The Gypsum Association has released an environmental product declaration for typical 5/8-inch type X North American gypsum board. Following the standards set in the Association’s product category rules (PCR) document for North American gypsum boards, the EPD provides vital environmental performance information addressing energy consumption, water consumption, global warming, waste, air emissions and other metrics related to production. Based on this information, consumers can compare the environmental attributes of gypsum board with both gypsum-based and non-gypsum-based materials.

Steve Meima, APR, LEED Green Assoc., interim executive director of the Gypsum Association, noted, “The Gypsum Association has an ongoing commitment to environmental stewardship. The development and release of this ISO 14025 conformance, Type III, cradle-to-shipping gate EPD, demonstrates that our member companies welcome the call for transparency and objective assessment of environmental sustainability in building products.”

Type X gypsum board is most frequently specified and installed in commercial, institutional and multifamily/mixed-use facilities. Where fire-resistive systems are required, type X gypsum board is typically used. “The decision to first focus on non-residential construction materials reflects our effort to address those sectors where the most pressing demand for sustainability information presently exists,” Meima said. Next on the Association’s sustainability task list is an EPD for glass-panel products.

Gypsum Association Life Cycle Assessment Tools aid design and construction teams as they strive to meet enhanced sustainability standards set by the U.S. Green Building Council’s new LEED v4 rating system.  For example, the EPD will contribute to the LEED credit for EPDs. Option 4 of the new credit for building life-cycle impact reduction awards up to three points for demonstrating a minimized embodied environmental footprint in new construction. A previously released, Life-Cycle Assessment for Gypsum Board provides the data necessary for those credit calculations.