Life cycle assessment analysis of facemasks: the Italian case

During the 2020-2021 period, many countries have introduced mandatory use of facemasks as a non-clinical intervention to reduce the spread of SAR-Cov-2. A rise in single-use facemask littering has been observed which has led to environmental concerns about their use. An analysis of the Material Flow Analysis (MFA) carried out suggests that if the use of disposable masks were widely used by all Italian citizens, this would be equal to 48kt of plastic (66kt total of waste) which requires annual disposal. Although reviews in the literature state that in a clinical setting, disposable masks are currently more effective than reusable masks, experts have suggested that reusable masks are equally adequate in preventing transmission when used correctly [1, 2]. Reusable masks have the potential to reduce the amount of resulting waste, but due to differences in manufacturing materials and the addition of cleaning and sanitizing processes, a trade-off in environmental impact could arise. In addition, some reusable masks can be integrated with disposable filters to offer greater air filtration, this can reduce waste from the disposable mask but a large amount of waste is still expected to be disposed of. This study aims to calculate the environmental impacts of both single-use and reusable masks (with and without filter) with a cradle-to-grave study approach. The approach used to assess and compare, which is the greenest product, is the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) conducted by following the principles, framework, requirements, and guidelines as described by the International Standards ISO 14040 series. The functional unit (FU) employed for the analysis is 1 day of breath with a facemask. According to the ISS (Istituto Superiore di Sanità), the effectiveness of a single-use mask is assumed 4- 6 hours. According to this data, it was considered that for each person are necessary two masks per day. For the reusable one, ever in accordance with the ISS, a single reusable facemask has been declared sufficient to fulfill the Functional unit declared. In the case of reusable masks with filters, in accordance with the Italian Authorities, it was assumed that 1 filter per day would be enough. For the evaluation of impact categories the methods ILCD 2011 Midpoint+ v.1.10 has been used, parallel to a Water Footprint - Pfister et al 2010 (ReCiPe) – a Carbon Footprint - IPCC 2013 GWP 100a V.1.3. [1] A .C. K .Lai, C .K. M .Poon, A. C. T. Cheung; J R Soc Interface 2012 May 7; 9(70):938-48. [2] C. R. MacIntyre, A. AhmadChughtai; International Journal of Nursing Studies Volume 108, August 2020, 103629