Home Depot

In October 2017 the Home Depot announced their new Chemical Strategy which includes commitments to restrict hazardous chemicals of concern such as flame retardants, PFAS, phthalates, vinyl chloride, triclosan, and others from key product categories like paints, vinyl and laminate flooring, wall-to-wall carpet, and fiberglass insulation. The company stated, “The chemical strategy includes commitments to increase the assortment of products that have transparency of product ingredients and third-party certification of chemical ingredients. Additionally, the company is committed to working with suppliers to improve chemicals in categories with the greatest potential impact to indoor air quality, and will conduct annual reviews of product categories to track progress and drive innovation. ” The policy includes a new commitment to eliminate Alkylphenol ethoxylates (APEOs) and Nonylphenol ethoxylates (NPEs) in paint by 2019 and all of their paints will contain low amounts of or zero VOC by December 2020.

The Home Depot Chemical Strategy does not appear to apply to packaging or operations, and the company does not have a publicly available Manufacturing Restricted Substance List (MRSL).

The Home Depot has multiple staff that work on sustainability including chemicals.

It is not clear if the chemical policy is included in job descriptions, if the board is engaged in the chemical policy, or if there are financial incentives for senior management to implement safer chemical policies.

For some products and product categories under their their new Chemical Strategy, The Home Depot requires suppliers to meet certain third-party standards which require third-party laboratory testing. For example, “All indoor wall-to-wall carpet sold through The Home Depot U.S. and Canada has a third-party verification of transparency through DECLARE® Label or Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs), or certification of material health through Cradle to Cradle™Products Innovation Institute or CRI Green Label Plus®.” For laminate flooring, “it is verified by either GREENGUARD Gold or FloorScore certification to contain 0.0073 ppm or less of formaldehyde, which is a stricter standard than CARB 2 of 0.05 ppm.”

The Home Depot has otherwise not reported on programs to audit suppliers, train suppliers, or conduct testing to ensure supplier conformance with Home Depot’s Chemical Strategy.

Transparency is a key element of The Home Depot’s new Chemical Strategy. They state, “The Home Depot is committed to increasing our assortment of products that have transparency of product ingredients and third-party certification of chemical ingredients and that meet high environmental standards.” They state that for wall-to-wall carpeting, “All indoor wall-to-wall carpet sold through The Home Depot U.S. and Canada has a third-party verification of transparency through DECLARE Label or Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs), or certification of material health through Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute or CRI Green Label Plus.” Points awarded for business to consumer transparency for this initiative were awarded under criteria #7.

However, The Home Depot does not appear to be requiring suppliers disclose chemical ingredients directly to them for evaluation beyond OSHA Safety Data Sheet requirements or other compliance purposes.

The Home Depot’s new Chemical Strategy sets restrictions on numerous chemicals of concern in paints, vinyl flooring, laminate flooring, wall-to-wall carpeting, and fiberglass insulation. The company announced they have been working with its suppliers to reduce and eliminate nonylphenol ethoxylates (NPEs) and other alkylphenol ethoxylates (APEOs) by 2019 in paints, among other chemicals. Other restricted chemicals include phthalates, flame retardants, triclosan, formaldehyde, lead, vinyl chloride, PFOA, PFOS, fly ash, and other substances of concern. A number of these restrictions have been achieved over the past three years.

Home Depot was the first major home improvement retailer globally to phase out all ortho-phthalates in vinyl flooring in one year’s time, setting a major precedent for other home improvement chains and flooring retailers who followed suit in 2015. This is very significant as flooring is one of the biggest uses of phthalates worldwide.

The company has also reported progress in reducing chemicals of concern in packaging. In their most recent sustainability report, the company reported they have removed over 341,000 cubic meet of EPS foam from their packaging, which is equivalent to 351 greyhound buses. This was done in their private-label holiday product assortment with recyclable materials like molded pulp and paper. In their most recent sustainability report, the company pledged to remove 79,500 pounds of PVC packaging going forward. Over the years, the company has also reported it removed and reduced VOC’s from interior paint sold at The Home Depot, reducing indoor pollutants by 27 million pounds per year.

