UL certification measures circular economy efforts

UL has announced a certification for companies to measure and report circular economy aspects of products, sites and organizations. UL 3600 will be the first standard to evaluate a company’s circularity of material flows, UL reports.

"UL is pleased to introduce the world's first certification to measure a company's circular economy initiatives," says Alberto Uggetti, vice president and general manager for UL's environment division.

Circular economy is widely seen as an important aspect of company sustainability efforts.The certification will measure circularity progress in light of global trends, including climate change, resource constraints and bioaccumulation of toxic chemicals.

"Global issues such as supply chain constraints, recent restrictions on recycling imports and resource scarcity are pushing circular economy thinking to the forefront for many companies, and UL offers a way to track and measure progress on these initiatives and communicate them to the marketplace in a transparent way,” Uggetti says.

The certification is the foundation of UL's Circularity Facts Program, which evaluates a company's efforts to move from a linear economy mindset to a more sustainable, circular approach that eliminates waste and keeps materials in productive use longer.

Through the program, UL can report the use of recycled content, bio-based content, recyclability, waste minimization and zero waste to landfill, among other aspects.

UL 3600 will evaluate companies’ material flows across three dimensions: product, facility and enterprise. The certification will show a company’s current circularity efforts and growth and can be used to improve a company’s understanding of the impact of material flows.

William Hoffman III, UL senior scientist and author of the UL 3600 Standard, will speak on the topic during VERGE 18 conference on Oct. 17 in Oakland, California.