"These EPDs are an exciting step forward for our industry as they will help demonstrate to users the strong environmental credentials of timber and allow it to be compared like-for-like with other construction products," commented Stephen Mitchell, TDA’s Sustainability Programme Manager. "EPDs will also benefit timber consumers as it will be easier to get credit for using timber in projects seeking a rating under systems such as Green Star."
The EPDs will be useful for developers and designers applying for credits in the Product Transparency and Sustainability section in the soon to be released Green Star - Design & As Built rating tool of the Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA). The EPDs will also be useful for claiming credits in the Materials Life Cycle Impacts section as well as via Innovation Challenges in current tools.
The Australian timber industry is supporting development of the EPDs through Forest and Wood Products Australia (FWPA). The EPDs themselves will draw on FWPA’s earlier sponsored study, Life Cycle Inventory of Australian Forestry and Wood Products. "This project demonstrates the ongoing commitment of the Australian timber industry to sustainability", commented Ric Sinclair, Managing Director of FWPA, "and I am delighted to see that our past work will now be a source of commercial benefit for our members."
Declarations will be produced for sawn hardwood and softwood, particleboard, MDF, plywood and veneered boards. Each declaration will show average environmental performance across Australia – rather than the performance of a specific process – an approach designed to benefit small and large producers alike.
An EPD is a standardised and verified way of quantifying the environmental impacts of a product based on a consistent set of rules that have been developed through a stakeholder consultation process. These impacts are based on the product’s consumption of raw materials and energy, waste generation, and emissions to air, soil and water over its full life cycle.
The Timber Development Association (TDA) is a non-profit industry association representing all segments of the timber industry in Australia, from import, manufacture to supply.
