to analyze one concrete and two asphalt airfield paving projects from three military installations, quantifying associated Global Warming Potential (GWP) contributions from materials, transportation, and construction (life cycle stages A1 through A5). LCA results were calculated using the openLCA software with input data from pavement material Environmental Product Declarations (EPD) and reported construction equipment use information. Material production (A1 – A3) was the most significant contributor to the project’s overall GWP for both pavements due to cement and asphalt binder manufacturing, followed by construction activities (A5) and transportation (A4). This thesis provides a baseline understanding of DOD airfield paving carbon emissions and presents recommendations for future research to substantiate the identified environmental impact observations. Ultimately, the methods outlined in this thesis could enable carbon emission tracking capabilities to achieve federal sustainability objectives.