What’s Ahead for EPDs
As previously noted, program operators and other parties involved in development of PCRs and EPDs are responsible for the creation and maintenance of publicly-available lists, so that other parties can determine if suitable product category requirements have already been developed. However, compliance with this provision of ISO 14025 is not uniform. This creates duplicate work and results in the development of PCRs that are not harmonized with other documents addressing similar product categories.
Some organizations are looking ahead to the development of a centralized, publicly available system for recording all existing PCRs as well as current activity in the development of new ones. Such a system facilitates the harmonization of PCRs within and across product categories, reducing the need for new PCRs in many cases and easing the process of creating harmonized PCRs when new ones are required. Ultimately, such a system furthers the overall objective of bringing environmentally preferable products to market more quickly and efficiently.
Conclusion
EPDs are an important validation tool that allows manufacturers to objectively assess the environmental sustainability of their products, while providing buyers with clear and credible information necessary to make direct product comparisons. EPDs are already widely used in other industrialized countries and recent efforts by both government and industry in the United States point to their expanded use here. In addition, buyers and product specifiers in a number of industries are increasingly demanding transparent data that supports claims of the environmental sustainability of the products they select, ensuring a growing demand for EPD-backed products.
However, the role and purpose of EPDs are not widely understood today. Further, the process of creating an ISO 14025-compliant EPD is complex, even for manufacturers already familiar with traditional conformity assessment procedures. As such, manufacturers should seek the counsel and assistance of an experienced EPD program operator early in their efforts to develop and implement a successful EPD strategy.
In the increasingly competitive marketplace for environmentally sustainable solutions, EPD-backed products better enable buyers to make objective and informed purchasing decisions. Manufacturers who offer EPD-backed products can gain important competitive advantages against producers who lack transparent environmental impact documentation, which can lead to broader market share. Finally, manufacturers who use EPDs help to create a greater public awareness of the environmental impact aspects of products, thereby contributing to global sustainability efforts.
This white paper was written independently of ECO-STRUCTURE by UL Environment. UL Environment seeks to support the growth and development of sustianable products and services through standards development, educational services, and independent third-party assessment and certification. UL and the UL logo are trademarks of Underwriters Laboratories Inc. © 2011. No portion of this document may be copied or transmitted without the written permission of Underwriters Laboratories Inc. To learn more about EPDS, the EPD program operator, or the PCR creation progress, or to request a PDF copy of this white paper, contact UL at epd@ulenvironment.com
Footnotes
1 Internal study conducted by MindClick, SGM on behalf of UL Environment, Inc. in October 2011
2 “Le Grenelle Environnement” (in French), Afnor Groupe, http://www.afnor.org/profils/centre-d-interet/environnement/focus/le-grenelle-environnement, (last accessed on Sept. 23, 2011)
3 “BREEAM,” GreenBookLive, http://www.greenbooklive.com (last accessed on Sept. 23, 2011)
4 “Sustainability Ratings,” The Future Build.Com, http://www.thefuturebuild.com/rating/page.html (last accessed on Sept. 23, 2011)
5 “Executive Order: Federal Leadership in Environmental, Energy, and Economic Performance,” The White House, October 2009, http://www.whitehouse.gov/assets/documents/2009fedleader_eo_rel.pdf (last accessed on Sept. 10, 2011)
6 “Executive Order 13514: Sustainability and Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduction,” Congressional Research Service, December 2009, http://www.cnie.org/NLE/CRSreports/10Jan/R40974.pdf (last accessed on Sept. 10, 2011)