Environmental product declarations and life cycle assessments: A comparative analysis

As the building sector works towards sustainability, professionals often come across a range of complex tools and frameworks, including Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) and Life Cycle Assessments (LCAs). These tools are crucial for evaluating and conveying the environmental impact of products and services. However, despite their importance, the differences between EPDs and LCAs are not always fully understood.

Environmental Product Declarations and Life Cycle Assessments: A Comparative Analysis explains the distinctions, similarities, and roles of both of these valuable tools in sustainable building design. Life Cycle Assessments provide a comprehensive analysis of a product’s environmental impact across its entire life cycle—from raw material extraction to disposal. In comparison, Environmental Product Declarations serve as standardised, third-party verified documents that summarise a product's environmental performance. Though they both provide valuable insights, EPDs and LCAs differ and complement each other in several key ways, including how they can be used by architects and specifiers.

Siniat's recent publication of EPDs for their plasterboard and metal products highlights the importance of transparent, verified environmental data in the building industry. Registered with EPD Australasia, these EPDs comply with ISO 14025 and the International EPD® System, ensuring they meet international standards. This provides customers with reliable, comparable environmental information about the life cycle impacts of Siniat’s products.

Download this whitepaper to understand the distinctions, similarities, and roles of both of these valuable tools in sustainable building design.