Product certification

Glossary

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Algae toxicity

Several Genera and Species of Green Algae found in lakes, ponds, and streams that are responsible for aquatic oxygen balance and food sources for fish are tested for their reaction to chemical exposure. Chemicals that kill algae are considered dangerous to aquatic eco-systems due to the possible food chain effects and food source depletion. Algae Toxicity is a measure of a substance’s toxicity when consumed by these various types of Algae. A common measuring tool is EC50 (“effective concentration”), which is the concentration of a substance in the water required to stop photosynthesis of fifty (50) percent of the algae test population. If EC50 < 10 mg/L, the substance is considered algae toxic.

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Bioaccumulation

The process by which substances are stored and accumulated in the tissue or organs of humans or animals.

Bioconcentration factor (bcf)

A measure of the tendency for a chemical to accumulate. The ratio of the concentration of a substance in a living organism (mg/ kg) to the concentration of that substance in the surrounding environment (mg/L for aquatic systems).

Biodegradation

The process by which a substance or material is broken down (or decomposed) by microorganisms and reduced to organic or inorganic molecules which can be further utilized by living systems. Biodegradation can be aerobic, if oxygen is present, or anaerobic, if no oxygen is present.

Biological nutrient

A material used by living organisms or cells to carry on life processes such as growth, cell division, synthesis of carbohydrates and other complex functions. Biological Nutrients are usually carbon-based compounds that can be safely composted and return to soil.

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Carcinogen - known

A causal relationship has been established between exposure to the agent and human cancer (MAK 1 or TLV A1 or IARC Group 1).

Carcinogen - possible, or suspected

A known animal carcinogen, but evidence of carcinogenicity in humans is non-existent, or there is limited evidence of carcinogenicity in humans and insufficient evidence of carcinogenicity in animals.

Carcinogen - probable

A known animal carcinogen, but carcinogenicity in humans has not been definitely proven (MAK 2 or TLV A2 or IARC Group 2A).

CAS number

Chemical Abstract Service number. This number uniquely identifies each pure chemical compound.

Chemical profile

The “score” or “ranking” given to a pure chemical based on its hazard characteristics for human and environmental health.

Clearance time (ct)

The CT indicates the time needed to eliminate or biodegrade a substance to a certain percentage in an organism. For example, the CT50 indicates the time needed to eliminate 50% of a certain substance, analogous to the half-life time measure t1/2.

Climatic relevance

This is a measure of the climate-influencing characteristics of the substance. All compounds that contribute to global warming are listed here. Examples include carbon dioxide, methane, CFCs, and sulfur hexafluoride.

Compostable

According to ASTM, a compostable material is one that is capable of undergoing biological decomposition in a compost site as part of an available program, such that the material is not visually distinguishable and breaks down into carbon dioxide, water, inorganic compounds, and biomass at a rate consistent with known compostable materials.

Content of halogenated organic compounds

The column in the periodic chart of the elements that begins with Fluorine contains the halogens. These elements, when combined with organic compounds, form halogenated organic compounds. Most of these compounds are toxic, persistent, ozone depleting or bioaccumulative, or form hazardous substances during production and disposal (e.g., PVC).

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Daphnia toxicity

Water fleas of the genus Daphnia can be found in most ponds and streams. They feed upon microscopic particles of organic matter and are in turn food for fish and other aquatic organisms. Daphnia Toxicity is a measure of a substance’s toxicity when consumed by these water fleas. A common measuring tool for daphnia toxicity is EC50 (“effective concentration”), which is the concentration of a substance in the water required to immobilize fifty (50) percent of the test animals. If EC50<10 mg/L, the substance is considered daphnia toxic.

Downcycling

The name for the practice of recycling a material in such a way that much of its inherent value is degraded (e.g. recycling plastic into park benches) revealing poor design of a life cycle and the related material flows.

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Easily separable

In order to be considered “easily separable,” dissimilar materials must be able to be separated using nothing more complex than common hand tools, and the separation must be completed in a reasonable amount of time.

Effect concentration 50 (ec50)

The median exposure concentration (EC50) is the median concentration of a substance that causes some effect in 50 percent of the test animals.

Embodied energy

The energy consumed by all the processes required to produce a product. This includes the manufacturing energy for all the materials, sub components, and components as well as the energy to assemble all components into the finished product. Transportation energy is not included here.

Endangered forest

Endangered forests are the most valuable forests on the globe, forests that would be irreparably harmed by industrial resource extraction. In practical terms this means these forests are “no go” and “no buy” forests. These forests comprise a large proportion of the world’s remaining old-growth, primary and ancient forests in tropical, temperate and boreal zones.

Endocrine disruptor

A substance that mimics, blocks, or interferes with hormones and their production, metabolism, and excretion causing malfunction of the endocrine system which can lead to malfunction of the reproductive, nervous, and immune systems.

