System boundaries and functional priorities in different life phases in the context of eco-design

Electronic equipment and other products are under pressure from the so called "Producers Responsibility" (Kretsloppsdelegationen, 1997), which means that the manufacturer is given enhanced responsibility for the product even during its use phase and after its service life. In Sweden, the producer responsibility is today valid for electronic equipment, newspapers, tyres, packaging and cars. The EU is also taking measures in this direction. Consequently, different eco-industrial methods are needed to evaluate and compare the environmental impact on all life phases. Eco-industrial methods are dependent on system boundaries, and functional priorities of the investigated product. Differences in system boundaries (being too narrow or wide) can lead to problems when comparing the results for similar products. These problems indicate an increasing demand on system descriptions being consistent