Environmental Product Declaration Examples

by Lauren Richardson,
Sustainability Associate at Green Badger
GBCI Pro Reviewer

Environmental product declaration examples highlighting what you need to know to ensure they are LEED compliant.

Product transparency documents have been used in Europe for several years, but they’re finally gaining some momentum in the U.S., especially due to the updated requirements in LEED version 4.1. An Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) is a standardized way of communicating the environmental impacts of a product (such as acidification, eutrophication, and global warming potential). 

Program Operators (those who work for the product manufacturer or industry association to develop EPDs), must first develop a Product Category Rule (PCR), a set of common rules. Next, they conduct a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA),  a holistic approach that nails down the total environmental impacts of a product throughout its life cycle, from cradle to grave. Finally, the information is distilled into an EPD (a more accessible version of the LCA).

What are the different types of EPDs?

Industry-Wide (Generic):

• Third-party certified 
• External verification
• The manufacturer is recognized as a participant by the program operator
• Valued as one half (1/2) of a product for purposes of credit achievement calculation in LEED v4, and 1 whole product under LEED v4.1

Product Specific Type III, Internally reviewed:

• Internally critically reviewed LCA in accordance with ISO 14071
• Conform to ISO 14025, and EN 15804 or ISO 21930
• Have at least a cradle to gate scope 
• Valued as .75 products for the purposes of credit achievement calculation in LEED v4, and 1 whole product under LEED v4.1

 Product-specific Type III Externally reviewed:

• Third-party certified 
• External verification
• Manufacturer is recognized as the participant by the program operator
• Valued as 1 whole product for purposes of credit achievement calculation under LEED v4, and 1.5 products under LEED v4.1

Who are the most common program operators?

UL, ASTM International, SCS Global Services, and NSF are the most common program operators. For ease of finding EPDs, set up an account with Green Badger. We have tens of thousands of LEED v4 and LEED 2009 compliant products for you to verify in our database while logging them automatically to your project. Our goal is to make it easy to access supporting documentation for your LEED projects. Our continually updated and expanded database offers you instant verification of thousands of green building products, making it easier for green construction projects to be built on time and on budget. Cut the time spent on LEED paperwork by over 65% so you can focus on getting your green building complete on time and on budget – not on chasing paperwork.

Just a Few Pieces of Information is all You Need

Remember, even though EPDs are many pages long, you really only need to focus on a few things that are usually on the first two pages:

• Note the Program Operator
• Ensure the EPD has not expired, or is at least current within a year of your project
• Ensure the the EPD conforms with:
  • ISO 14025 AND EN 15804
  • OR ISO 21930
• Note if it is:
  • an Industry Wide EPD (generic), 
  • a Product Specific Type III, Internally reviewed EPD, or
  • a Product-specific Type III Externally reviewed EPD (by far, the most common!)

If you have a Green Badger account, our software will guide you through these questions and ensure all the relevant information is documented.

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Environmental Product Declaration Examples

To help familiarize you with the most common EPDs, here is a sample of one from each Program Operator as well as an example of an Industry-Wide EPD.

EPD Example #1: Armstrong Flooring – Heterogeneous Sheet Flooring

EPD Example #2: Nora Systems GmbH – norament® 926, resilient floor covering

EPD Example #3: DuPont – Tyvek® Mechanically Fastened Air and Water Barrier Systems 

EPD Example #4: PPG Architectural Finishes – Comex Ultralastik, EFM-104 and EFM-105

EPD Example #5: Gypsum Association – Glass-mat gypsum board

With Industry-Wide EPDs, the manufacturer is recognized as a participant by the program operator. As you can see below, this EPD is from the Gypsum Association, and anyone from North America who is a member can claim this for their product.

Good luck and happy LEED EPD hunting! Now that you’re an expert in finding LEED EPDs, check out our blog post for how to find compliant Health Product Declarations (HPDs) too.