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Final manufacture/assembly

The assembly of homogeneous materials or assemblies into a finished product. This occurs at the client’s facility, or at a contract facility, and is typically the last step before the product is sold to the customer. While the exact definition of “final manufacture/ assembly” may vary from industry to industry, the idea is to have a consistent definition across each specific industry to “level the playing field” for those manufacturers that have different levels of vertical integration.

Fish toxicity

Several genera and species of fish found in lakes, ponds, and streams that are part of the food chain are tested for their reaction to chemical exposure. Chemicals that kill fish are considered dangerous to aquatic eco-systems due to the possible food chain effects and food source depletion. Fish toxicity is a measure of a substance’s toxicity when consumed by these various types of fish. A common measuring tool is lc50 (“lethal concentration”), which is the concentration of a substance in the water required to kill fifty (50) percent of the fish test population. If lc50 < 10 mg/l, the substance is considered fish toxic.

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Global warming potential

A scale used to relate a compound to the CO2 equivalents to measure the potential heating effects on the atmosphere.

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Half-life (T1/2)

The amount of time it takes for half of an initial concentration of substance to degrade in the environment.

Heavy metal

The term "Heavy Metals" is generally interpreted to include those metals with a specific gravity that is at least 5 times the specific gravity of water. The metals of immediate concern from a toxicity standpoint include antimony, arsenic, bismuth, cadmium, cerium, chromium, cobalt, gallium, gold, iron, lead, manganese, mercury, nickel, platinum, silver, tellurium, thallium, tin, uranium, and vanadium.

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Irritation of skin/mucous membranes

For the testing of skin irritation with the standard Draize test, rabbits are used. The chemical is applied to the rabbit skin and usually kept in contact for four hours. The degree of skin irritation is scored for erythema, eschar, edema formation, and corrosive action. These dermal irritation observations are repeated at various intervals after the chemical has been removed. Mucous membrane irritation is measured in a similar manner. Site-specific mechanical responses within the respiratory tract and eyes are measured, and a chemical is classified as an irritant based on the conclusions of these tests.

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Lethal concentration 50 (LC50)

The median lethal concentration (LC50) is the median concentration of a substance that causes death in fifty (50) percent of the test animals.

Lethal dose 50 (LD50)

The median lethal dose (LD50) is the statistically derived median dose of a substance that can be expected to cause death in fifty (50) percent of the test animals.

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Material

A group of one or more chemicals that together comprise a component or input to a finished product.

Material assessment

The evaluation of a material based on the toxicity of the components and their routes of exposure from the material in question.

Mutagen

This is a substance that may cause hereditary disorders in the offspring due to mutations in the chromosomes of the male or female reproductive cells. These mutations can be alterations in the structure or number of chromosomes, or nucleotide substitutions known as point mutations.

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Octanol-water partitioning coefficient (Pow)

A measure of the tendency of a chemical to partition between an aliphatic hydrocarbon system and an aqueous system. Often used as a predictor for bioaccumulation potential.

Ozone depletion potential

This is the measure of the ozone depleting characteristics of the substance. Ozone depletion in the upper atmosphere leads to an increase of UV-radiation on the earth and as a result, an increase in skin cancer. CFCs are included here.

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Persistence

This is a measure of a substance's ability to remain as a discrete chemical entity in the environment for a prolonged period of time. A common measuring tool for persistence is "half- life" (t1/2), which is the amount of time required for half of the substance to breakdown. If half-life is greater than 30 days in the air, or if half-life is greater than 50 days in soil, water, or any other media the substance is considered to be persistent.

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Rapidly renewable

Similar to the LEED definition, this is a material considered to be an agricultural product, both fiber and animal, that takes 10 years or less to grow or raise, and to harvest in an ongoing and sustainable fashion.

Recyclable

Able to be reused at a similar level of quality. For the sake of this program, materials are considered “recyclable” if it is technically possible to recycle them and at least one commercial recycling facility exists.

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Sensitization

The ability of a substance to induce an immunologically-mediated (allergic) response.

Skin penetration potential

A measure of the ability of a compound to assist in the absorption of chemicals into the skin.

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Technical nutrient

A material of human artifice designed to circulate within technical metabolism (industrial cycles)— forever.

Teratogen

A substance shown to cause damage to the embryo or fetus through exposure by the mother (MAK-list: Pregnancy risk group, category A).

Teratogen - suspected

Currently available information indicates that a risk of damage to the embryo or fetus can be considered probable when the mother is exposed to this substance (MAK-list: Pregnancy risk group, category B).

Toxicity - acute

A measure of how poisonous or "deadly" a substance is during initial exposure. A common measuring tool for acute toxicity is LD50 ("lethal dose"), which is the dose required to kill 50 percent of the test animals. If LD50<200 mg/kg, the substance is considered acutely toxic.

Toxicity - chronic

This is a measure of how poisonous a substance can become over time with repeated exposure. A substance may have low acute toxicity (i.e. little harmful effects from the initial exposure) but may become poisonous over time with repeated exposure. This may be due to accumulation of the substance or due to repeated minor damaging of target organs.