For more than 60 years, North American-made composite panel products have made a significant environmental impact by sequestering carbon and recycling wood residuals from existing forestry operations. Composite wood panels, including medium density fiberboard (MDF), particleboard, hardboard, and engineered wood siding and trim, are materials rooted in sustainable design, keeping carbon locked out of the atmosphere for life. These products are decorative, durable, versatile, and renewable, demonstrating that designing with the planet in mind doesn’t require compromises. The North American composite panel industry is proud to be a part of a sustainable solution that produces “Panels for the Planet.” 

Decorative
Composite panels are the ideal substrate for decorative surfaces because they are uniform, low maintenance, and consistent. Decorative surfaces, including TFL, 3DL, 2DL, HPL, and Decorative Papers and Foils are available in various finishes, textures, woodgrains, colors, and patterns to offer limitless design potential. Paired with composite panels, the advancements of decorative surfaces produce unmatched realism, both visually and tactilely, for furniture, cabinetry, and millwork nearly indistinguishable from the look and texture of solid wood, stone, and metals.

Durable
Composite panel products are designed to be durable to suit demanding spaces, minimizing the need for repairs and replacements. Panels can be engineered according to specification and performance demands, including strength, flexibility, and moisture and fire resistance.

Versatile
With a wide range of potential decorative specifications, composite panels offer the freedom and flexibility to realize your design vision. Composite panels can be used in a variety of settings, including homes, offices, healthcare facilities, retail stores, hotels, and schools. Diverse applications include cabinets/vanities, furniture, storage, countertops, flooring, mouldings, and more.  

Renewable
Unlike nonrenewable resources like stone, glass, and cement, composite wood panels are made with real wood—the ultimate renewable resource. Responsibly sourced from certified sustainable forests, composite panels are sustainable to the core. Thanks to composite panels, wood fiber that would have been burned or ended up in a landfill is instead recycled into beautiful, decorative products that can be used in a variety of settings. To mitigate the growing climate crisis, choosing sustainable decorative and building materials is a crucial part of the solution, and the North American composite panel industry is poised with renewable, recycled products that are carbon-negative and store carbon for life. Valuing the importance of environmental stewardship, the industry ensures that 99% of all raw material inputs are used to produce new composite panels. The outcome of this commitment to stewardship and sustainability is a high-quality product that is made with near-zero waste.
To learn more about Panels for the Planet, visit CompositePanel.org/PanelsforthePlanet.

Eco-Certified Composites (ECC) 
The Eco-Certified Composite (ECC) Sustainability Standard (4-19) verifies the responsible use of wood fiber by North American composite panel manufacturers while also focusing on life cycle inventory (LCI) and other verifiable environmental practices. ECC-certified facilities must meet or exceed U.S. EPA’s TSCA Title VI formaldehyde emissions requirements for 100% of their panels, 100% of the time. ECC-certified mills stand apart from other producers, requiring unmatched attention to detail and a rigorous, audited commitment to compliance. Producers in other regions can ship higher emitting products to other jurisdictions, including within their own, where these regulations do not apply; ECC certification assures compliance. Find a list of ECC manufacturers at CertifiedByCPA.org. 

Environmental Credits & Certifications
Composite wood products help earn points toward the following major certification programs:
o LEED v4.1 - U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC)
      ■ MR credits: 
    • Building Life-Cycle Impact Reduction: BD+C, ID+C
    • Environmentally Preferable Products: Homes
    • Building Product Disclosure and Optimization: BD+C, ID+C (EPDs; Material Ingredients; Sourcing of Raw Materials)
    • Furniture and Medical Furnishings: BD+C
    • Purchasing: OM (Ongoing; Facility Maintenance and Renovation)
      ■ EQ credit: Low-Emitting Materials: BD+C, ID+C, Homes
    • MR prerequisite: Certified Tropical Wood: Homes
    • BD+C (Building Design and Construction)
    • ID+C (Interior Design and Construction)
    • OM (Building Operations and Maintenance)
o Green Globes – Green Building Initiative (GBI)
o National Green Building Standard (NGBS)
o LEVEL by BIFMA – Furniture Sustainability Certification
o KCMA ESP – Kitchen Cabinet Environmental Stewardship Program
o ASHRAE 189.1
o Living Building Challenge
o WELL Certification

Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs)
The Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) for North American made MDF and particleboard give designers, specifiers, and fabricators a vital tool to objectively compare the environmental impacts of wood products with alternative products made of plastic, metal, or other materials. Building codes and green building rating systems drive demand for the verified life cycle assessment (LCA) information in these EPDs. These MDF and particleboard EPDs are certified by Underwriters Laboratories (UL), an independent certifier of the sustainable attributes of products. UL’s EPDs are widely recognized by USGBC’s LEED rating system, GBI’s Green Globes, and other similar building certification programs.

Formaldehyde Emission Regulations 
North American manufacturers of MDF and particleboard have been at the forefront of developing formaldehyde emission standards for more than 30 years and actively supported the U.S. EPA’s TSCA Title VI regulation, which is widely recognized as the most stringent in the world today. The North American industry supported similar regulations in Canada (CANFER, DORS / 2021-148). Thanks to these regulations, all composite wood products imported or sold in the U.S. and Canada must be third-party certified to meet formaldehyde emission limits. The industry fully supports all efforts to establish a strong enforcement program to ensure all composite wood products made globally meet these safe emissions standards. 

All MDF and particleboard facilities listed in the Design Portfolio offer third-party certified products meeting or exceeding the following regulatory requirements:

• U.S. EPA TSCA Title VI regulation, Formaldehyde Emission Standards for Composite Wood Products, 40 CFR Part 770; 
• California Air Resources Board (CARB) Airborne Toxic Control Measure to Reduce the Emissions of Formaldehyde from Composite Wood Products, 17 CCR 93120 (ATCM 93120), and; 
• Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) SOR/2021-148 Formaldehyde Emissions Standard from Composite Wood Products Regulations, CANFER.

Products that have also achieved exemptions for no-added formaldehyde (NAF) or meet the ultra-low emitting formaldehyde (ULEF) designation are identified. 

CPA’s Grademark Program is the world’s premier certification and inspection body and was the first approved third-party certifier (TPC-1). To ensure compliance with the above ECC and the emissions standards, look for TPC-1 certified panels at CertifiedByCPA.org.

MORE INFO   Design Portfolio Read the complete Design Portfolio: The definitive guide to sourcing decorative surfaces and composite panels.   Composite Panel Association  More information, plus industry news, testing & certification, policy and stewardship at the Composite Panel Association's website CompositePanel.org

Inspiration: Eco-friendly, durable and decorative, composite panels are at the core of many commercial and residential products.

 Fabrication Is Easy with Composite Panels
Ideal for use in many residential and commercial applications, composite panels have excellent machining characteristics and can be fabricated with standard woodworking machinery, including CNC routers, panel saws, boring and drilling equipment, and more. They are also ideal for projects which involve edge shaping, embossing, laminating, or finishing.

Tight tolerances can be achieved for value engineering, which can be critical when producing cabinetry, closets, retail fixtures, and furniture, as well as a wide variety of other commercial and residential applications. Factors including affordability, flexibility and durability also provide many advantages for fabricators of these environmentally friendly wood panels.