The Blue Angel for consumer electronics, kitchen appliances and upholstery leather
Dear Reader,
The pioneering function of the Blue Angel as a guiding light pointing toward sustainable and climate-friendly consumption was just recently confirmed scientifically. The current memorandum of the Federal Environment Ministry passed a short time ago publicizing the results of a study of the carbon footprint conducted by the Öko-Institut e.V. recommends the Blue Angel as a central climate protection label for consumer communication.
And the most recent decisions made on new ecolabels by the Jury Umweltzeichen on 8 and 9 December 2009 emphasise this function even further. Find out in the current newsletter which new products and services may now be labelled with the Blue Angel and for which of them the Jury Umweltzeichen passed test orders. Furthermore, we also report in this issue on the international meeting of the Global Ecolabelling Network in Kobe (Japan).
We wish you an interesting read!
Federal Environment Agency
Section III 1.3
Eco-Labelling, Environmental Declaration, Green Procurement
Elke Kreowski
New products
The Blue Angel for consumer electronics, kitchen appliances and upholstery leather
The Blue Angel may now be awarded to seven new products. The Jury allocated the majority of the new ecolabels to the category "protects the climate".
In the field of consumer electronics it is now possible to label TV sets, DVD recorders, Blu-Ray and DVD players as well as compact hi-fi systems with the Blue Angel. The requirements of the Blue Angel for TV sets are aligned with those of the European Ecolabel, but are even more ambitious. The highest admissible power consumption, for example, is 160 watts. And for DVD recorders (with and without hard disk) and players as well as Blu-Ray disk players (DVD players with high memory capacity, improved picture quality, different sound formats) power consumption is likewise the key award criterion. The Blue Angel for compact hi-fi systems in addition demands a non-deactivatable automatic switch-off at the latest after 15 minutes of non-use, and it must be possible to take the device off the grid completely.
In the kitchen the Blue Angel is establishing benchmarks for more and more appliances. Exhaust hoods with the Blue Angel must be low noise and easy to disassemble. Furthermore, spare parts have to be available long-term. Energy-saving electric ovens for use in the home may now be labelled with the Blue Angel as well.
Upholstery leather with the Blue Angel is low in emissions and marks leather that was manufactured eco-friendly and represents no health hazard. The label vouches for the entire life cycle of the leather, from manufacture to usage to disposal. Water and wastewater criteria are applied to the manufacturing process, while emission requirements for indoor air dominate during the period of use. Aspects of animal protection were also included in the criteria. The seal is allocated to the protection target "health".
The award criteria for the products mentioned above will be available soon at: www.blauer-engel.de/en
The Blue Angel for photovoltaic products (RAL-UZ 116) has now been expanded to include the product group of solar charging devices that give users greater mobility and flexibility. Solar charging devices with the ecolabel – just like any other photovoltaic device with the mark – are durable, designed to be recycled, produced without material that represents a hazard to the environment, and reliable.
The award criteria for photovoltaic products are available at:
www.blauer-engel.de/en/products_brands/search_products/produkttyp.php?id=271
The appointment period of the Jury Umweltzeichen ends in December 2009
The Federal Environment Ministry expresses its appreciation for the Jury's work
The three-year appointment period of the Jury Umweltzeichen will end in December this year. The members of this body make all the important decisions about the Blue Angel, such as which products and services are to be labelled and the award criteria. They represent the associations and institutions that are most important for product labelling and they work in an honorary capacity.
The representatives of the Federal Environment Ministry underlined in their words of appreciation that a very successful appointment period is now coming to an end. The 30th anniversary of the Blue Angel in 2008, which was accompanied by a Germany-wide bus campaign, anchored the Blue Angel more strongly in the minds of consumers. And the message of the ecolabel was lent added impact with a new logo design and the definition of key protection targets.
Almost 30 new ecolabels were approved by the Jury during its term, strengthening the Blue Angel in its role as leading climate protection seal for products and services.
Product carbon footprinting
Memorandum of the Federal Environment Ministry on the preparation of greenhouse gas balances
For the past two years, preparing greenhouse gas balances along the supply chain for products and services (better known as product carbon footprinting) has been a frequent focus of discussion. Determining and presenting these footprints in a way that allows for comparisons requires a uniform methodology. The Federal Environment Ministry (BMU) and the Federal Environment Agency (UBA) instructed the Öko-Institut e.V. to develop such a methodology, incorporating input from experts in the field.
The Memorandum that has now been presented specifies clear requirements as to how such carbon footprints for products should be prepared and communicated to the public. The resulting recommendations for users will also be incorporated into international standardisation processes for the product carbon footprint. For example, carbon footprinting is deemed to make sense for determining the potential for CO2 reduction in a company's own supply chain so that it can optimise its products. However, the study does not recommend using the footprint as an additional CO2 label as key labels (lead labels) for consumers that include the impact on the climate already exist for the most important product groups. This includes the Blue Angel, which promotes climate-friendly consumption in particular with its current focus on climate-relevant products and services. Therefore, the Memorandum recommends using this popular and proven ecolabel for communication purposes.
The Federal Environment Ministry is currently collaborating with industry to prepare a guide to help businesses determine climate balances for their products and services. The Memorandum is available at: www.bmu.de/english/ecological_industrial_policy/downloads/doc/45365.php
International affairs
Report on the annual conference of the Global Ecolabelling Network (GEN) in Japan
On the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the Japanese ecolabel EcoMark the annual conference of the Global Ecolabelling Network (GEN) took place in November 2009 in Kobe, Japan. This year's annual GEN meeting was linked to an international conference on ecolabels. GEN represents 28 Type-I ecolabel programmes, including the Blue Angel.
The goal of the three-day event was to present current developments in the field of ecolabels, in particular in Asian countries. The Asian ecolabel programmes are distinguished by extensive co-operation. In addition to other topics covered, representatives from China, Korea and Japan reported about an agreement on mutual certification of their ecolabels and about joint award criteria for computers and printers.
Dr. Hans-Hermann Eggers, as the representative of the Federal Environment Agency, joined by Liazzat Rabbiosi from the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), informed guests about a joint project of UNEP, UBA and GEN that aims at enhancing co-operation between ecolabel programmes. The project's objective is to develop a roadmap for co-operation and the mutual acknowledgement of ecolabel programmes. This roadmap will compile the experiences made up to now and propose recommendations for planning future ecolabels, in particular in developing countries. By co-operating with UNEP, the Global Ecolabelling Network wishes to place itself on a broader basis as an institution.
Further information about the Global Ecolabelling Network and the conference agenda is available at: www.globalecolabelling.net
Jury Umweltzeichen passes test orders for new products and services
In its December meeting, the Jury Umweltzeichen approved test orders for the following products and services:
- Climate-friendly supermarket operations
- Thin Clients (computer end devices with reduced hardware equipment)
- Router with integrated modem and components (e.g. phone systems) for home networks
- Photovoltaic modules
- Doorbell and intercom systems
- Water-saving shower handsets and showerheads
- Illumination control
- Woodchips
- All-purpose and toilet cleaners for the household
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