Amid a crowded landscape of eco-labels and claims, Environmental Product Declarations have emerged as a tool for seeing a product’s life-cycle impact in full disclosure.
If Greenbuild 2011 was any indication, transparency is the hot new topic in the green building industry. This buzzword was flying all around the convention center filled with building product manufacturers, architects, designers, specifiers and building owner/occupiers. Recently, it appeared in a new LEED pilot credit and was seen in the second draft release of LEED 2012. And all signs indicate that it is here to stay.
However, for many, the meaning behind transparency is vague, and the path to achieving transparency is even more unclear.