Light weight and synthetic polymer materials form the physical basis of many products across various applications worldwide. Given their reliance on fossil fuel inputs, this increases the importance of environmental assessment in the polymer industry. The energy intensity of plastics manufacturing and processing and the associated high embodied energy of polymer products warrants further investigation. The Carbon Footprint (CFP) methodology enables the estimation of the GHG emissions associated

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... with polymer production. It quantifies the greenhouse gases released from polymer processing. An existing mid-sized polymer processing factory is utilised as a case study in this analysis. In addition, this study provides the data necessary for reviewing energy efficiency measures by estimating their value within CFP analysis. It also identifies the different strengths and weaknesses of the CFP approach. The analysis could then be used in plastics industry 'green' decision making.