Indicating impact: The Environmental Life-Cycle Rating Label

Point-of-purchase environmental labeling can complement governmental environmental regulation by enabling consumers to address environmental problems via their purchasing power. Environmental labels can also provide manufacturers with an economic incentive — via consumer purchasing behavior — to create products that do less damage to the environment. These consumer-decision labels can be categorized as endorsement (“seal of approval”) labels, information-only labels, and comparative labels — which may be continuous or categorical. The Environmental Life-Cycle Rating Label (ELCRL) is a newly designed categorical comparative label for durable and semi-durable consumer goods. ELCRL is flexible and extensible and provides a very understandable way of communicating complex life-cycle environmental impacts to consumers. It can also be adapted for communicating other kinds of consumer information. A study demonstrates that ELCRL elicits a positive response and expands people's conception of the environmental impact of a product.