About the EPD Programme

Purpose & Vision

Circular Ecology have established an EPD Operator Programme to provide verified Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) covering construction products, materials, and systems, as well as associated services, across the construction sector and beyond. The EPD Programme allows us to publish EPDs as the programme operator.

Set up in alignment with ISO 14025 on Type III Environmental Declarations, the purpose of the EPD Programme is to provide a defined process for developing high-quality EPDs at a competitive price.

The programme enables the creation, independent verification, and publication of EPDs for products and systems within the built environment.

Under this programme, participating organisations must apply the Product Category Rules (PCR) established by Circular Ecology and follow the requirements for system boundaries, data sources, impact assessment methods and EPD reporting set out in the applicable standards and programme documents.

Our EPD Operator Programme is intended for:

• Product manufacturers and suppliers in the built environment sector
• Organisations producing construction-related materials, products, or systems
• Consultants acting on behalf of manufacturers (where applicable)

Participation requires compliance with the General Programme Instructions, the applicable PCR, and verification procedures.

The programme is built on Life Cycle Assessments (LCA) principles, with EPDs providing a verified and standardised summary of LCA results. To better understand how the two relate, visit our EPDs vs LCAs: What’s the Difference? article.

Programme Documents

Click here for more information on the Circular Ecology EPD Programme documentation.

The EPD Development Process

The Circular Ecology EPD Programme follows a defined process for preparing and publishing EPDs:

1. Confirm or develop PCR
   Identify an applicable Product Category Rule (PCR). If none exists, a new PCR should be developed
2. Conduct LCA
   The EPD owner completes a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) study in accordance with the applicable PCR and all other applicable national and international standards, either internally or with an LCA practitioner
3. Prepare documentation
   The LCA report and EPD are developed using the Circular Ecology EPD Template
4. Independent verification
   An approved independent verifier reviews the LCA report and EPD against the PCR and programme requirements and completes the verification template
5. Programme review and registration
   The LCA report, EPD, and verification report are submitted to Circular Ecology for final review and assignment of a unique declaration ID
6. Publication
   The verified EPD is published on the EPD Library of the Circular Ecology website. Updates may be made as required, and each EPD remains active until expiry or withdrawal by the EPD owner

Visit the EPD Library here for a list of EPDs published under our programme, or explore the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) page for more information on the programme and process.

EPD Programme Fees

You can also visit our EPD Programme Fees page to learn more about the fee structure, including a cost breakdown for the publishing of single and multiple EPDs.

Discuss Participation in the EPD Programme

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