l EPD certification for five POSCO products
l Sustainability of steel acknowledged through the LCA approach
POSCO became Korea’s first steel company to obtain the Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) certification from the Ministry of Environment.
On January 24, five of POSCO products – steel plate, wire rod, Hot-rolled Galvanized Iron (HGI), Giga Steel (980DP), and high corrosion-resistant steel plates – all received certification for the following seven environmental indicators: carbon footprint, resource footprint, ozone layer influence, acid rain, eutrophication, photochemical smog, and water footprint.
In the steel construction materials market recently, there is a higher demand for eco-friendly products. The buildings constructed with EPD-certified materials are eligible for bonus points in case the building meets the criteria for G-SEED, Green Standard for Energy and Environmental Design. Accordingly, the demand for eco-friendly materials is likely to escalate even more.
* G-SEED (Green Standard for Energy and Environmental Design) is a certification system for Green Architecture that contributes to the reduction of energy consumption and environmental pollution during the entire construction process, from design and construction to post-construction maintenance and management.
POSCO’s EPD certification highlighted the fact that steel products are environmentally sustainable from the holistic perspective of the Life Cycle Assessment approach which accesses environmental impact of material from all stages of production – from procurement, manufacturing, sales, distribution to recycling.
* LCA (Life Cycle Assessment) is a methodology to assess environmental impacts associated with all the stages of a product’s life from raw material extraction, production, distribution, disposal to recycling.
▲ South Korea’s longest suspension bridge, Yi Sun-Sin Bridge, is built with POSCO’s EPD-certified steel plates and wire rods
POSCO expects the Environment Ministry’s certification will boost the competitiveness of its products in the steel industry market that prioritizes environmental sustainability, as well as to make their eco-friendly business practice more public.
EPD certification scheme was first introduced in 2001 to offer transparency to consumers on the environmental impacts of the products they use. Administered by the Korea Environmental Industry & Technology Institute under the supervision of the Ministry of Environment, the certification scheme also aims to promote more sustainable consumption for the consumers. A total of 461 products received EPD certification to date.