How does the new LEED (LEED version 4) provide incentive for using products with EPDs?
The USGBC is always trying to push the marketplace forward. In LEED v4, the USGBC created a credit for projects that use products meeting more environmentally comprehensive criteria than a single attribute. The goal is to reward projects for using building products sourced from manufacturers that procure their raw materials from suppliers following health, safety, and environmental standards with third-party verification. The credit calls for verification of general practices along the manufacturer supply chain, such as:
• Communication on health, safety, and environmental characteristics of chemical ingredients.
• Managing the health, safety, and environmental hazard and risk of chemical ingredients.
• Optimizing health, safety, and environmental impacts when designing and improving chemical ingredients.
Check out USGBC's website for more information.
Answers provided by Elaine Aye, a principal with Green Building Services in Portland, Ore. Aye is a LEED Fellow.
Defining Environmental Product Declaration
EPDs as Increasingly Critical Piece of Product Selection
How LEEDv4 Provides Incentive To Use EPDs
