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NC-v4.1 MRc4:Material Ingredients

Does Declare count as Third-Party Verified in LEED v4.1?

Adam Stoker

Consultant, Sustainability

University of Calgary

LEEDuser Basic Member

2 thumbs up

Project location :

Canada

May 13, 2020

The following credit language introduced in LEED v4.1 leaves me with some questions regarding Declare labels:

Any compliant reports above with third-party verification that includes the verification of content inventory are worth 1.5 products for credit achievement calculations.

My understanding is the process for Declare labels does not include certification, it is simply a declaration made by the manufacturer. However Declare labels (as described in the credit) are a specific compliance option within the credit.

Do products with the correct Declare labels count for 1.5 points in LEED v4.1?

Post a reply

Nadav Malin

CEO

Green Commons, LLC

LEEDuser Expert

586 thumbs up

Wed, 05/13/2020 - 17:53

Hi Adam, Third-party verification is an option for manufacturers using Declare, but it's not required. See https://living-future.org/declare/declare-about/ ILFI maintains a list of approved assessors that companies can use. If a Declare label has been third-party verified it gets a little orange seal of approval. You can filter for these in the Declare database--looks like about 60 products have it. Those are the ones that would count as 1.5 products in the LEED credit.

Adam Stoker

Consultant, Sustainability

University of Calgary

LEEDuser Basic Member

2 thumbs up

Wed, 05/13/2020 - 18:23

Thanks for the response Nadav, much appreciated. For others looking to filter the Declare database this way, the option is under 'Program' where you are able to select 'Declare + Third Party Verified'. On the individual product page it will state "Third Party Verified - Yes" and the Declare Label will include a small logo that says 'Third Party Verified' with an orange checkmark.

Anjanette Green

Owner

A Greener Space

LEEDuser Basic Member

0 thumbs up

Mon, 04/19/2021 - 17:56

I am interested in further clarification as to the topic of 3PV for Opt 1 (and Opt 2). The language (Option 1): "Any compliant reports above with third-party verification that includes the verification of content inventory are worth 1.5 products for credit achievement calculations." But it does not explicitly state that the 3PV is respective to each lable/cert program (specifically a Declare Verifier or HPD Verifier for example). This is therefore ambiguous when "third-party" is typically defined as "an organization other than the manufacturer that is not affiliated with the ingredient disclosure certificate" as per WELL Feature 07 https://v2.wellcertified.com/wellv2/en/materials/feature/7 What then does LEED recognize as a "third-party for verification of content inventory"?

Paula Melton

Editorial Director

BuildingGreen, Inc.

LEEDuser Expert

159 thumbs up

Mon, 04/19/2021 - 18:33

Hi, Anjanette! Both ILFI and HPDC have approved verifiers. Manufacturers have to use one of these approved verifiers in order to receive the 3pv stamp of approval.

Tristan Roberts

Representative

Vermont House of Representatives

LEEDuser Expert

7780 thumbs up

Tue, 04/20/2021 - 14:48

I agree with Paula, and to add, if you see a published Declare label or HPD marked as third-party verified, you can be assured that an approved verifier has been used by the manufacturer.