Material Health
Pursuing material health in the building industry involves avoiding or eliminating toxic chemicals from building products. Toxic chemicals are those that can bring harm to factory workers, installers, or building occupants. There are tens of thousands of unregulated chemicals used in our building products, and they can increase the risk of everything from asthma to obesity to cancer.
Materials containing these toxic chemicals include carpet, insulation, wet-applied products like adhesives and sealants, and many others. It’s possible to improve material health through better design decisions and product selections.
Material Health
Deep Dives
Get up to speed on complex topics. You can also earn CEUs and download PDF Spotlight Reports.
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Quick Takes
Jump straight to the essentials with these short explanations of green building concepts.
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Product Guidance
Unbiased information from our product experts helps you separate green from greenwash.
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BuildingGreen Announces Top-10 Products for 2015
Product Review
Transformative products eliminate toxic chemicals and fossil fuels, and improve building and site performance.
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Ekla’s Natural Latex Couch Is Flame Retardant-Free
Product Review
With all organic fabric, natural latex, and wool fill, this upholstered furniture is one of the first lines to completely bypass added flame retardants.
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Polyiso Insulation Without Halogenated Flame Retardant
Product Review
Johns Manville introduces a premium polyisocyanurate foam insulation that is free of toxic halogenated flame retardants.
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Floor Coating Manufacturers Are Seeing the UV Light
Product Review
UV-cured floor coatings contain no hazardous solvents, isocyanates, or BPA, and they cure instantly when exposed to UV light.
In The News
We break news down to the essentials and provide expert analysis.
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Even Dust Is Fattening, Thanks to Phthalates
News Brief
Household dust is laden with plasticizers and flame retardants that can trigger fat storage, researchers find.
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USGBC, Chemical Industry Begin Talks
News Analysis
You say “risk” and I say “hazard,” but we can’t call the whole thing off. So the Supply Chain Optimization Working Group is set to begin its work.
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Material Health Tools Harmonize
News Analysis
Manufacturers should get more consistent signals as Cradle to Cradle, GreenScreen, Pharos, and other tools align, while staking out niches.
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Harmful Chemicals May Leach from PEX into Drinking Water
News Analysis
Replacing PVC with untested substitutes? New research shows how little we understand about how plumbing materials affect indoor water quality.
Perspective
Thought-provoking opinions from the most trusted minds in sustainability.
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Learning Resources
Syllabus supplements and CEU content, with automatic reporting for AIA and GBCI.
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Just For Fun
Something weird happens every April at BuildingGreen...
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