Environmental product declaration development and utilisation for whole building life cycle Assessment: Challenges and data quality assurance indicators
Oludolapo Ibrahim Olanrewaju, Wallace Imoudu Enegbuma, Michael Donn
Abstract
The number of environmental product declarations (EPD) is increasing rapidly, and its adoption as a critical data source for whole building life cycle assessment (WBLCA). Despite the usefulness of EPD, very few studies have assessed the challenges in developing and utilising EPDs for WBLCA and as well explored the concept of assuring EPD data quality. As a result, this study conducted a detailed systematic literature review (SLR), which included five notable databases (Emerald Insight, Engineering Village, Google Scholar, Science Direct, and Scopus) and applied the neglect mode of gap spotting to uncover the areas for future research. The SLR includes 87 articles published over the last two decades from several journals. It was revealed from the data source analyses that the majority of the databases do not have data quality metrics. Furthermore, the study introduced the concept of data quality assurance framework in the EPD context. The framework includes five different categories (coverage-related, data-related, LCA-related, product-related, and transparency-related). Lastly, this study identified the gaps in knowledge and proposed areas for future research based on the knowledge gaps spotted. • The study revealed a conceptual framework for assessing the data quality assurance of EPDs. • The review reveals critical challenges in LCA implementation for EPD development and EPD implementation for WBLCA. • The areas for future research in order to improve the challenges are proposed. • The study also provides information regarding the current trends in EPD development.