The Environmental Product Declaration

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With consumer awareness rising in regard to the environmental impact of companies and how they operate, an Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) is quickly becoming the standard reference document for credible claims of the positive environmental aspects in the production of goods or services.

An EPD is a voluntarily declared document that outlines the environmental performance or impact of a product for its entire lifetime. It is based on the International Standards Organization (ISO) 14025.

In this exclusive Pallet Central Enterprises post, we’ll take a deeper dive into EPD’s and their history to learn about their origin and how they relate to the environmental claims of the wood pallet industry.

The Modern EPD

The EPD is based on the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of a product. Since the EPD is treated as an impartial and comparable document it needs to be verified by an independent authority.

Basically, the goal is to encourage the use of products that have a proven positive environmental impact through their use. A credible EPD is subject to third-party verification by an outside entity that has no affiliation with the company or association seeking to verify the statements in the EPD as factual.

The Life Cycle Assessment is a detailed document and will likely contain information and data related to the product and its use during standard operations or processes that are a part of its “lifecycle”. The EPD is a shortened version of the LCA report that’s easier to read and digest in terms of the information given.

The Pallet Foundation and The National Wooden Pallet & Container Association have developed an EPD for wooden pallets in the United States. The goal is to provide any interested parties with transparent environmental information and data about the products. This is the first EPD for a product related to the distribution packaging space.

The EPD includes data from the Life Cycle Assessment of wooden pallets for the entire time period between initial production of a pallet to its end of life. The EPD is as per international standards (ISO 14025) and has been verified by the independent third-party organization, Underwriters Laboratory (UL) and their environmental EPD program.

It has been known for decades that wooden pallets can be repaired, reused, and are biodegradable. But the wooden pallet EPD has made the positive environmental attributes a verifiable fact that will assist any company that ships products on pallets to utilize the information and data for sustainability initiatives they may have planned.

Environmental Product Declaration-Origin

The studies related to the environmental impact of consumer products originated in the 1960s and 1970s. These preliminary studies focused on emission and waste generation, along with resource requirements.

However, these studies were the first attempts at life cycle assessment documents and were prepared by using multiple approaches. The challenge was that there was a lack of a common framework, so the studies were questioned for veracity and credibility.

Since 1994, the International Standard for Organization (ISO) has been involved in the standardization of the procedures related to the making of an LCA. The traditional LCA was also modified to prepare a LifeCycle Sustainability Analysis Report.

As environmental concerns kept growing in the last few decades, buyers and consumers wanted a reliable and easy to interpret validation tool for products. Such a document helps them to make informed purchasing choices regarding the environmental sustainability of a product. This resulted in the development of an EPD.

The ISO 14025 is an internationally agreed upon standard that specifies the guidelines for creating a Type III environmental declaration program. This mutual agremeent made it easier to develop a standardized document that facilitates communication of relevant data and information. Based on the standard, the International EPD System was set up in 1998 by the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA)

In the USA, the US Environmental Protection Agency began promoting the use of LCAs. Today, various private organizations have started using EPDs to simplify the complex data captured in a Life Cycle Assessment and make it more reader and user-friendly.

The Documents in an EPD Process

To understand the documents needed for developing an EPD, we need to take a look at the basic steps of preparing an EPD.

  • The first step is to find the right product category rule (PCR). This is the primary document that defines the scope of the life cycle assessment (LCA). It also underlines the potential impacts of the product that is to be studied.
  • In the next stage, a more comprehensive Life Cycle Assessment is prepared to understand the environmental impacts of the product. The study required for preparing the LCA is done in-house or by an experienced consultant.
  • The EPD is prepared by collecting the necessary information from the LCA. The EPD should be accurate and verifiable, and will not present a direct comparison with any other products.
  • The EPD is verified by an approved third party as per the international standards. A verifier can be an accredited certification body or an approved individual. In addition, a standardized EPD calculation tool can also be “pre-verified.”
  • The final stage is the registration and publication of the EPD in the public domain for review.

In essence, the main document needed to prepare the EPD is the LCA. The EPD can be termed as a disclosure tool that helps in comparing various products, even though it contains comparison data in itself.

EPD Benefits

One of the major benefits of a verified EPD is that it allows a buyer, whether a business or consumer, to make informed choices that are inline with their beliefs or mission. It also ensures that clear information about the quality of the product and its economic value is available to review for anyone interested.

Secondly, the EPD ensures the ability of a manufacturer to produce within the specified guidelines of environmental sustainability. It’s also an effective tool for verifying environmental compliance and meeting regulations.

From an economic point of view, the EPD can help a business to optimize its sustainability planning and initiatives. The company can also utilize an EPD as a guideline to improve the environmental performance of a product or process over time.

In addition, businesses that undertake sustainability initiatives in any of their operations, like the supply chain, understand that an EPD is an effective communication and marketing tool that separates their products from the competitors and promotes higher visibility.

Sustainability Initiatives for Companies and Industries

For analyzing the environmental impact of a product and taking sustainability initiatives, it’s important to evaluate its life cycle from every angle. An EPD not only addresses the sustainability concerns, it can enhance the overall credibility of those initiatives for the business.

An EPD provides a comprehensive study of the product that is transparent and verified. This helps to make the right choices with regard to materials that have a minimal environmental impact.

Additionally, the reduction in waste generation and minimization of a companies carbon footprint is an important value added to the use of products like wood pallets that are recyclable and derived from a renewable resource.

Pallet Central Enterprises has extensive experience in supply chain operations that utilize wood pallets for transporting goods. Our services include management of pallet programs for companies that range from single facility to multiple facilities spread out across North America. Our staff would be happy to help your company develop a pallet management plan that fits within your sustainability goals and helps drive costs down. Give us a call and let’s find out how green it can get.

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