Chicago—The general public will now have one standard to identify carpets that have a reduced environmental impact. At Greenbuild ’07, the first multi-attribute American National Standards Institute (ANSI)-approved Standard—NSF 140-2007, Sustainable Carpet Assessment Standard for environmentally preferable building materials—was introduced.

Announced by the Carpet & Rug Institute (CRI) and NSF International, an independent, not-for-profit organization committed to protecting public health and safety worldwide, NSF 140 defines environmental, social and economic performance requirements, and provides benchmarks for continual product improvement and innovation within the building industry.

The standard is based on life cycle assessment (LCA) principles and offers three levels of achievement —silver, gold and platinum. It can be used to evaluate any carpet product but is primarily intended for commercial goods by providing a product evaluation methodology that is complementary to emerging commercial green building standards.

Bob Peoples, executive director of the Carpet America Recovery Effort ( CARE) and part of CRI, called NSF 140 the first and only, multi-attribute, ANSI-approved green product standard for the building industry. “It is very comprehensive as it covers environmental performance and social attributes.”

What makes NSF 140 special and the reason it is being universally accepted is how it came into being. A joint committee consisting of end users; architects; interior designers; state and federal agencies responsible for procurement practices, specifically the California Environmentally Preferable Purchasing Task Force’s Carpet Subcommittee; the Environmental Protection Agency; carpet and rug manufacturers, and academics and non-governmental officials under the guidance of NSF developed the new standard through a documented consensus process.

Anthony Minite, president of Bentley Prince Street, emphasized “the collaborative development is what the industry needs to devise practical standards that are realistic and relevant.”

Because of the way it was developed, Jane Wilson, NSF standards director, “expects this standard will be widely adopted and referenced across building design, construction and operation industries as the standard of choice for green carpet. It is already serving as a model for other industry groups to follow.”

Truly national

Dan Burgoyne, sustainability manager for California’s Department of General Services, confirmed the state “worked closely to align the platinum level of NSF 140 with its California Gold Sustainable Carpet Standard, lending support to one unified national standard for environmentally preferable carpet.” In addition, California “is planning to transition 100% of its state carpet purchases to the NSF 140 platinum level over the next 12 to 18 months.”

The standard includes an easy-to-use rating system with established performance requirements and quantifiable metrics throughout the supply chain for Public Health and Environment (PHE); Energy and Energy Efficiency (EN); Bio-Based, Recycled Content Materials (MATLS) or Environmentally Preferable Materials; Manufacturing (MFG), and Reclamation and End of Life Management (EOL).

The first carpet products certified to the approved NSF 140 standard are expected to be available in the marketplace by the second quarter of 2008.

Industry gives its approval

In order for NSF 140 to truly be accepted and effective, since it is not a law but rather voluntary, the carpet industry as a whole needed to be in favor of it. And that it is as mills and associations give their praise.

Steve Bradfield, Shaw Industries’ director of environmental affairs, said NSF 140 “provides the public with a tool that is science based. It’s a way for the public to be sure it’s buying environmentally preferable products.”

He added it will help encourage all manufacturers to understand the material and energy flows that go into their products as well as the environmental impacts that result. “By understanding these impacts, companies can begin to design environmentally preferable carpets without sacrificing performance or unnecessarily increasing price.”

Bill Gregory, director of sustainable strategies for Milliken, noted several advantages to having NSF 140 instead of the myriad of green certifications being given by companies and associations. “It is a big step in removing confusion surrounding carpet selection from the marketplace. There will be a single label versus multiple standard stamps, which will make specification easier, and for the manufacturer, responding to a single set of criteria is an advantage.”

Bentley’s Minite said “There’s no question NSF 140 is an important step forward for our industry as a whole as well as our customers. This is the first third-party certified standard in the carpet industry. One of the great things about this new standard is that it’s transparent—anyone can see what it involves and its measurement criteria. We believe this will help our industry come to a collective solution to the sustainability issues we all face together.”

James Lesslie, president of Beaulieu Commercial, agreed with Minite: “For the first time we have an industry consensus standard. It will be easier for customers to make comparisons of environmental products versus claims of being green.”

That is one of the big deals of NSF 140, said CARE’s Peoples. “It will dramatically reduce green washing since everyone is playing by the same rules—by having a single, well document and transparent standard. It is certainly not perfect, but it is a great start. What that means is we are making a difference. You can talk about it, or you can live the dream. From a specification perspective, I sincerely hope the design community will embrace this as the standard for green carpet based on a sound science, consensus driven process.”

For more information on certification to NSF 140, call NSF at 800.673.6275.