Lifecycle analysis of new ammunition - an environmental view

In the world today there is a focus on environmental impacts and the military defence sector is not an exception. This report analyses in which direction the FOI research should develop to ensure most benefit concerning cost efficiency on environmental issues and has to meet the needs suited for Swedish conditions. It is concluded that it is important to have a cradle to the grave perspective concerning ammunition. Due to the large number of actors involved, The Swedish Armed Forces, FMV, the industry and FOI, there is a great demand on a formalized and well functioning system for demilitarisation. The ammunition life cycle is long and that means great demands on long-term planning, transference of knowledge, documentation, feedback and precise, far-sighted and well thought out specifications from the orderer to the manufacturer. If this system doesn´t work there is a risk that the recycling decreases and that the demilitarisation gets unnecessarily expensive and problematic. Therefore, FOI wants to continue the research the next years with a survey of the way these issues are managed today at the different authorities. The objective is to identify possible weaknesses of the system and to suggest improvements.