Approved Documentation for the California Department of Public Health General Emissions Evaluation

I've been having a lot of good luck with this credit since adopting v4.1.  Greenguard Gold is a good place to start, and all of those certificates can be found on the UL Spot database website.  If the products are from a European firm for example, a lot of times they will be tested for emissions under a similar but different standard, such as GEV.  There's also usually at least one compliant product for every use.  Any specific products you're really struggling with?  

Here are the requirements for Low Emitting test report certificates, as explained to me by a GBCI reviewing supervisor:

1. Name on certificate must match the name input in the calculator exactly

2. Check the expiration date on the certificate. If it has expired, the product will not count. (UL Spot does not purge expired certificates)

3. Modeling scenario for testing must match the building type

4. Certificate must include total TVOC amounts for that product

Good luck!

Cynthia - the list is great. Thanks for sharing. Question on the expiration date. Do you know if there a threshold for when the report needs to be current (non-expired)? For example, does the date need to be current based on when the project is submitted to the GBCI or the date the project reached substantial completion during construction?

Sometimes submitting a project for a LEED review lags way behind construction being completed. I could see a situation that the project uses a product with a non-expired certificate during construction, but by the time the project is submitted to LEED the certificate may have expired and the manufacturer may or may not have renewed it. 

I asked that very same question at Greenbuild during one of the sessions.  They are cognizant of that reality and if the documentation was valid at the start of construction, they will accept it was the answer I got.  That being said, almost all of the expired documentation I have seen, newer renewed copies are available.

Hi Cynthia,

Thanks for the insight from GBCI!

Regarding your point about UL SPOT, certificates that are 90 days past their expiration dates are removed from UL SPOT product pages.  To DuWayne's point, we are constantly updating our records as new testing data or documentation is received, and work to keep outdated certificates to an absolute minimum.  If you ever have any questions about certificate validity or content, our team (environment@ul.com) would be happy to help you out. 

correspondence recieved from GBCI today:

"For manufacturer claims, we typically allow a test dated about 5 years prior to the project’s construction period. For third-party certificates, the certification period must overlap with the project’s construction period." 

Thought I would post to help supplement an already excellent forum post!

Thanks all!!

Scott, thank you for posting in this forum.

I just thought that I would suggest that UL leave the expired certificates up for longer than 90 days.  As DuWayne said, I also have been told by a GBCI reviewer that the certificate only has to overlap with the beginning of construction.  In the work that I do as a LEED Consultant / Administrator, I am sometimes looking for CDPH's for a project that began construction more than 2 years ago!

Hi Gregor,

Thanks for the feedback. To DuWayne's point, the majority of certificates are renewed frequently and remain on the SPOT database for downloading.  For those certificates that are removed, the product page will remain up on SPOT for a longer period for reference.  In those relatively rare cases it is most helpful to reach out to the manufacturer or to us to inquire about their status.  It may also be helpful to front-load your certificate search early in the construction process and save the certificate PDFs when possible.

Hello, I would like to get your input via the informatino I saw on a recognized lab for CDPH testing:

This informal policy changed on November 9, 2020 with the publication by USGBC of an Addenda to LEED v4.1 Interior Design and Construction. A revision to the VOC Emissions Evaluation section of LEED v4.1 ID&C now requires that LEM documentation be less than three years old. In an email, Shraddha Marathe, Senior Manager – Technical Customer Service at USGBC, confirmed this change and further clarified that the policy applies to projects registered subsequently to the publication of the addenda. Additionally, she stated that the dates of the documentation should represent the product as installed on the project, i.e., the three-year validity period is from the testing date to the date the product is installed. Although previously registered projects are officially exempt, Shaddha additionally explained that USGBC is strongly encouraging that LEM documentation for all LEED projects be less than three years old.

Has a manufacturer, it means a huge investements to have all certificates renew every 2 years vs 5 years. Is anyone have other information from USGBC ?

Regarding the requirements for Low Emitting test report certificates, as explained to me by a GBCI reviewing supervisor, I noticed that the testing standard reference (CDPH Standard method V1.2-2017 or V1.0-2010) was not listed. I recieved a GreenGuard Gold certificate for IPEX System 15 (one stpe med body), the certicate period is valid, is GGG, but it states that "the product was tested with UL 2821 test method on UL2818. Section 7.1 and 7.2" and on the second page of the certificate it provides the TVOC concentrations of GreenGuard Gold as specified in CDPH Standard V1.2. My question is if it does not state it was teste in accordance to CDPH standard method is the certificate valid? 

Hi Suzanne,

Thanks for bringing this to our attention.  This certificate should have the CDPH criteria listed as it was tested in compliance with CDPH.  It has been updated, so please re-download from the SPOT product page. 

Thank you