Ibstock Brick has played an instrumental role in brick becoming the first construction industry product to gain verification under BRE Global’s Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) scheme - a standardised way of quantifying the environmental impact of a product or system.

Working in collaboration with the Brick Development Association (BDA) by providing vital factory data and through its membership of the BDA sustainability working group, Ibstock helped the brickmaking industry achieve this significant accreditation and therefore, demonstrate how brick is leading the way as the sustainable construction material of choice.

Andrew Halstead-Smith, group marketing manager at Ibstock Brick, said: “We’re proud to see brick, the original sustainable building material, become the first construction product to be verified under the EPD scheme. It ensures true transparency for specifiers and end users, giving them an easy-to-quantify measure to use in the calculation of a building’s environmental impact – a vital part of the specification process that will only continue to grow in importance in the coming years.

“Brick scores well on all of the different environmental impacts considered under the EPD, as it is a natural product that has very little added to its mixture. It therefore has low toxicity, unlike many other materials which need to use preservatives, and lacks volatile organic compounds used in the formulation of plastic and synthetic materials.

“This recognition for brick confirms its green credentials and is evidence of its continued relevance as a superior building material now and for the future.”