Public consultation on Building operations

Nordic Ecolabelling gives you the opportunity to comment on the proposal for new criteria for Nordic Swan Ecolabelling for Building operations. The Nordic Swan Ecolabel is assessed from a life cycle perspective and places high demands on the environment and health.

Your comments are important both for the quality of the final criteria and for the impact on the market. It will be considered by the national Ecolabelling boards and the Nordic Ecolabelling Board.

Please find the proposed criteria for download further down on this page.

We look forward to your comments, which should be submitted to the Nordic Ecolabelling no later than 5th of June, 2024 to be taken into consideration.

Introduction

Nordic Swan Ecolabel Building operations are a better choice for the environment, the climate, and the occupants. They meet strict requirements for the use phase of buildings. This includes requirements on energy, water, waste, outdoor environment as well as chemicals and building products.

The requirements promote resource efficiency, reduced climate impact and adaptation to a changing climate. They also benefit the indoor climate of buildings and aim to prolong their lifespan.

The Nordic Swan Ecolabel is the natural choice for those with higher ambitions, who want to be among the very best in their industry. The criteria clarify the most important environmental impacts and thus shows how a company can cut emissions, enhance resource efficiency, and cultivate a sustainable, high-performance building operation.

We wish to highlight the following points in the consultation draft

All input on the hearing proposal is valuable, particularly since it is the first version of criteria. But we have highlighted some areas which we, in particular, would like you to comment on:

• Levels and structure of requirement O8 Energy action plan. This requirement is divided into three sections. Section A is mandatory for all buildings and sets minimum energy performance standards; failure to meet this limit makes an application not qualified. For those who comply with section A, license holders may either comply with Section B1, which applies to buildings already meeting acceptable standards of energy performance, or with Section B2, an alternative for less energy efficient buildings. In Section B2, buildings must undergo an "energy journey" to improve their energy performance based on their energy class. Nordic Swan Ecolabel, NSE, welcome input on both the level of ambition and the structure of the requirement.
• Levels and structure of requirement O9 Energy metering and O23 Water metering. These two requirements are based on measuring and aims to promote better control over energy and water consumption. NSE welcome input on both the level of ambition in these requirements and the overall opinion on requirements based on measuring without a threshold limit.
• Levels and structure of requirement O13 Risk analysis climate change and O14 Adaptation to a changing climate. A climate risk and vulnerability analysis of the building and property must be performed in O13 and based on the climate risk and vulnerability analysis the most important identified climate adaptation measures must be implemented in connection with maintenance and reconstruction projects to adapt the building to a changing climate. The requirement is mandatory and aims to align with the EU Taxonomy. NSE welcome input on both the level of ambition and the interpretation of the EU Taxonomy.
• Levels and structure of requirement O17 Inventory of environmental hazardous substances and O18 Measurement of PCB levels in indoor air. These requirements aim to ensure knowledge about hazardous substances such as asbestos and PCB in building. In O17 it is required to perform an inventory, and if any hazardous substances are discovered, they must be addressed in the maintenance plan. In O18 it is required to perform PCB measures on the indoor air and meet specific PCB concentration limits. NSE welcome input on the level of ambition, the proposed substances covered by O17, and input on demanding measures on PCB in the indoor air.
• Levels and structure of requirement O26 Water saving technologies. Nordic Ecolabelling has integrated specific measures that must be implemented within one year from the application date, aimed at advancing water savings within the industry. NSE welcome input on the level of ambition of this requirement.
• Levels and structure of requirement O27 Information to users/tenants and possibility to sort at source. This requirement focus on information and waste sorting within the building to promote better sorting practices among tenants. NSE welcome input on both the level of ambition and the level of steerability for the licensee in regard to this requirement.
• Levels and structure of requirement O28 Promotion of repair and reuse for tenants. This requirement focuses on promoting repair and reuse practices among tenants, aiming for improvements within resource efficiency. NSE welcome input on both the level of ambition and the structure of the requirement.
• Levels and structure of requirement O33 Ecolabelled products. This requirement focuses on promoting the use of ecolabelled products, which have met strict criteria concerning environmental performance across diverse aspects such as chemical substances, biodiversity impact, and energy and resource efficiency. Nordic Ecolabelling have set requirements on materials and chemical products where there is a market supply, however, NSE welcome input on both the level of ambition and experience of supply of the products covered by the requirement.
• EU Taxonomy. Nordic Ecolabelling welcome feedback concerning the EU taxonomy, including both general input and comments specific to individual requirements.

Documents for download

• Criteria proposal (English)

Who can provide input?

All people, companies and institutions who are interested in taking part in the development work of Nordic Ecolabelling criteria for Building operations can provide us with their opinions and comments. We would appreciate if you kindly distribute information about this review to whom it may concern.

How can comments be sent in?

Your input is most valuable to our criteria development. We prefer to receive your answers via this form.

For further questions, please contact:
Product specialist: Joel O'Reilly, joel.oreilly@svanen.se, +46 8 55 55 24 47
Product developer: Elin Östberg, elin.ostberg@svanen.se, + 46 73 545 86 61
Product adviser: Alba Caviedes Nozal, acn@nordicecolabel.org, + 45 5 028 04 98

Consultation seminar

The Nordic Swan Ecolabel will hold a webinar which you are welcome to attend. During the webinar the criteria proposal will be presented, and you will get information about the consultation process.

Date and time: May 2nd, 13.00-14.30 (in English)

If you are interested in attending, please register at this link or contact product specialist Joel O'Reilly for further information.

What happens next?

When the consultation period is complete, the answers will be compiled and evaluated. For this reason, a new revised proposal for criteria will be submitted to the national committees in each Nordic country. On this basis, the Nordic Ecolabelling Board will then decide on new criteria.

We look forward to receiving your comments no later than 5th of June 2024.