The International Organization for Standardization has published a new standard to clarify types of environmental labels used to designate potentially harmful products. ISO 14025:2006, "Environmental labels and declarations—Type III environmental declarations—Principles and procedures" will allow users to compare similar products based on their environmental effect.

“ISO 14025 is expected to play a role in national and regional eco-label programs such as the European Union Integrated Product Policy, and provides benchmarks to further develop environment product declarations (EPD),” says Stig Hirsbak, convenor of the working group that developed the standard. “It will also serve as a building block and enable all sizes of businesses to construct EPD information modules providing life-cycle information.”

ISO 14025 provides quantified environmental information about products, using predetermined parameters based on the ISO life-cycle assessment series of standards. Additional environmental information such as the effects on biodiversity, instructions and limits for efficient use, or hazard and risk assessment on human health and the environment, is given where appropriate.

For more information, visit www.iso.org/iso/en/commcentre/pressreleases/2006/Ref1020.html

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