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Handbook on environmental assessment of products Preface to the seriesThe life-cycle perspective and life-cycle assessments are central elements in any product-oriented environmental initiative. Enterprises today need thorough and well-founded methods for lifecycle assessment. They also need simple, easily accessible methods which reflect a life-cycle perspective. The best choice of method depends on the relevant objective, target group, intentions for publication, etc. All life-cycle assessments do, however, share one common feature: they should yield robust results. Results which provide a good basis for the decisions to be made. During the last ten years, subsidies have been granted for a number of projects on life-cycle assessments and life-cycle perspectives. Similarly, the "Programme for Cleaner Products, etc., 1998 – 2002" will grant subsidies for new projects. From the year 2000 onwards, the main results of projects on lifecycle assessments will be published as a "mini series" as part of the Environmental Protection Agency's series Miljønyt – Danish Environment Newsletter. As the projects are completed, they will supplement the results of the 1996 EDIP project. The combination of the various tools and lessons learnt and the advice, assistance, and guidance provided will form a good basis for most life-cycle assessments. Life-cycle assessment is such a comprehensive concept that it would hardly be possible to write a single book which covers all situations and all applications of life-cycle assessments. It is the hope of the Danish Environmental Protection Agency that this "mini series" can provide an overview of the support available to companies, organisations, authorities, and others who wish to adopt a life-cycle perspective in their work. The Danish Environmental Protection Agency, May 2000
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