Overview
ISO/TR 24699:2009 - "Rubber and rubber products - Environmental aspects - General guidelines for their inclusion in standards" is a Technical Report from ISO/TC 45. It provides guidance for including environmental aspects in standards for rubber materials, semi‑finished and finished rubber products. The report is primarily intended for standards writers, but is also useful for designers, manufacturers and sustainability teams working on rubber product life cycles.
Key topics and requirements
- Purpose: minimize adverse environmental impacts of rubber products without compromising fitness for use.
- Alignment: closely follows ISO 17422 (plastics guidance) and refers to ISO Guide 64 for addressing environmental issues in product standards.
- Life cycle focus:
- Encourages eco‑profiles (cradle‑to‑gate analyses) and life cycle assessment (LCA) approaches where technically justified.
- Promotes design for disassembly, material and energy conservation, and end‑of‑life management.
- Material guidance:
- Supports the use of renewable, recycled and recyclable materials when environmentally, technically and economically beneficial.
- Differentiates in‑house scrap from recycled material and defines recyclable material only when feasible recycling exists.
- Test method standards:
- Evaluate and reduce environmental impact of test procedures and equipment.
- Minimize use of materials and energy (specimen size, number, test scale) without compromising results.
- Require inclusion of MSDS‑related clauses and safety/environmental warnings when hazardous substances are specified.
- Product standards:
- Require balancing product functionality and performance with environmental provisions.
- Recommend explicit statements in standards that ISO/TR 24699 and Guide 64 have been considered.
- Practical drafting advice:
- Use clear, verifiable environmental provisions and provide guidance for users on compliance with end‑of‑life legislation and restricted or prohibited substances.
- Annexes include suggested wording for environmental statements (Annex A) and a list of potential environmental needs of standards users (Annex B).
Applications
- Integrating environmental criteria into rubber product standards (e.g., seals, hoses, elastomer components).
- Guiding test laboratories to adopt lower‑impact testing methods.
- Informing product design and material selection for improved sustainability, recyclability and regulatory compliance.
- Supporting procurement, conformity assessment and lifecycle impact reduction strategies.
Who should use it
- Standards writers and technical committees (primary audience).
- Product designers, R&D engineers, environmental managers, test labs, manufacturers and regulatory compliance officers working with rubber and elastomers.
Related standards
- ISO 17422:2002 (plastics environmental aspects)
- ISO Guide 64 (addressing environmental issues in product standards)
- ISO 14040/14044 (LCA principles) and ISO 1382 (rubber vocabulary) - referenced for terms and life cycle concepts.
Keywords: ISO/TR 24699:2009, rubber and rubber products, environmental aspects, standards writers, life cycle assessment, recycled materials, renewable materials, end‑of‑life treatment, test methods, eco‑profile.