Course: GFM 101 Fundamentals of Green Facilities Management

Reading

(3/4)
Continued Reading of Evaluating and Selecting Green Products Can Be As Easy (or As Difficult) As You Make It

Please click on the links as they are part of the reading assignment.

Users should understand some of the current limitations of LCA, which include the following:

- There is no single standard for LCA methodology; a few different organizations have developed their own protocols (see "Additional Resources—Life-Cycle Assessment Tools" for examples). The LCA methodologies are often complex, and may include weighting factors that can be adjusted by the user.
- Complete and accurate life cycle data on materials is very difficult to obtain, and is often unavailable or incomplete for many material types. LCA data from different studies may use different methodologies, or may be based on significantly different data sets.
- Some LCA models are based on broad material types (e.g., steel framing, brick, nylon carpets), which rely upon industry averages, while others attempt to compare specific products available from different manufacturers.
- Most LCA models have been developed to compare the environmental impacts of different materials. The models do not typically include sustainability goals, or other suggested criteria to improve the environmental performance of a given material type.

LCA should not be confused with Life-Cycle Cost Analysis (LCCA), although LCCA can be an integral part of a full life-cycle assessment. Life-Cycle Cost Analysis, which can take into consideration environmental costs, is explained in detail in a separate Resource Page of the WBDG.

Green Building Rating Systems

Green Building Rating Systems establish overall environmental performance criteria for entire buildings. In the U.S., the one national green building-rating system is Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC).

The current LEED program (Version 2.1) is available online, with detailed support documents and training available from the USGBC. Among its 5 major topics (Sustainable Sites, Water Efficiency, Energy and Atmosphere, Materials and Resources, Indoor Environmental Quality), the LEED® program includes criteria for the following green building material types: reused materials, recycled-content materials, local/regional materials, rapidly renewable materials, certified wood, and low-emitting materials.

Green Product Standards

To consistently assure the environmental performance of certain material types, several public agencies and private organizations have developed green product standards. These standards define the specific green criteria for various material types. In some cases, a trademarked "green" label can be used for complying products.

Green product standards can range from government regulations and guidelines (e.g., the EPA Comprehensive Procurement Guidelines for recycled content in products) to industry guidelines (The Carpet and Rug Institute's Green Label program for Carpets), to third party certification standards (e.g., Green Seal standards for paints, FSC standards for wood products). Because of the detailed criteria spelled out in green product standards, many of them can also assist in the development of project specifications (see Specification Guidelines section below).

While green product standards outline important criteria for different material types, they typically do not review the performance and variations of individual products from specific manufacturers. Some green product standards, however, do include lists of sample products or manufacturers that meet their criteria.