Are you considering developing an Environmental Product Declaration under EPD Ireland Programme for your building product?
The first step to developing an EPD is the Life Cycle Assessment Study of the product, carried out by an LCA consultant. In this blog post, we will explain to you how you can get financial assistance from Enterprise Ireland with this first step.
The 2019 Government Climate action plan, sets out in Action no. 36 to “Prioritise decarbonisation as part of enterprise agency strategies and drive the decarbonisation agenda across their respective client bases” A sub action of this is for Enterprise Ireland namely to
“Seek to grow the number of client companies engaging in support for Environmental Product Declaration initiatives”
Enterprise Ireland Grants
To help deliver this action Enterprise Ireland has Green Start and Green Plus programmes. The aim of these programmes is to help companies incorporate sustainable practices into their business. Specifically for developing EPD these programmes will fund professional expertise to :
- understand LCA and environmental footprinting
- use an LCA tool to analyse and reduce the impact of your product.
- monitor and improve your environmental performance
By applying for these grants, Enterprise Ireland clients companies can cover most of the cost of developing an LCA with a consultant:
- up to 80% support (Green Start, if the overall LCA project cost up to €6,300)
- up to 50% support (Green Plus, maximum total project cost up to €100,000).
Once you have developed an LCA for your product the next steps are quick and easy, namely have the LCA verified through the EPD Ireland programme and publish the EPD under the EN 15804 EPD standard.
Companies will need to use a provider from the directory of Green service providers.
Open the excel document and filer by “Life Cycle Assessment – Environmental Product Declaration (Construction sector)” to find providers who can carry out the initial LCA of your products, and select an EPD provider from these results.
For more information, contact your Enterprise Ireland Adviser. For general enquiries contact the Green Team.
So, what are you waiting for? Read more about the programmes here and apply!
IDA grants
The IDA (Industrial Development Agency) which covers foreign-owned businesses in Ireland, also gives Green Start and Green Plus grants through its Go Green Business Offers. IDA Ireland’s “Go Green” is designed to encourage IDA clients to adopt green business principles in their organisation to increase competitiveness and achieve international environmental best practices. The grants can be used to develop Environmental Product Declarations (EPD). You can find more information here.
For further information contact your IDA Project Executive or Product Development & Transformation Team
Did you know IGBC is mainstreaming sustainable buildings in Europe through aligning certifications, skills, and public procurement with LCA, LCC and IAQ components of Level(s)? Read more here.
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The Life for LCA LCC Level(s) project (short: LIFE Level(s)) has received funding from the LIFE Programme of the European Union. The European Union’s support for the production of this publication does not constitute an endorsement of the contents, which reflect the views only of the authors, and the EU cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein. |  |