LCA originated in the late sixties with defensive corporate concerns about specific products. Reportedly, the first instance was Coca-Colas efforts to determine the environmental impact of switching from glass to plastic bottles (Malin, 2002). In the seventies, concerns with energy led to energy and environmental profiling; and although there was little public interest in LCA in the eighties, researchers in the new field made progress in their refining methods. The nineties saw an explosion of interest in LCA, by academic, environmental, corporate and governmental bodies. Coordinating and catalyzing action internationally has been SETACthe Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry. Although numerous other organizations and individuals have been involved, SETAC is the international body that has been most responsible for carrying out research, developing standards and generalizing LCA. Its work has increased the status of LCA as an essential part of environmental management,