The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) has recently published “ANSI/NSC 373 Sustainable Production of Natural Dimension Stone“ and Natural Stone Council Chain of Custody standards. These standards have been developed to document and improve the sustainability profile of natural dimension stone production.

The stated purpose of the Standard:

• Recognizes and drives sustainability practices in the natural dimension stone industry.
• Establishes a set of well-defined environmental, ecological, social responsibility and human health metrics through a multi-stakeholder, science-based approach, recognized by the green building movement as an indicator of leadership in sustainability performance.
• Provides an important opportunity to educate key members of the design and building professions, end users, government, and environmental advocacy groups about the production of natural dimension stone products.
• Uses a four-tiered rating system (Bronze, Silver, Gold or Platinum), creating a mechanism that differentiates natural dimension stone companies that demonstrate environmental leadership through commitment to sustainable operations and continued innovation.
• Two additional components to ANSI/NSC 373 Sustainable Production of Natural Dimension Stone are chain of custody and conformance:
  • The Chain of Custody Standard establishes the rules by which stone originating from a certified quarry and then processed in a certified processing facility is documented as it passes through the supply chain to its end user. The goal is to insure that the end user who purchases certified stone for a project actually receives verified, certified stone.
  • The Guidance for Conformance document provides guidance on how ANSI/NSC373 is to be interpreted and gives examples that best provide evidence of criteria compliance by the quarries and processors seeking certification, as well as for the third party entities who will verify compliance.