This is a legacy version of the WELL Building Standard. Please check the latest version here.

Material transparency

Just as consumers have a right to know the contents of the food they consume (whether to avoid allergic reactions or to make healthier nutrition choices), they should also have a right to know what is in the products and materials that make up the buildings they occupy. Due to the complex and multi-tiered nature of the global material production supply chain, little is known about the tens of thousands of chemicals in circulation today. This lack of data obscures necessary information required to identify potential hazards to the environment and human health. Demand for material ingredient disclosure at the consumer level pushes supply chain transparency and—even more importantly—supports innovation and green chemistry.

Part 1: Material Information

At least 50% (as measured by cost) of interior finishes and finish materials, furnishings (including workstations) and built-in furniture have some combination of the following material descriptions:

a.19 Declare Label.
b.28 Health Product Declaration.
c.1 Any method accepted in USGBC's LEED v4 MR credit: Building Product Disclosure and Optimization - Material Ingredients, Option 1: material ingredient reporting.
Part 2: Accessible Information

The following condition is met:

a. All declaration information is compiled and made readily available to occupants either digitally or as part of a printed manual.
Reproductive
Immune
Digestive
Integumentary
Nervous
Cardiovascular
Endocrine
Respiratory

Applicability Matrix

Core & Shell New & Existing Buildings New & Existing Interiors
Part 1: Material Information O O O
Part 2: Accessible Information O O O
Commercial Kitchen Education Multifamily Residential Restaurant Retail
Part 1: Material Information O O O O O
Part 2: Accessible Information O O O O O

Verification Methods Matrix

Letters of Assurance Annotated Documents On-Site Checks
Part 1: Material Information Architect, Contractor, & Owner
Part 2: Accessible Information Visual Inspection
1

U.S. Green Building Council. LEED v4: Reference Guide for Building Design and Construction. Washington D.C.: U.S. Green Building Council; 2013: 37, 43-44, 541-552, 567, 605, 623, 645-53, 658-61, 682-3, 685-6, 723-4.

97.1.c

USGBC’s LEED v4 MR credit: Building Product Disclosure and Optimization - Material Ingredients Option 1 has projects use at least 20 permanently installed products from at least 5 different manufacturers that use any of 4 programs described in the credit.

19

Declare. The Ingredients Label for Building Projects. https://ilbi.org/about/About-Docs/handouts-docs/declare-postcard. Seattle: International Living Future Institute; Accessed September 15, 2014.

97.1.a

Declare promotes materials transparency by providing a platform for manufacturers to disclose product ingredients and other relevant information.

28

Health Product Declaration Collaborative (HPD). Health Product Declaration Standard Version 1.0. http://hpdcollaborative.org/standard-documents/hpdstandard_v1_0_121215.pdf . Updated December 15, 2012. Accessed June 9, 2015.

97.1.b

The Health Product Declaration's Standard Version 1.0 provides guidance for declaring "product content and direct health hazards associated with exposure to its individual contents."