THE ECC SUSTAINABILITY STANDARD
The Eco-Certified Composite (ECC) Standard (CPA 4-11) is a voluntary industry standard developed by the Composite Panel Association (CPA) for composite wood panels and finished products made with particleboard, MDF, hardboard, and engineered wood siding and trim.  The basis of the standard includes the “CPA Carbon Calculator,” a tool developed by a third party expert to assess the life cycle and carbon footprint of composite wood panels made at a particular manufacturing plant.

ECC REPLACES EPP
The ECC Sustainability Standard is the more rigorous successor to CPA’s Environmentally Preferable Product (EPP) specification and certification program. The EPP program was established in 2002 and is in wide use throughout North America today.  ECC-certified wood products will be available beginning late 2011, and the EPP program will be sunset on March 31, 2012.

COMPOSITE WOOD PANELS—GREEN BY NATURE
The North American composite panel industry is predicated on the optimal use of forestry byproducts and residuals — turning this raw material into higher value products so it’s not burned or landfilled. By their very nature, composite wood panels are among the greenest products available for architectural, construction and consumer products. It’s a great green story, but it’s not enough. Today’s architects, designers, retailers and consumers want verifiable evidence of greenness, and the ECC Sustainability Standard and Certification Program offers that assurance. Only products carrying the ECC seal are produced in a manufacturing plant or other facility that is audited and certified by the CPA.

HOW IS ECC CERTIFICATION ACHIEVED
ECC Certification is granted on an individual manufacturing plant basis, and is subject to an on-site pre-qualification audit and subsequent annual on-site audits by CPA. As a pre-requisite, only composite wood panels that meet the strict California Air Resources Board (CARB) formaldehyde emission requirements (Phase 2, NAF, ULEF or exempt) may be considered for ECC certification. Each manufacturing plant must also conform to at least 3 of 5 specific environmental criteria to qualify for ECC certification, as summarized below:

• Carbon Footprint – The plant must demonstrate that the panel’s carbon store offsets its carbon footprint cradle-to-gate as determined in kg-CO2 equivalents of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Each plant must use the “CPA Carbon Calculator” to determine if its panels perform as a carbon sink resulting in overall net carbon storage.
• Local and Renewable Resource – At least 85% of wood fiber is sourced within 250 miles of the panel plant.
• Recycled/Recovered – Use of at least 75% recycled or recovered wood fiber; OR use of at least 50% recycled or recovered wood fiber AND a minimum of 5% post-consumer wood fiber.
• Sustainability – At least 97% of wood fiber furnish is either converted into panels or re-utilized as a valued product. Non-valued products include wood residuals shipped to a landfill, material hauled away for a tipping fee as waste material, and boiler ash waste.
• Wood Sourcing – Must include assessment of 100% of wood fiber. Demonstrate conformity to one of the following: FSC Controlled Wood Standard (2008); FSC Chain of Custody Standard (2008); or SFI Fiber Sourcing Requirements (2011).

ECC VALUE ADDED CERTIFICATION
The ECC Value Added Certification program is for laminators, distributors and fabricators of finished products. It builds on ECC certification for panel products and provides an audited chain of custody so ECC-certified products can be followed right to the consumer. Value added facilities certified as ECC must demonstrate that at least 95% of the composite wood used was ECC certified; AND that at least 50% of the content of any product they laminate, distribute or fabricate is composite wood certified in accordance with the ECC Sustainability Standard.

GO GREEN AND GET CREDIT
ECC Panels LEED Credit Eligibility:
Recycled Content MR Credit 4
Regional Materials MR Credit 5
Certified Wood MR Credit 7
Low Emitting Material EQ Credit 4.4

ECC Value Added Products Added LEED Eligibility:
Low Emitting Materials EQ Credit 4.5 (LEED–CI)
Environmentally Preferable MR Credit 5 Products (LEED–H)

ECC CREDIBILITY
The ECC Certification program is the successor to the most widely–specified environmental certification program for composite wood products in the world—CPA’s EPP Certification program, the first such program accredited by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). ANSI accreditation is provided in accordance with ISO/IEC Guide 65 for product certification programs and ensures that the certifying organization follows ANSI procedures and principles of due process, openness and independence. CPA expects to receive ANSI accreditation for ECC next year.

CPA on-site plant audits are conducted by experienced staff professionals, under the umbrella of CPA’s internationally recognized Grademark Certification Programs. Laboratory testing, where applicable, is conducted at CPA’s International Testing and Certification Center (ITCC) in Leesburg, VA. The ITCC is accredited by the National Voluntary Laboratory Accreditation Program (NVLAP) and International Accreditation Service (IAS).

When buying composite panels or finished products made with composite wood, look for the ECC Certification stamp on panel unit bundles, on purchase documents, or on other informational materials.

COMPOSITE PANEL ASSOCIATION
The Composite Panel Association (CPA), a nonprofit 501(c)(6) organization founded in 1960, represents the North American composite wood panel and wood-based decorative surfaces industries on technical, standards, regulatory, quality assurance and product acceptance matters. CPA also operates the ITCC, and an internationally-accredited Third Party Testing and Certification program (TPC), the first one in the world approved by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) for formaldehyde emissions testing and certification under its 2008 Airborne Toxic Control Measure regulation for industry products.

The Composite Panel Association is committed to advancing and certifying the sustainability of industry products for residential, commercial and industrial uses.

For more information about the ECC Program, contact Chris Surak.