3. Determine the level of ambition
The NDWG should determine early on whether the ambition is to set up a fully functional national LCA database or a repository of consistent datasets. The level of ambition should align with estimated costs for development and maintenance and the ability of the main implementing agency to raise funds in the foreseeable future to cover those costs. The experience of successful global LCA database providers indicates that it may take several years for databases to become financially viable. Until that point, dataset development may need to depend on grants, donations and/or public funding, but also substantial in-kind contributions.
