The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is seeking public input on the draft approach for implementing the Label Program for Low Embodied Carbon Construction Materials, part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda.
The new $100 million program aims to cut climate pollution linked to the manufacturing of construction products and materials by helping to define what constitutes “clean” construction materials. According to the EPA announcement, the draft approach “proposes to standardize and improve the data that manufacturers use in developing Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs), which disclose products’ key environmental impacts. It also proposes a process by which EPA would use data from EPDs and other sources to set thresholds for the amount of embodied carbon a product can have, relative to similar products, to qualify for the low embodied carbon label. The final phase of the draft approach is for the program to certify materials and products and to create a central registry of certified products.”
The program is in support of the Biden-Harris Administration’s Federal Buy Clean Initiative, which leverages the federal government’s power as the world’s largest purchaser to spur demand for low-emissions manufacturing.
EPA developed the draft approach for the label program with input from stakeholders, including the Federal Highway Administration in the Department of Transportation, the General Services Administration, other federal agencies, and members of the public who responded to a Request for Information that EPA published last year.
New EPA Webpage on Product Category Rule
EPA has also published a new webpage that provides information on the product category rule (PCR) standards in which the U.S. government is participating. This participation is in support of the cleaner construction materials labeling program.
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For updates on these efforts, stakeholders can sign up for the EPA Environmentally Preferable Purchasing listserv.
