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It’s evident that amongst the global effort to push for more sustainable products, that it is becoming more difficult to acquire the “seal of approval” on behalf of investors, customers, and stakeholders on your product – but an Environmental Product Declaration, or EPD for short, could help with in this scenario.
An Environmental Product Declaration can help users and potential stakeholders to better understand the product they are investing or purchasing – demonstrating how an Environmental Product Declaration could help to save time when trying to illustrate the environmental impact of your product to key actors.
👉 In this article, we’ll review what an Environmental Product Declaration is, why it is important, and how your company can acquire its own Environmental Product Declaration.
An Environmental Product Declaration, often shortened as EPD, refers to the document which offers an in-depth analysis of a product’s environmental impact throughout its entire life cycle.
👉 An Environmental Product Declaration is most relevant for customers seeking to better understand the environmental impact of the product they purchased, and for key stakeholders interested in learning more about the product in the event they seek to invest in the product itself.
Usually, an Environmental Product Declaration delineates data regarding a products:
👉 In addition to this, Environmental Product Declarations often also includes the potential for a product’s emissions to be reduced on behalf of the user – such as by recycling the product or seeking to charge the battery to optimal levels.
An Environmental Product Declaration is important as it can help companies to mitigate transition risks, practice greater transparency, develop more trusting relationships with their customers and stakeholders, and comply more easily with upcoming environmental regulations.
The global push for more sustainable businesses has put undeniable pressure on companies around the world to put their best green-foot-forward on at all times – and while this is stressful, an Environmental Product Declaration could help make it easier for companies to cope with all of the unprecedented changes in the market.
Some additional benefits companies may experience when choosing to seek an Environmental Product Declaration Include:
👉 Overall, an Environmental Product Declaration can help to boost a company’s brand image, improve their supply chain management, and ultimately improve the efficiency and performance of their business.
Across the majority of the world, an Environmental Product Declaration is not required by law.
However, this doesn’t mean that singular countries will not strive to make an EPD compulsory in various regions or under specific circumstances – such as an area or region of the world making an extensive effort to reduce its environmental impact.
💡 In addition to this, the U.S. employs EPD with the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) – and although they these EPD international efforts operate on opposite sides of the pond, both protocols work to avoid the embodied carbon created by construction projects.
While an Environmental Product Declaration in most countries, regions such as the European Union have implemented the use of EPDs across the market in order to serve as a form of compliance.
Some examples of this include:
A real life example of EPD helping a company is with the construction that takes place in Nordic countries as an effort to avoid excess emissions.
Countries such as Finland and Sweden have been particularity successful with this by using products with confirmed via EPD data to help reduce the Global Warming Potential (GWP) of their construction projects. This ultimately helps to keep track of embodied carbon, keep LCA in mind, and reduce the environmental impact created by the construction sector.
For example, Finland initially measured a bitumen waterproofing membranem, used for roofing shingles, at it's standard GWP of .4 kg CO2e /kg. However, after making use of a conversion factor to better understand the true impact of these construction materials – Finland came up with 0.48 kg CO2e /kg.
💡 Overestimating the environmental impact of the materials to be used has helped countries like Finland to choose different products that not only help to reduce the total GWP value of their construction projects, but help to ensure that an EPD can be effectively pursued.
Another example referring to how EPD can help to reduce the environmental impact of the construction industry, Saint Gobain Glass benefited from EPD as it allowed the to share the environmental impacts of their raw material extraction and LCA process to develop their products candidly.
In turn, this has helped them not only to improve their EPD reports or to reduce the environmental impact of their construction projects – but has helped to make them a preferred supplier by boosting their brand reputation.
👉 Ultimately, an Environmental Product Declaration has proved useful as a way for companies to demonstrate their competence and efforts to reduce the environmental impact of their products – paving a way for them to not only adhere with new environmental regulations, but acquire other sustainability standards as well.
The difference between a Health Product Declaration (HPD) and an Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) is that a Health Product Declaration refers to how a product may impact one’s health while an Environmental Product Declaration focuses on the impact a product has on the environment.
Still, there are multiple differences between EPDs and HPDs, such as how:
👉 Despite their differences, both an Environmental Product Declaration and a Health Product Declaration are beneficial certifications for companies to acquire in order to boost the longevity and safety of their products.
| Criteria | Health Product Declaration (HPD) | Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | To disclose the health impacts of building materials and products by identifying potentially hazardous substances. | To provide a comprehensive assessment of the environmental impact of a product throughout its lifecycle. |
| Focus | Health and safety of materials used in products. | Environmental performance and sustainability of products. |
| Content | Includes information on the chemicals and substances used in a product, their health hazards, and compliance with health standards. | Includes lifecycle assessment data such as resource use, energy consumption, emissions, and environmental impacts. |
| Standardisation | Based on the Health Product Declaration Open Standard. | Based on ISO 14025 and EN 15804 standards for lifecycle assessment. |
| Target Audience | Architects, designers, builders, and consumers concerned with material health and safety. | Environmental scientists, sustainability professionals, and regulatory bodies. |
| Data Source | Manufacturer’s disclosure of ingredients and associated health information. | Lifecycle assessment (LCA) data collected from product manufacturers and standardised databases. |
| Certification | Can be self-declared by manufacturers or third-party verified. | Often requires third-party verification to ensure accuracy and reliability of data. |
| Examples of Use | Used in green building certification programs like LEED to ensure healthier indoor environments. | Used in environmental certifications like LEED, BREEAM, and other green building rating systems. |
An Environmental Product Declaration can only be acquired by conducting a relevant Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and afterwards, usually through the assistance of a third-party to develop the EPD in accordance with the results acquired from the LCA.
👉 Therefore, companies that are already committed to working with a carbon accounting company like Greenly might find it easier to develop an EPD. Although it can prove time consuming and tedious, once approved – an Environmental Product Declaration will remain valid for up to five years.
Developing an Environmental Product Declaration often requires the following:
A life cycle assessment refers to the process of determining a product or services environmental impact over the course of its life – such as from material extraction, delivery, to disposal. Taking this step can not only help your company comply with EPD, but reveal additional ways to decrease your company's current environmental footprint.
Some additional requirements for those looking to get their Environmental Product Declarations approved by the International EPD system include:
👉 Remember, having a verified EPD can also help your company to build an eco platform, more easily adhere to other auditing services such as SCS global services, and ultimately gain a competitive advantage – making the complex process of drafting an LCA report and an EPD report or EPD document worthwhile.
All in all, an Environmental Product Declaration is a great way to practice greater transparency and show the world your efforts to reduce your environmental impact. The process may seem overwhelming, but we promise – with the help of Greenly, we can make acquiring your Environmental Product Declaration and plenty of other certifications seem like a piece of cake.
If reading this article about the Environmental Product Declaration, or EPD, has made you interested in reducing your carbon emissions to further fight against climate change – Greenly can help you!
Seeking to understand how an Environmental Product Declaration, or EPD, could have an impact on your business can prove difficult to understand, but don’t worry – Greenly is here to help! Click here to book a demo and get personalised expertise on how you can start to reduce your own emissions and decrease your environmental impact.
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