In the growing push toward sustainable and transparent building practices, two acronyms frequently arise: EPD (Environmental Product Declaration) and HPD (Health Product Declaration). While both declarations aim to provide crucial information about products, their focus areas differ significantly. Understanding the difference between the two is essential for architects, engineers, and sustainability professionals striving to make informed material choices for healthier and environmentally friendly buildings.
What is an EPD?
An Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) provides quantifiable data on the environmental impact of a product over its entire life cycle. It covers stages such as raw material extraction, manufacturing, transportation, use, and disposal. An EPD follows international standards, like ISO 14025 and EN 15804, and focuses on environmental factors like global warming potential, energy consumption, water usage, and pollution generated throughout a product’s life cycle. It is especially useful for products involved in green building certifications like LEED and BREEAM.
The primary purpose of an EPD is to offer transparency about a product’s environmental footprint, helping stakeholders choose products with reduced environmental impacts.
What is an HPD?
A Health Product Declaration (HPD), on the other hand, is a standardized document that focuses on the health impacts of materials used in a product. It discloses the ingredients in a product, identifying chemicals of concern and evaluating potential health risks associated with exposure. The HPD is aligned with standards like the Health Product Declaration Open Standard and is often used to meet the requirements of green building standards focused on occupant health and well-being, such as the WELL Building Standard.
HPDs provide insight into whether a product contains substances that may impact human health, such as carcinogens, reproductive toxins, or allergens.
Key Differences
While both EPD and HPD offer critical information about products, their focus areas are distinct. An EPD provides a broader environmental impact assessment, covering the entire life cycle, whereas an HPD zooms in on material health and safety, analyzing potential health risks associated with the product’s ingredients.
For a truly sustainable project, both declarations should be considered together, balancing environmental impacts with human health considerations.