RT Environmental Declaration

In the Environmental Declaration environmental impacts are itemised under purchase of raw materials and production. Those impacts include, e.g., use of energy, emissions into the air and water and use of natural resources. The reference in comparisons of alternative building components should be the functional unit of the end product or building. However, the assessment of the whole building is not obligatory unless essential with respect to the choices.

Alternative building components separated from the context of the building can be compared against each other only for the purpose of the development needs of companies and industrial sectors. These types of building component comparisons should be made on the basis of the same required performance regarding the most important requirements. The impact assessment based on the eco-profiles of building products and components must be performed as part of the impact assessment of the whole building. The standard measures are not mentioned in the declarations but shall be selected for each project. The declarations neither take a direct stand on the service life of the product nor categorise products.

Environmental declarations are compiled according to the publication ”Methodology for Compiling Environmental Declarations for Building Products and Assessing Environmental Impacts of Buildings”.

The information of the declarations is available for several calculation programs, e.g.:
Skanska Oy: Ekometri
Insinööritoimisto Olof Granlund Oy: BSLCA

Other calculation programs:
Pre Consulting: SimaPro
Keskuslaboratorio KCL: KCL- ECO

PromisE
The PromisE system was developed in Finland for the environmental assessment and classification of existing buildings. In the future the system will be adapted also to new building projects. The system is designed to meet the different demands arising from three building types: apartment buildings, office buildings and retail premises. The information of the new environmental declarations can be used in PromisE. Further details about the program can be found on the Web site: (www.rakli.fi /a), (www.promiseweb.net)

The information reported in the declarations

ECO PROFILE OF THE PRODUCT
Use of resources
Use of resources includes energy and raw materials. Energy in transportation and in processes is reported as a total. It is voluntary to report those figures separately. In processing the information the energy content of the raw materials is taken into account separately if the material used as raw material is used also as fuel. The heating values of raw materials are reported separately. The figures are not included in the energy consumption of fuels used in the processes. The consumption of raw materials is calculated without water. The consumption of water is reported in the background information, but it is not marked in the public declaration.

Emissions
The emissions are divided into emissions into the air and the water and into process waste. The figures are reported as accurately as possible so that the information can be used in different comparisons. N2O-emissions and other particles are reported if there is a measurable amount of emissions. Heavy metals are listed and reported as a total if there is a measurable amount of substances. COD,BOD,Ptot and Ntot are likewise reported if there is a measurable amount.

OTHER ENVIRONMENTAL ASPECTS
The other environmental aspects focus on construction, risks, service life, service and maintenance and final disposal. The information can be given in detail. It is also possible to refer to the LifePlan files. Construction is divided into transportation, loss on site and emissions into indoor air. These figures are reported voluntarily. Information about the emission classification of building materials can be found on the Web site of the Building Information Foundation RTS, www.rts.fi. The risks are reported if the product has a safety data sheet.