Harmonisation framework for health based evaluation of indoor emissions from construction products in the European Union using the EU-LCI concept

The health based evaluation of chemical emissions from construction products is an integral part of the harmonisation framework for indoor products labelling schemes in the EU. The harmonisation process for the health based evaluation of gas-phase chemical emissions from construction products in Europe, is based on the LCI (‘Lowest Concentration of Interest’) approach and is described fully in this report. The work was co-ordinated by the European Commission’ Directorate General Joint Research Centre (DG JRC) and performed in the context of the PILOT INDOOR AIR MONIT administrative arrangement with the Directorate General for Health and Consumers (SANCO) in liaison with experts from the EU Member States and the Directorate General for Enterprise and Industry (DG ENTR). This EU-LCI development work outlined in the present report builds on firm foundations of the exisiting national labelling schemes established by AgBB in Germany and ANSES in France that currently apply the LCI concept, as well as those in Finland, Denmark and Belgium. Ultimately, the harmonisation process and procedures described here will allow voluntary and mandatory labelling schemes to evaluate product emissions in the same way by using a robust health-based procedure. This work also supports the establishment of future emission classes for CE marking under the European Construction Products Regulation ((EU) No 305/2011) with a harmonised list of LCI values (EU-LCIs). In the EU-LCI work performed to date, only volatile organic compounds (VOCs) have been considered. Very volatile (VVOCs) with the exception of acetaldehyde and formaldehyde, semi-volatile organic compounds (SVOCs) and carcinogens were not considered at this stage of the process. This phase of the EU-LCI harmonisation process has established: 1. A robust protocol for establishing a harmonised list of compounds and their associated EU-LCI values which takes into account existing procedures used in some EU Member States. This procedure, based on sound toxicological and risk assessment principles, represents an appropriate health-protective, science-based and transparent yet pragmatic approach for the evaluation of chemical emissions from construction products. 2. A list of interim EU-LCI values for 82 compounds, which includes some of the compounds most relevant to DG ENTR’s ad hoc group on emission classes (i.e., acetaldehyde, toluene, xylene, 1,2,4-trimethylbenzene, 1,4-dichlorobenzene, ethylbenzene, 2-butoxyethanol and styrene) and two compounds shaded of recent concern in Germany (ε-caprolactam) and Belgium (α-Pinene). 3. A flexible framework that enables future revision of the content of the EU-LCI list in terms of both the type and number of compounds included and their associated EU-LCI values. The framework provides the possibility of taking into account new knowledge (e.g. data resulting from the REACH implementation process or compounds identified and suggested by EU national authorities). The protocol also provides guidance on applying a harmonised application of read-across and assessment factors in EU-LCI derivation. Through application of the principles and rationale developed for the establishment of EU-LCI values, EU-LCI values have been established for a number of priority compounds. The EU-LCI WG compiled an EU-LCI master list containing a total of 177 compounds and subdivided into two groups, the first containing 82 compounds with agreed interim EU-LCI values and the second containing 95 compounds for which EU-LCI values are still to be derived. The practical application of the EU-LCI values and the necessary consideration of multiple sources that are normally present in real building scenarios are discussed and potential harmonisation issues related to the overall evaluation of emissions from construction products (for example, common criteria and threshold values for TVOC, SVOC, sensory evaluation and the sum of “not-yet-assessable” compounds) are identified. Finally, developments concerning policies at both EU and national levels that have explicitly or implicitly considered and/or referred to the work of the EU-LCI WG are reported