Climate declarations were launched by the Swedish Environmental Management Council and the Swedish Environmental Research Institute in May 2007. They are operated by the Swedish non-profit global organization International EPD Consortium (IEC). IEC acts as a global network for parties interested in joining the international EPD® (Environmental Product Declaration) system.
Climate declarations are life cycle assessments with a special focus on the greenhouse gas emissions of goods and services. They follow the methodological standard of ISO 14025 for environmental declarations (Type III labels) and are reviewed and approved by an accredited third party. The climate declarations serve as a basis for comparison between products of the same product category. Like all Type III labels, the EPD system is intended mainly for business-to-business communication due to the selection of assessed products and the complexity of the reports. Under certain conditions, business-to-consumer application is also considered feasible. Up to now, 66 goods and services have been labeled with EPD climate declaration, covering a wide range of sectors, including food, waste management, appliances, and machinery. The full reports are publicly available and can be found at:
Feb 2010