Lifecycle of a mug

The Leach Pottery is committed to improving sustainability of its Standard Ware and the Capital Project onsite which will see us invest in a new studio pottery to give us the opportunity to reduce the environmental impact of our pottery.

To do this, we commissioned research looking at the life cycle of a single Leach mug and followed its progress through its lifetime to measure the environmental impact.

In the first research of its kind, a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) was carried out by chemical engineer Professor Xiaoyu Yan and Dr Giorgio Salani. It followed the journey of a Standard Ware mug (defined as one kilo of fired product for comparison purposes) through its journey from extracting the clay through its design, manufacture, use and ultimately its disposal.

“We are trying to evaluate the associated environmental impact to get a holistic view,” explained Professor Yan. “One of the key tools we use in our research is LCA – life cycle assessment. The concept of the carbon footprint is based on LCA. The principle is the same whether looking at an individual product, person, company or even a country. You measure the impact, in this case, we looked at the raw material extraction all the way to the end of the life of that product. This considers the different resources, its production and the waste that comes out of the product during its life cycle.”

The researchers can then compare the mug against other products such as the same weight of red meat over the same time period.

An internationally recognised calculation was used that established its environmental impact in 18 different areas, including its carbon footprint, fossil fuel use and water. The research also looked at packaging and the impact on land use and marine life.

What did the research find out?

The researchers chose to measure it against the same weight of red meat. It found that the carbon footprint of a mug was only 17 per cent of the footprint created by the same weight of red meat.

Unsurprisingly, the longer the mug was used, the more sustainable it becomes.

In the 18 measurements, the mug only scored higher than red meat in two categories:

Ionizing Radiation caused by the use of electricity taken from the National Grid which uses nuclear energy.

Fossil Resource Scarcity: a measure of how much fossil fuel is used, which is again linked to how the UK generates electricity and use of natural gas.

It found there was little difference in the environmental impact of three different finishes: ash green, dolomite (white) and tenmoku (black).

You can download the full report, including all 18 measurements here.

What’s next?

The project will inform the new development of the Leach Pottery, helping to massively reduce environmental impact in key areas. This includes lighting, heating, pottery production and packaging.

Libby Buckley, Director of the Leach Pottery, which commissioned the research, said: “The Leach Pottery is committed to becoming Carbon Neutral by 2030, ahead of the Government’s target of 2050 (2035 for zero fossil fuel in energy supply).

“The next step is to use the information to find ways to reduce our impact on the environment in our new-look pottery. Not everything is in our control, for example how the electricity we use is generated. But we can look at how to reduce our reliance on the National Grid.

“As part of our capital project, we are trialling new technologies in the production of pottery, particularly in firing it. As well as looking to move away from natural gas we are investing in a carbon neutral building, including PV panels, air to air heating and good natural lighting. The report also highlights the benefits of working collectively sharing working space and equipment.”

The Leach Pottery is hosting a two day online Sustainability conference at the end of January. Making Change Conference: Sustainability & Ceramic Practice will explore the meaning of sustainability in the context of ceramic practice in 2024. You can reserve your place at the conference and find out more here.

View the full report by clicking on the image below

An academic paper authored by the researchers will be published in 2024.

Find out more about Leach Pottery’s ongoing sustainability projects at http://www.leachpottery.com

Read more about our capital project here