Standards & Compliance Briefing: ASTM 1527, NSF Building Products, LEED

ASTM has issued revised standard ASTM E1527-13, which governs phase I environmental site assessments. As discussed in our recent EL Analysts issue, the EPA uses the ASTM standard to determine whether companies have met the “All Appropriate Inquiry” requirement under the Superfund law. The agency is expected to rule by the end of the year on whether both 1527 versions, 2005 or 2013, will be acceptable for that purpose, Pierce Atwood LLP says. Until the EPA officially adopts the new standard, companies should continue to follow the 2005 version to meet the AAI requirement, McGuireWoods LLP says.

NSF Sustainability and the Natural Stone Council have developed NSC 373 Sustainability Assessment for Natural Dimension Stone, which they say is the first sustainability assessment standard for stone. The standard defines criteria for the sustainable development aspects of dimensional stone production, and also harmonizes environmental requirements for stone quarrying and production, NSF says.

NSF Sustainability has certified 897 wallcovering styles to NSF/ANSI 342, the American National Standard for Sustainable Wallcoverings. The standard, developed by NSF International and the Wallcovering Association, is designed to help architects, designers, retailers and consumers.

NSF Sustainability, in collaboration with the Glass Association of North America’s Flat Glass Manufacturing Division, has developed a product category rule for flat and float glass. The PCR provides an internationally recognized method for reporting the environmental impact of glass products and materials throughout their entire life cycle, NSF says.

The Gold Standard, a certification for climate and development activities established by WWF, has launched a Land Use & Forests Framework as well as requirements for the certification of afforestation and reforestation projects. The framework outlines an approach that prompts governments and other carbon buyers to consider and address the drivers of deforestation. It explains how land use projects must not only enhance the carbon stock stored at the landscape level but also improve sustainable resource use and livelihoods, and protect biodiversity.

National Public Radio has achieved LEED Gold certification for its Washington, D.C. headquarters. The building features a green roof, 100 percent FSC-certified wood, light sensors, bicycle storage and preferred parking for low-emitting and carpool vehicles. NPR diverted 95 percent of all construction waste away from landfills.

Crocs has earned its first LEED certification for a store, at the Destiny USA shopping center in Syracuse, N.Y. Bergmann Associates provided LEED consulting and commissioning services for the 2,646 sq ft space, which features LED lighting and low-VOC construction materials, and uses the mall’s rainwater harvest system.