RevisedGuidelinesontheEnvironmentalEffectivenessoftheStandards(SectionII)EPArevisedSectionIIoftheGuidelines(“EnvironmentalEffectiveness”),inresponsetopubliccomments.AsnotedintheResponsetoComments,EPAdoesnotintendtorevisetheotherGuidelinesatthistime,pendingthefinalizationofOMB’srevisionoftheCircularA‐119andlearningsfromthepilot.Itisimportanttonotethatlanguageinthissectionhasbeenchangedtomandatorylanguage(e.g.,“Thestandardrequires....”)throughoutbothBaselineandLeadershipGuidelines.However,theapplicabilityofLeadershipGuidelines,andtheprecisemethodsofconformance,willvarybyproductcategory.ToestablishconformancewithSectionIIoftheGuidelines,astandard’sorecolabel’sspecificcriteriawillbeevaluatedasagroup,ratherthanindividually.Thus,itisnotnecessaryforeverycriterioninastandardorecolabeltosatisfyeveryGuideline,solongasthestandardorecolabelasawholesatisfiesalloftherequisiteGuidelines.Forexample,notallcriterianeedtodemonstratemeasurabilityandasignificantmeasurabledifferenceperGuidelineII.2,aslongastherearecriteriathatsatisfythisGuidelineforalloftheproduct’skeyenvironmentalimpacts.Similarly,asinglecriterionmaybesufficientforastandardorecolabeltosatisfyGuidelineII.10(IngredientDisclosure);inthiscase,theothercriteriawouldnotneedtoaddressthisissue.Also,functionalperformanceissuesaregenerallybestaddressedbythepurchasingagency’sestablishedprocessesforsettingandevaluatingtechnicalrequirements.Ifitislikelythatafunctionalperformanceissuemaynotbeadequatelyaddressedthroughpurchasingagencyprocesses,functionalperformanceshouldalsobeconsideredwhenutilizingstandardsandecolabelssothatthefunctionalperformanceofconformingproductsarecomparabletoconventionalproductsorstandardindustrytestmethods.RevisedDRAFTGUIDELINESFORPRODUCTENVIRONMENTALPERFORMANCESTANDARDS&ECOLABELS#GuidelineNameGuidelineB/L*PrimaryReference**OtherReferences1AlignwithRelevantStandardsToavoidduplicationorconfusioninthemarketplace,environmentalperformancestandardsshallalignatboththematicandperformancelevelswithrelevantexistingstandards,includingbuildinguponfederal,regional,national,andinternationalstandardswhererelevanttothescopeandgoalsofthestandard.Performancealignmentreferstoperformanceequivalenttoorbetterthanrelevantexistingstandards.BISO14024;WTOTBTAnnex32MeasurabilityandSignificantMeasurableDifferenceTheproductenvironmentalperformancecriteriaaremeasurableandconveyimprovedenvironmentaloutcomesfortheenvironmentalimpact(s)addressed.Criteriashouldensurethatenvironmentalperformanceofcertifiedproductsexceedslegalminimumrequirements(whereapplicable),andexceedstheindustryaveragefortheenvironmentalattribute(s)forwhichtheproductmakesaclaim.Quantitativemeasuresarestronglypreferred,butqualitativemeasuresmaybeusedwherequantitativeapproachesareinfeasible.BISO14024FTCRevisedDRAFTGUIDELINESFORPRODUCTENVIRONMENTALPERFORMANCESTANDARDS&ECOLABELS#GuidelineNameGuidelineB/L*PrimaryReference**OtherReferences3DataQualityandReliabilityThecriteriareflectacrediblescientificreasoningprocessandreferenceandincorporateorarebasedonthebestavailablescienceandsupportingstudies.Thecriteriashouldbescientificallyandtechnicallyvalid,baseduponaccurate,reliable,andunbiasedinformation.BISO14024,ISO14044,EPAInformationQualityGuidelinesDataQualityAct,EPAScientificIntegrityPolicy4Performance‐BasedThecriteriaareperformance‐basedwhensuchcriteriamayreasonablybeusedinlieuofprescriptivecriteria.Prescriptivecriteriaareusedwhenthereisscience‐basedevidencetosupportthattheactionwillachievethedesiredoutcome.Criteriamustbesufficientlyspecificwithrespecttoadesiredperformanceoutcomeorprescriptiveoutcome.1LOMBA‐1195HotspotsWheretherearecertainlifecyclestagesorimpactsthatdominatetheoverallenvironmentaland/orhealthimpactoftheproductcategory,thosesignificantimpacts(or"hotspots")areclearlydefinedandgivengreateremphasisindifferentiatingenvironmentalperformance.Ifadditionalimpactsareaddressed,thestandardclearlyidentifiesanyknowntrade‐offsbetweenimpacts.2BISO14024;FTC6MultipleEnvironmentalImpactsStandardsdevelopersconsideredthefullrangeofenvironmentalandhumanhealthimpactsapplicabletotherelevantproductorproductsector.Exclusionofasignificantimpactisexplainedinthestandardorotherappropriate,publiclyavailabledocumentation.Theexplanationincludesscientificreasoningoftheexclusionsandaddressesthemeasurabilityoftheimpact,and/orreasoningpertainingtothestandardtothestandarddevelopmentorganization’stargetedfocusonaparticularenvironmentalmedium(ormedia).3LISO140247LifecycleStagesStandardsdevelopersconsideredallproductlifecyclestages.Exclusionofalifecyclestagewithclearimpactsisexplainedinthestandardorotherappropriate,publiclyavailabledocumentation.4Thisguidelineisnotapplicabletoprocessandproductionmethod(PPM)standards,orotherstandardsthatdonotaddresstheenvironmentalperformanceofafinishedproduct.LISO140248WeightingMethodologiesIfastandardusesmethodologiestoweightandaggregatemultipleattributesintoasinglescore,theweightingsareexplicitlydefined,andmethodologiesarewell‐documentedinthestandardandjustifiedonascientificbasiswherepossible.BISO140249IntrinsicHazardsProductenvironmentalcriteriafocusontheintrinsichazardsofchemicalsacrossthefulllifecycleoftheproduct,andrequiresafersubstituteswherepossible,consideringexistingdataandavailabilityoffunctionalalternatives(includingnon‐chemical,alternativedesign‐basedapproaches,asapplicable).5LPrinciplesofGreenChemistryRevisedDRAFTGUIDELINESFORPRODUCTENVIRONMENTALPERFORMANCESTANDARDS&ECOLABELS#GuidelineNameGuidelineB/L*PrimaryReference**OtherReferences10IngredientDisclosureThestandardrequiresmanufacturerstodiscloseingredientsinproducts(tootherbusinessesinthesupplychainand/orconsumers).6Themethodofdisclosuremayvarydependingonproductcategory.Thisguidelineisnotapplicabletoprocessandproductionmethod(PPM)standards,orotherstandardsthatdonotaddresstheenvironmentalperformanceofafinishedproduct.LPrinciplesofGreenChemistry11ImpactAssessmentDisclosureThestandardrequiresmanufacturerstodisclosetheresultsoflifecycleassessmentsandotherproductorprocessenvironmentalorhumanhealthassessmentsthathavebeenconducted.Allrelevantenvironmentalandhumanhealthimpactcategoriesareincludedinthisdisclosure.Establishedandwell‐recognizedmethodologiesareencouraged,suchasISOguidelinesforconductingLCAs.7LISO14024*B=Baseline;L=Leadership.**Whereaprimaryreferenceisnotnoted,EPAdevelopedtheguidelinebasedonEPAstakeholderlisteningsessionsand/orEPAprogramexperience/expertise.Notes:1.OMBA‐119defines"performancestandard"asastandardthatstatesrequirementsintermsofrequiredresultswithcriteriaforverifyingcompliance,butwithoutstatingthemethodsforachievingrequiredresults.Aperformancestandarddiffersfromaprescriptivestandard,whichtypicallyspecifiesdesignrequirements,forexamplematerialstobeused,howarequirementistobeachieved,orhowanitemistobefabricatedorconstructed.Unacceptablyvaguecriteriawouldincludethosestatingthatanentityshould“beinvolvedin”or“promote”anactivity,approach,orphilosophywithoutspecifyingresultingperformanceorprescriptiveoutcomes.2.Dependingontheproductandapplication,itmaybeappropriatetodevelopstandardsthataddressthosesignificantimpacts,anddonotincludeother,lessrelevant,impactsorlifecyclestages.Seedefinitionoflifecyclestagesinfootnote4.However,ifreliableevidenceisavailabletomeaningfullydifferentiatetheperformanceofthatproductbasedonadditionalenvironmentalimpactsofconcernorlifecyclestages(e.g.,packaging,energyuseinmanufacturing,etc.),standardsforgreenproductsshouldconsideraddressingthoseimpacts,aswell.Hotspotscanbeidentifiedviaconductingalifecycleassessment,orbyconsultingexisting,credibleliteratureandanalysesofsignificantimpactsavailableattheproductcategorylevel.Claimsaboutproductsmeetingenvironmentalstandardsshouldbeconsistentwiththestandard'sscopeandavoidbroadclaimsofenvironmentalperformanceifotherfactorswerenotconsideredwhenthestandardwasdeveloped(e.g.WaterSenseisclearlyaboutwater,ENERGYSTARaboutenergy,etc.).3.Whenastandarddoesnotaddressasignificantormajorenvironmentalimpact(aka“hotspot”),standardsdevelopersareencouragedtoexplainitsexclusion.Theintentistoensureclarityabouttherelevanceofenvironmentalimpactsthatmaybeincluded(orexcluded)fromthestandard.Environmentalimpactsinclude,butarenotlimitedto,humanandenvironmentaltoxicity,acidification,smog,climatechange,stratosphericozonedepletion,naturalresourcedepletion,andwaterquality.Forsimplification,environmentalimpactsalsoincludeenvironmentalaspectssuchasenergyuse,wateruse,materialuseandwastegeneration.4.Lifecyclestagesofaproductincludesourcingandprocessingofrawmaterialstomanufacturing,packaging,transportation,distribution,retailing,useoftheproduct,andend‐of‐lifemanagement(throughreuse,repair,upgrading,recycling,orsafedisposal).TheFederalgovernmentrecognizesthatlifecycleassessmentisacomplexandevolvingfieldandperformingfulllifecycleassessments(LCA)ischallengingatthistimeduetocost,accesstodata,anduncertaintiesassociatedwiththemethodologiesandtools.Also,theFederalgovernmentrecognizesthatthereareenvironmentalissuesforwhichLCAcannotadequatelyaddressimpactssuchasbiodiversityloss,landusechanges,impactstoecosystemservices,andbiogeniccarbonimpacts.Therefore,thisguidelineintendstoencouragestandardsdeveloperstouselifecyclethinkingastheydevelopcriteriaforproducts.5.Anintrinsichazardisthepotentialforharmbasedonthechemicalstructureandpropertiesthatdefineitsabilitytointeractwithbiologicalmolecules.Ahazard‐basedapproach,groundedinGreenChemistryprinciples,canreducetheuseofhazardoussubstances,andloweroverallrisktopeopleandtheenvironment.Keytothisapproachisanunderstandingofthepotentialhazardsofchemicalsinproductsandavailabilityofsaferalternatives.Generallyspeaking,“hazardouschemicals”arethosewhichhaveahumanorenvironmentaltoxicityprofilesuchthatexposuretopeopleorflora/faunaintheenvironmentcouldleadtoadversehealthimpacts.ConsistentwithGreenChemistryprinciplesandestablishedmethodsforriskassessmentandmanagement,standardsandecolabelprogramscanhelploweroverallrisktopeopleandflora/faunapresentintheenvironment.Keytothisapproachistounderstandhowthereductionofhumanandecologicalhealthhazardscancontributetooverallriskreduction.Stepscanthenbetakentodecreasethehazardsofproductingredientsthrough:ingredientsubstitution;alternativedesignapproaches;and/orreducingrelevantexposurestopeopleusingproductsorflora/faunapresentintheenvironment.Standardsandecolabelprogramsshouldalsoassessthepotentialtrade‐offsassociatedwithalternatives/substituteselsewhereinaproduct'slifecycleandimpactsonthefunctional("fitnessforuse")performanceoftheproduct.6.Theintentofthisguidelineistoencouragegreaterdisclosure,whilerecognizinganumberofchallengesindoingsoformanufacturers,includingsupplychaincomplexityandintellectualpropertyconfidentiality.Thisguidelineisnotrelevanttoproductsthatdonotincludechemicalswithknownintrinsichazards.7.Soundhumanhealthandenvironmentaldecisionsregardingthemanufacture,purchase,use,andend‐of‐lifemanagementofproductsdependonreliableandaccessibledataonthehumanhealthandenvironmentalimpactofthoseproducts.Theintentofthisguidelineistoencouragetheappropriateandvoluntarysharingofthisinformation,whenitisavailable,sothatothersmaylearnandbenefit.