consequences
tempted by the truth, bitten by theThe world of Controlled Transparency,
and how what you don’t know 
can hurt you.

creating better environments

ecotoxicity
thetruthnotincluded

human toxicity

truthtemptedbythe 

Remember asbestos,lead-based paintand urea-formaldehyde
foam insulationand the healthconsequence of theseproducts?

Toxicity inbuilding
products:
the untold story
What you don’t know today
can hurt you tomorrow
Today’s architects and facilities
managers are bombarded withmore product information thanever before. Does this mean they
have the complete truth about
the building products theyspecify?
We believe the answer is no, orat least not yet.
Fortunately, a solution is being
developed that will turn today’s“controlled” transparency
about product hazards into fulland free disclosure. This change
will come when the building
products industry has thefortitude to stop ignoring
two vital environmental
impact categories :
ecotoxicity & human toxicity.

A promising first step
To its credit, the green building industry
has already made some progress toward
avoiding the consequences of “controlled”
transparency. Manufacturers are now inthe process of moving past attributebased point systems like the current
and past versions of LEED (and all thegreenwashing we’ve witnessed) toward
the use of the Environmental ProductDeclaration (EPD). An EPD gives
decision makers a set of specific facts
about a building product, in the same
way a nutrition label informs us about thefat and cholesterol in the foods we eat.
Unfortunately, there are serious omissions
in the data found on most EPDs. They
ignore two critical issues: the impact ofproducts on the health of humans andtheir environment.
An Inconvenient Truth...
Ecotoxicity and human toxicity measures
are absent from the current flooring
Product Category Rules (PCRs) thattoday’s EPDs are based on. This is no
accident, and it is as serious as omitting
fat and cholesterol from a junk foodnutrition label. Some building products
manufacturers don’t want to create full,objective and transparent standards that
disclose how their products affect living
things. Instead, they’ve chosen tosidestep the issue of toxicity by citing
disputes over measurement
methodology. The fact is, they would
simply prefer to ignore product toxicity
issues instead of dealing with them. . .
and they hope you will ignore them, too...and its Consequences for you,and for all of us
To see the potential consequences of thisrationale, simply look back at the building
products industry’s history. Remember
asbestos, lead-based paint andurea-formaldehyde foam insulation?
The health consequence of theseproducts, once considered perfectly
safe, has been tragic. The financial
consequences connected withabatement have been equally disastrous.
We believe that greater candor now
can help make future tragedies likethese far more avoidable.

HPD to the rescue
There is clearly a need for a newstandard product declaration thatfully discloses the impact of a
product on all living things, frompeople and plants to bugs andbacteria. In response to this need,
we have joined a group of leadingarchitects, building managers andproduct manufacturers who areworking together to create a whole
new standard. The new Health
Product Declaration (HPD) willcomplement the existing measures inthe EPD with use phase ecotoxicity
and human toxicity data, creating areport that gives a clearer, moreconsistent picture of a product’s trueenvironmental impact. We eagerly
await the day when the HPD will be
the building industry’s de facto
standard, and when decision makers
can know all the ways a building’s

contents will impact the people
who live or work in it.
Toward transparency:
what the industry must do
The most important breakthroughof all needs to happen in the hearts
and minds of our green building
colleagues. Everyone in the building
products industry, from architects
and specifiers to construction
professionals, building managers andproduct manufacturers, will needa change in mindset. This new
perspective asks us to consider all
the ways a product can contributeto a healthier environment.
• Is it sourced from sustainablematerials?
• Is it designed to minimize
construction waste?
• Does it emit compounds thatmight impact human health?

• Are excessive amounts of energy
or scarce raw materials usedin its creation?
• Can it be safely removed andnaturally recycled at the endof its working life?
• Will its performance attributes
contribute to a moreenergy efficient, healthyliving space?
In short, we must move fromproducts with sustainable attributes
meant to contribute to “points” andstrive to create truly sustainableproducts. Until we adopt a more
holistic and fundamentally
health-centered way of looking at
what goes into a building, we run
the risk of perpetuating the toxicity
that has been a regrettable part of life
in past generations.
This goal is well worth striving for.

