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Carpet and the environment

In 2004 the Carpet Institute of Australia (CIAL) was awarded a grant from the Federal Department of Industry, Tourism and Resources to carry out a strategic planning study entitled ‘Towards Environmentally Sustainable
Flooring Systems.’

Through a process of extensive consultation with industry stakeholders, the project developed an action plan that was endorsed by an industry workshop held in February 2005.

The key elements of the action plan:

An Environment Policy for the Carpet Industry has been developed
An Environmental Training Program for the Carpet Industry has been prepared
An Independent Life Cycle Study of Environmental Impacts of Carpet - completed
Investigation of Re-use and Recycling Opportunities for Manufacturing and Post Manufacturing Wastes- completed
An Environmental Certification Scheme (ECS) for carpet as an extension of the Australian Carpet Classification Scheme (ACCS) has been established.

We are awaiting now accreditation of the ECS by the Green Building Council of Australia.

Australian Carpet Classification Scheme (ACCS)

The ACCS, administered by the Carpet Institute of Australia, is a voluntary industry labeling and grading scheme for textile floor coverings manufactured in Australia or imported for use in Australia.

There are currently 3,200 graded carpets on the ACCS database, making it one of the largest grading schemes of its type in the world.

The ACCS grades carpet according to its suitability for use in residential and/or contract installations in any given traffic environment. The gradings are awarded by a Panel of industry experts on the basis of carpet performance tests carried out by accredited laboratories.

The ACCS is a registered Certification Trademark Scheme, which means that it has been reviewed by relevant Government authorities and found to comply with the requirements of the Trade Practices Act.

Environmental Certification Scheme (ECS)

The ECS introduces three new technical criteria covering Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) emissions, noise reduction and thermal insulation properties that relate to environmental performance.

The VOC criteria were set taking into account the results of a series of trials on Australian made carpets by CETEC, an independent testing organization.
The ECS criteria are more stringent than those of the US Carpet and Rug Institute’s synthetic carpet based 'Green Label Plus' Scheme.

ECS VOC emission limits have been set at, or lower than, the equivalent Green Label Plus limits, and additional VOC’s have been added to the CRI list of 13 ‘chemicals of concern.’

The acoustic criteria for impact and reverberation noise reduction were determined taking into account the results of CSIRO testing on a range of residential and commercial carpets. The selection of the ECS performance criteria for thermal insulation was based on existing research.

ACCS / ECS Extended Provisions

CIAL has further developed the ECS by adding Extended Provisions that are intended to align with the Green Building Council of Australia's Assessment Framework for third party product certification schemes. A copy of the Extended Provisions may be viewed in the ACCS ECS Technical Guidelines (page 20).

ACCS ECS Technical Guidelines (pdf, 1,314kb)

Manufacturers Code of Environmental Practice

Another important feature of the ECS is that carpet manufacturers must comply with an Environmental Code of Practice. The Code of Practice includes provisions relating to:

Good environmental practices in manufacturing
Bans on the use of environmentally hazardous materials (such as dyes with toxic residues) in line with European Union requirements for textile products;
Product stewardship; and
Reporting of resource usage efficiencies.

Companies must satisfy the above requirements to be licensed to use and display the ECS label. These companies will be independently audited to verify performance claims.

It is also important to note that access to the ECS is not restricted by high annual license fees and throughput royalties.

Contact

Queries regarding the ACCS Environmental Certification Scheme may be directed to Allan Firth on Toll free ph: 1800 188 822 or email allan@carpetoz.com.au

ECS certified carpets and carpet tiles

ECS certified carpets (xls, 926kb) Last updated March 4, 2010

Classification Categories and Points
The more stars the better the durability and appearance retention properties of the graded carpet.

The Residential labels feature a six-star system:
1 star – Light Duty
2 stars – Medium Duty
3 stars – Heavy Duty (lower to mid range)
4 stars – Heavy Duty (mid to higher range)
5 stars – Extra Heavy Duty (lower to mid range)
6 stars – Extra Heavy Duty (mid to higher range)

The Contract / Commercial labels operate a four star rating system:
1 star – Light Duty
2 stars – Medium Duty
3 stars – Heavy Duty
4 stars – Extra Heavy Duty

Thermal Insulation Performance of Carpet

Carpet has excellent thermal insulation properties. The insulation value of carpet can be up to ten times higher than that of hard floor covering and similar to an insulation batt when conventionally installed with underlay. Carpet can help to reduce energy costs in heating and cooling when there is a temperature differential between the indoor air and that under the floor. For this reason the Federal Government's Green House Office recommends carpeting timber or elevated slab floors to reduce heat loss. Uninsulated floors account for 10 to 20% of heat loss from a home.

Thermal Insulation Performance of Carpet (pdf, 95kb)

Acoustic Comfort of Carpet

Carpet reduces both impact noise and reverberation of noise. Noise attenuation is yet another reason why carpet is the best floor covering choice where functionality and fashion are important.

Acoustic Comfort (pdf, 252kb)

Risk in carpet underlay “very low”

Recent media speculation has suggested that asbestos contaminated materials may have been used in felt underlay manufactured up to the late 1970's and that some of these products may pose a health risk.

While there is limited information available, an investigation by the Western Australian Department of Health’s Environmental Health Directorate was carried out in 2006. The Directorate collected a number of samples from the 1960's and 1970's and following analysis of the test results concluded no evidence of asbestos fibres has been found in any of the samples and….. the possibility of asbestos fibres being in carpet underlay was very low.

(source: http://www.health.wa.gov.au/press/view_press.cfm?id=604)

The Carpet Institute of Australia estimates that an extremely small percentage of felt underlay installed up to the late 1970’s remains in residential and commercial properties. This is based, in part, on industry evidence which shows that Australians change their carpet and underlay, on average, every 7 to 10 years.

However, if there are any concerns about the removal of old felt underlay, contact with the relevant state government authority – health department or occupational health and safety regulator – is recommended.

Further Information: Allan Firth (03) 98045559