EcoLabels & Certifications: Carpet Certifications

Today's installment of Deborah Fuller's Eco-Labels and Certifications series focuses on Carpet Certifications.
Carpet & Rug Institute (CRI) Green Label Plus
Today, indoor air quality (IAQ) is an important environmental consideration, especially since we spend approximately 90 percent of our time indoors. Green Label Plusis the certification standard the USGBC requires for carpet, carpet tiles, carpet pad, and adhesives to help specifies products with very low emissions of VOCs.

Contributes to: USGBC –LEED credits EQc 4.3 Carpet
non profit trade organization
www.carpet-rug.org

Floor Score
FloorScore, developed by the Resilient Floor Covering Institute (RFCI) in conjunction with Scientific Certification Systems (SCS), tests and certifies hard surface flooring and flooring adhesive products for compliance with rigorous indoor air quality emissions requirements. Individual volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are evaluated using health-based specifications. Flooring and adhesives that earn FloorScore certification earn a legitimately enhanced market position, distinguished by the FloorScore certification label.

Contributes to:USGBC –LEED credits EQ 4.3 Floor Systems
industry organization
www.rfci.com/int_floorscore

Climate Neutral - Climate Cool
The Climate Neutral Network is an alliance of companies and organizations committed to developing products, services, and enterprises that have a net-zero impact on global warming.

Climate Cool™ products or services are determined to completely offset the greenhouse
gases generated across each stage of their life-cycle including the sourcing of its materials, its manufacturing or production, its distribution, use, and ultimate end-of-life disposition.

NOTE: Climate Neutral Network is currently transferring to another non-profit and is not accepting any product certifications

Contributes to: USGBC –LEED credits ID 1.1-1.4
www.climateneutralnetwork.com

NSF –140-2007 Sustainable Carpet Standard
The Carpet and Rug Institute (CRI) set out to provide the commercial market with a single easy-rating certification system for carpet and rugs. With the assistance of NSF International, a leader in standards development and product certification, a Sustainable Carpet Assessment Standard was created. This standard for carpet includes a rating system with established performance requirements and quantifiable metrics energy and energy efficiency; bio-based, recycled content materials; environmentally preferable materials; manufacturing; and reclamation and end-of-life management.

NSF 140 was designed to establish a system with varying levels of certification to define sustainable carpet. This establishes performance requirements for public health and environment, and addresses the triple bottom line –economic-environmental-social, throughout the supply chain.

NFS 140 is the first multi-attribute American National Standards Institute (ANSI) standard for environmentally preferable building materials in the construction industry.

www.nsf.org

SCAS Carpet Standard
Carpet must represent at least 2.5% of the total project material cost for Gold certified styles and at least 1.25% of the total project mater Sustainable Carpet Innovation Credit The Sustainable Carpet Assessment Standard (SCAS or NSF-140-2005) SCAS makes specifying green carpet beyond recycled content easy. It is the only carpet sustainability standard in North America that evaluates the environmental impacts of carpet for its entire lifecycle, from manufacturing to reclamation, renewable energy use to social equity.

Note: SCS Sustainable Choice certification signifies compliance to the SCAS Standard (NSF-140-2005).

Check back soon for our next installment: Green Housekeeping Certifications