Waste emission factors «IPCC + Ecoinvent (Dcycle)»: methodology and sources

This article summarizes how the waste emission factors in the «IPCC + Ecoinvent (Dcycle)» database are built. If an auditor or verifier asks for the methodology, share the full PDF with them: it includes every table, the waste-specific factors and the category assigned to each of the 837 EWC codes.

How the factors are structured

Each factor matches a combination of waste and treatment operation:

• Waste: identified by its code in the European Waste Catalogue (EWC, known in Spain as LER; Decision 2000/532/EC). There are 837 six-digit codes, 407 of which are treated as hazardous.
• Operation: identified by its recovery (R) or disposal (D) code, from Annexes I and II of Directive 2008/98/EC.

In addition:

• Unit: kg CO2e per kg of waste managed (wet weight).
• Scope: emissions from treating the waste (Scope 3, Category 5 of the GHG Protocol). Transport to the waste manager is calculated separately.
• Geography: global factors, applicable in any country.
• Waste category: each EWC code is assigned to an IPCC waste category based on its composition, or to the hazardous waste category. The category sets the calculation parameters.
• CO2e conversion: factors calculated with the IPCC methodology use the AR5 100-year global warming potentials (CH4 = 28, N2O = 265). Factors taken from Ecoinvent use the IPCC 2021 method, GWP 100 years, except some waste-specific factors that use the EF 3.1 total climate change indicator (listed in Annex A of the PDF).

Traceability summary

Group	Operations	Waste	Source	Factor (kg CO2e/kg)
A. Uncontrolled landfill	D01, D02, D03	Non-hazardous	IPCC 2006, Vol. 5, ch. 3	By category (0 – 2.91)
B. Controlled landfill	D05	Non-hazardous	IPCC 2006, Vol. 5, ch. 3	By category (0 – 2.16)
C. Biological treatment	D08	All	IPCC 2006, Vol. 5, ch. 4	0.1098
D. Incineration	D10	Non-hazardous	IPCC 2006, Vol. 5, ch. 5	By category (0.01 – 2.95)
E. Hazardous waste deposit	D05	Hazardous	Ecoinvent 3.9.1	0.2026
F. Hazardous waste incineration	D10	Hazardous	Ecoinvent 3.9.1	2.4772
G. Recycling and material recovery	R02 – R14	All	Ecoinvent 3.9.1	0.1222
H. Waste-specific factors	D09	Specific wastes	Ecoinvent 3.9.1 – 3.11	Annex A of the PDF

Where each group comes from

Groups A and B. Non-hazardous waste landfill

Methane emissions from the decay of degradable organic carbon, using the IPCC 2006 mass balance method (Vol. 5, ch. 3). The factor depends on the degradable organic carbon (DOC) of each waste category, the fraction that decomposes (DOCf) and the methane correction factor of the landfill type. For controlled landfill, the recovered methane fraction (50%) is also deducted.

Group C. Biological treatment

IPCC 2006 default factors (Vol. 5, ch. 4) on a wet basis. The average of composting and anaerobic digestion is applied, and the same factor is used for hazardous waste.

Group D. Non-hazardous waste incineration

CO2, CH4 and N2O emissions from combustion, following IPCC 2006 (Vol. 5, ch. 5). CO2 is calculated from the carbon content of each waste category; CH4 and N2O from factors by technology and waste type.

Mixed municipal waste

Mixed municipal waste is treated as a mix of components (food, paper, plastics, glass…). Its factor is weighted by the typical municipal waste composition in each of the 19 IPCC regions, and the global average is taken.

Groups E and F. Hazardous waste deposit and incineration

Hazardous waste composition varies widely, so these factors are not calculated with IPCC parameters. They use specific hazardous waste treatment processes from Ecoinvent 3.9.1 (cut-off system model, IPCC 2021, GWP 100 years).

Group G. Recycling and material recovery

Under the cut-off approach, the waste generator is allocated the emissions from separate collection and sorting for recycling; the recycling process itself belongs to the life cycle of the next product. Since sorting data isn’t available for every waste type, all R02 to R14 operations use the arithmetic mean of 20 waste sorting activities from Ecoinvent 3.9.1.

Group H. Waste-specific factors

For 37 wastes, almost all hazardous, with a well-characterized physico-chemical treatment (acids, bases, emulsions, paints, solvents, fuels, batteries…), the D09 factor comes from the matching Ecoinvent treatment process (versions 3.9.1 to 3.11).

What the PDF includes

• The formulas and parameters for each group, with their source in the IPCC Guidelines.
• The table of parameters and resulting factors for each non-hazardous waste category.
• The full mixed municipal waste calculation, with a worked example for Southern Europe.
• The 20 Ecoinvent activities behind the recycling average.
• Annex A: the 37 waste-specific factors, with the Ecoinvent version, process and indicator for each.
• Annex B: the category assigned to each of the 837 EWC codes.