Growth of EPDs and PCRs

The year 2023 confirmed the trend already started in the past years, confirming the strong growth in the number of Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) published by the Italian Program Operator EPDItaly. There are many reasons that stimulate more and more companies to want to measure and communicate in an objective and verified way the environmental impacts of their products/services, and in particular, in the construction world, the main drivers are the following:

• Sustainability protocols for works that give access to higher scores if products with the Environmental Product Declaration are used (e.g., Envision for Infrastructure and LEED for Buildings).
• The gradually increasing application at the national level of Green Public Procurement through the implementation of CAM (Minimum Environmental Criteria) ministerial decrees that refer to EPD as a means of verification regarding certain aspects of sustainability, first and foremost the content in products of recycled, recovered, by-product materials.
• The procurement policies of some major players that reward and value products with EPDs.

More generally, in addition to the aforementioned aspects, we believe that the main growth driver of Type III environmental labels (EPDs) is precisely the fact that there is now a growing awareness that EPDs are an excellent, internationally recognized tool for effective communication, based on scientific methodologies, about the impacts that products and services have on the planet during their life cycle (LCA).

Analyzing in detail the EPDs published as of June 1, 2024, we can say that the 542 EPDs cover as many as 91 different types of products/services, and 307 EPDs (57%) comply with EN 15804, i.e., the standard that provides framework rules by product category (PCR) for the development of Environmental Product and Service Declarations for construction. 214 (39%) comply with EN 50693: product category rules for life cycle analysis of electrical and electronic products and systems; while the remaining 21 (4%) fall under other product/service types.

495 EPDs (91%) were published as a result of direct verification by Verification/Validation Body accredited for EPDItaly while 47 were able to enjoy publication thanks to bilateral mutual recognition agreements signed between EPDItaly and Program Operators from other countries.

Thanks to the various international agreements signed in recent years, front-line participation in the Board of the European Association ECO Platform, and the availability of a vast number of Product Category Rules (PCRs), especially in strategic emerging sectors, EPDItaly publishes EPDs of products from more than 20 countries worldwide.

PCRs are also growing

Parallel to the growth of EPDs, there is an exponential increase in PCRs, developed to establish common rules for creating EPDs belonging to the same product category. As of June 1, 2024, 39 PCRs have been published and 3 more are being developed or updated.

Among the latest publications, the new PCR transposed by EPDNorge on packaging products and services, a growing sector in the field of sustainability, stands out. This transposition is the result of mutual recognition agreements with other Program Operators, ensuring that EPDs published on EPDItaly are disseminated on an international scale.

Also among the latest innovations is the new CORE PCR for agricultural or forestry machinery, developed in collaboration with Agricooltur SPA, a company that designs and develops patented systems for aeroponic cultivation. Agricooltur SPA revisits traditional agriculture through a more sustainable approach, creating new consumption patterns.

The scope of this PCR includes all items defined in UN CPC 441 product category: agricultural or forestry machinery and parts thereof. It excludes, however, machinery not used for agricultural or forestry purposes and not included in CPC 441, such as mining, food and beverage processing, and textile machinery. Also excluded are “their parts” understood to be accessories added to the main machinery, e.g., plows and harrows (accessories without their own engine).

EPDItaly/ICMQ, always attentive to the needs of the market, is available with its technicians to evaluate possible future collaborations. The continued growth of EPDs and PCRs is a positive sign of companies’ ongoing commitment to environmental sustainability and transparency in reporting the environmental impacts of their products and services.