Hydro offers US facility environmental data

The business unit of Norway-based Norsk Hydro has published environmental data for 22 of its manufacturing sites in the United States and Canada. The environmental product declarations (EPDs) have been verified by an independent third-party, says the recycled-content metals producer.

Hydro “believes customers and partners should know the environmental impact of materials and products they purchase.”

Thus, during the past year it has collaborated with Italy-based life cycle assessment (LCA) provider Ecoinnovazione on LCA studies for each of its North American manufacturing sites. The reports then underwent third-party verification by Illinois-based UL Solutions.

Hydro says it is the first aluminum extrusions company in North America to provide this level of detail on the impact of its production processes.

“Hydro is taking a proactive stance to provide clear, quantifiable data about the environmental footprint of our products,” says Jerrod Hoeft, a vice president with Hydro Extrusion North America. “The scope and scale of this effort clearly demonstrates our commitment to transparency, sustainability and continuous improvement. We believe that informed stakeholders can better understand the value of lower-carbon, recycled aluminum in their supply chain and make more sustainable choices.”

According to Hydro, the collected LCA information shows the average calculated CO₂ equivalent footprint of its extrusion operations is 34 percent lower than the North American industry average, based on a figure calculated by the Illinois-based U.S. Aluminum Extruders Council.

EPDs are technical documents that portray the potential environmental impact of products throughout their life cycle. “Architects, engineers and designers across a wide range of industries use EPDs to better understand the footprint of their products and make sourcing decisions,” Hydro says.

The full list of Hydro Extrusion North America’s EPDs can be found here.