C5.8: Support Transparency and Safer Chemistry

(1-5 points)

INTENT

Decrease harmful health and environmental impacts and encourage the use of safer alternatives by promoting the use of materials with available chemical inventories, life-cycle information, and hazard assessments.

REQUIREMENTS*

This credit applies to all of the following product categories and must meet at least one of the four options listed below:

• Decking, railing, fencing, trellises, or lattices (wood and non-wood)
• Pipes, hoses, and irrigation components
• Conduit, wiring, and electrical equipment
• Lighting
• Membranes, liners, and geotextiles
• Fabrics and canvas
• Extruded, spray, or board foams
• Paints and coatings
• Adhesives, sealants, elastomers (e.g., flexible plastics), water proofing, weather stripping, expansion joint filling, and flashing
• Synthetic surfacing materials and associated products (e.g., crumb rubber, artificial turf)

This credit excludes products that are salvaged or reused or refurbished.

Option 1: Advocate for transparency and safer chemistry (1 point)

• Submit a letter to all manufacturers for all materials specified in the product categories asking them to develop and disclose chemical inventories or conduct chemical hazard assessments according to the criteria outlined in Options 2 or 3.

Option 2: Support manufacturers that disclose material chemistry and hazards (3 points)

• Specify products for at least five percent of the total material costs (excluding products that are salvaged, reused, or refurbished) for all materials included in the product categories, from manufacturers who:
• • Develop chemical inventories covering all chemicals, whether used intentionally or otherwise known to be present, in all life cycle stages of the product
  • In cases where the compilation of a complete chemical inventory is not feasible, the inventory requirements should cover chemicals and their life cycle stages thought to present the greatest hazards to workers, consumers, the general population, and environmental species
  • Report all known hazards and their concentrations regardless of whether the chemical’s presence in the product or process is intentional. This reporting includes the identification of any impurities, byproducts, and emissions from finished products or product curing steps.

Option 3: Support manufacturers that have completed chemical hazard assessments (5 points) 

• Specify products for at least five percent of the total material costs (excluding products that are salvaged, reused, or refurbished) for all materials included in the product categories, from manufacturers who conduct chemical assessments using one of the following screening-level hazard assessment tools (see Resources section):
  • BizNGO’s Chemical Alternatives Assessment Protocol
  • GreenScreen for Safer Chemicals
  • U.S. EPA’s DfE Alternatives Assessment Criteria for Hazard Evaluation
  • U.S. EPA’s Sustainable Futures tool suite (to be used only when measured data is not available)
  • An equivalent robust hazard assessment strategy using recognized and reliable data sources.

RECOMMENDED STRATEGIES

• Use materials without finishes (e.g., dye, paint, gloss) or other chemical additives whenever possible per performance requirements.
• Utilize product certification systems (standards and ecolabels) that incentivize transparency and safer chemistry.
• Prioritize product categories based upon human and environmental risk of exposure.
• Continue open dialogue with all suppliers about your current and future projects’ transparency and safer chemistry goals and needs.