Andrew Eagles, CEO of the New Zealand Green Building Council (NZGBC) and thinkstep-anz CEO Barbara Nebel discuss in this webinar why EPDs are becoming more important for the building and construction industry.
• The built environment is responsible for about 20 percent of Aotearoa New Zealand’s overall carbon emissions. Embodied carbon emissions stem from the materials and products a building is made from.
• An EPD is a certified, independently verified assessment of the environmental impact of a product and is widely recognised by industry and governments
• New Zealand’s Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) is planning to introduce mandatory disclosure of embodied carbon for new buildings from 2024/25, followed by a phased introduction of carbon emissions caps for new buildings.
• MBIE will recognise EPDs as the most desirable quality of data, followed by sector-level EPDs for industry associations.
• Embodied carbon information will soon be required to receive a NZGBC 6 Homestar or above certification. EPDs will be key to getting accurate data.
• Carbon calculators are likely to advantage products with an EPD. Products without an EPD will fall under ‘average data’ (lower quality data that will gain lower scores).
• An EPD gives designers, specifiers, building code officials, and prospective house owners solid information so they can decarbonise the built environment.