The Home Depot has not developed clear public guidance for evaluating the safety of alternatives, however the company has committed to selling products that are “safer for the environment.” The company is promoting safer alternatives by encouraging suppliers to specify products to credible third-party standards such as Cradle to Cradle and Safer Choice. For paint strippers, the company has “committed to working with suppliers and the EPA to identify alternatives with comparable efficacy that do not pose risks to human and environmental health. Meanwhile, we offer several alternatives to methylene chloride based removers.”

In October 2017 Home Depot published on its website and in its Sustainability Report its Chemical Strategy. The Strategy includes lists of ingredients they restrict in paints, vinyl flooring, laminate flooring, wall-to-wall carpeting, and fiberglass insulation.

Transparency is a key element of The Home Depot’s new Chemical Strategy. They state, “The Home Depot is committed to increasing our assortment of products that have transparency of product ingredients and third-party certification of chemical ingredients and that meet high environmental standards.” They state that for wall-to-wall carpeting, “All indoor wall-to-wall carpet sold through The Home Depot U.S. and Canada has a third-party verification of transparency through DECLARE Label or Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs), or certification of material health through Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute or CRI Green Label Plus.” Ingredient information recorded through these programs can be challenging for consumers to find. Additionally, while this is notable, environmental product declarations do not always provide sufficient information about chemicals in products.

Partial credit is awarded as it is unclear how far this will promote the disclosure of ingredients in products to consumers sold online or on product packaging or lead to the disclosure of identity of articles or formulated products that are free of chemicals of high concern going beyond regulatory compliance.

No discernible progress on chemical footprint.

The Home Depot sells and features numerous products on its website that meet credible third-party standards such as Safer Choice, Cradle to Cradle, and GreenGuard Gold through its Eco Options program. In its new Chemical Strategy, the company stated it, “is committed to increasing our assortment of products that have…third-party certification of chemical ingredients” and that it is “expanding its Eco Options program…to include the third-party certification programs Cradle to Cradle Certified™ and GREENGUARD® Gold.”

Participated in a public announcement on its policy to phase out ortho-phthalates in vinyl flooring.

In 2017 The Home Depot announced its sweeping new Chemical Strategy, which includes restrictions on numerous chemicals of concern in multiple product categories. The policy also includes commitments to increase the transparency of ingredients and offer more third-party certified products such as those that meet EPA Safer Choice and Cradle to Cradle standards.

The Home Depot’s new Chemical Strategy includes a commitment to selling more safer products that meet credible third-party standards. Some of those products and standards are featured in its new Sustainability report. The company states it, “sell[s] a variety of products and recognizes] our unique responsibility in helping improve products through the promotion of safer chemicals.” Home Depot’s Eco Options program makes it easier for customers to identify safer products, such as cleaning products certified by Safer Choice as well as other products to promote “healthy homes” and “clean air.” In October 2017 they announced it is, “expanding its Eco Options program…to include the third-party certification programs Cradle to Cradle Certified™ and GREENGUARD® Gold.” The company also states that as, “a part of the company’s sustainability strategy, merchants and suppliers place a priority on products that feature reduced environmental impacts. The company reviews the collective impact of those products annually for sustainable forestry practices, energy and emissions reduction, material reduction, water savings, and chemical use reduction.”

The Home Depot, “supports the work of the Green Chemistry & Commerce Council (GC3) through annual membership and participation in the Retail Leadership Council of the GC3, and we participated in developing the GC3’s Joint Statement on using Green Chemistry and Safer Alternatives to Advance Sustainable Products.”

No indication that company invests significant financial resources into independent research into safer alternatives to chemicals of high concern and/or green chemistry solutions