HPD: the missing capstone of a complete declaration program

HPD

Ecotoxicity

Health Product Declaration

EPD
Environmental
Product Declaration

Human ToxicityAbiotic Depletion
Embodied Energy
Acidification potential
Eutrophication potential
Global Warming potential
Ozone Layer Depletion potential

Ecotoxicity – the potential for biological,
chemical or physicalstressors to adversely affect ecosystems
Human Toxicity – the likelihood ofan environmental toxicant to have an
adverse effect on human health
Abiotic Depletion – consumption of
non-renewable resources (oil, gas, coal,metals, etc.)
Embodied Energy – total energy expended
on sustaining a product through its

Photochemical Ozone Creation potential
complete life cycle, from raw material
extraction through manufacturing,transport and disposal at end of life
Acidification potential – the potential forthe product to contribute to acid rain
Eutrophication potential – the product’s
contribution to water or soil
nutrients that cause algal blooms

Global Warming potential – emissions ofcarbon dioxide or methanethat affect the earth’s atmosphereOzone Layer Depletion potential –reduction in environmental ozone
cause by chlorofluorocarbon emissions
Photochemical Ozone Creation potential –contributions to smog
caused by hydrocarbon emissions

environmental commitment

Compliance Plus –the Forbo Commitment
The new Health ProductDeclaration (HPD) reporting
standard is still in development,
but Forbo has decided not to wait.
We are introducing a new editionof EPD documents on our flooringproducts at Greenbuild 2012, andeach contains information on allphases of their LCAs including an
addendum that approximates thenew HPD standard as closely as it
possibly can.
This willingness to go
beyond government regulations
and requirements is part of along-standing Forbo commitment
we call Compliance Plus. It’s aninitiative that includes sharing
complete Life Cycle Assessment (LCA)
data with our stakeholders.
LCAs allow decision-makers like you tosustain
assess our products’ environmental
impact from beginning to end...
from extraction of its raw materials
to safe recycling of the product after
its useful life is over. Complete
transparency is our goal, both in ourown products and as an advocate in
our industry worldwide. It’s all a partof striving for the highest standard:
the ultimate betterment of theenvironment in which our products
exist, and the best possible outcome
for the people, plants and animals
with which they live.

The task is yours, and the time
is now. At stake: the future of
our industry, and the health ofgenerations to comeThe people of Forbo believe thatsustainability and environmental
stewardship shouldn’t wait. We also
believe they shouldn’t cost more.
We act on this belief by creatingproducts that improve yourenvironment, while also improving
your bottom line. The real
profit comes in the next fiscal
quarter, and in the lives of ourchildren and grandchildren.
Join us in this quest to make adifference. Learn more by visiting
our web site at :www.forboflooringna.com/Environment/truth

creating better environments

Forbo Flooring Systems is the global market
leader in commercial floor covering solutions.
Marmoleum, our flagship brand, owns a global
linoleum market share of over 60%, while Flotex
dominates the rapidly growing flocked flooringmarket with over 90% global market share.
In addition to linoleum-based products, Forbodevelops, manufactures and markets a diversity ofhigh quality vinyl and textile floor coverings andCoral & Nuway entrance system solutions.

North American Headquarters
Forbo Flooring Systems
8 Maplewood Drive
Humboldt Industrial Park
Hazleton, PA 18202
T: 1-800-842-7839
570-459-0771
F: 570-450-0258
email: info.na@forbo.com
www.forboflooringNA.com
www.floorcostcomparison.com
CanadaForbo Flooring Systems
3220 Orlando Drive
Mississauga, ON L4V 1R5
T: 1-866-661-2351
416-661-2351
F: 416-661-5362
email: info.na@forbo.com
www.forboflooringNA.com
www.floorcostcomparison.com

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