Material Selection
Selecting building materials can be complex. You have to take into account toxicity, performance, the environmental life cycle, cost, and other factors.
Understanding what makes a building product green is a long-term prospect. Green characteristics differ from product category to product category, and multi-attribute vetting is critical.
Material Selection
Deep Dives
Get up to speed on complex topics. You can also earn CEUs and download PDF Spotlight Reports.
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Getting Flame Retardants Out of Foam Insulation
Feature Article
In an effort to eliminate the use of halogenated flame retardants, building code changes are being proposed by a group of fire experts, architects, chemists, and environmentalists.
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Stone, The Original Green Building Material
Feature Article
Stone is natural and durable, emits no VOCs, requires almost no maintenance, and provides a connection to the earth and our history.
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Whole-Building Life-Cycle Assessment: Taking the Measure of a Green Building
Feature Article
Why we will never understand the true impact of our buildings—and how we should try to anyway
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Can We Replace Foam Insulation?
Feature Article
There are a lot of reasons to avoid foam, but its high performance can make it a hard habit to kick, as designers are finding out.
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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Treated Wood for Ground Contact, Minus the Toxic Pesticides
Product Review
Accoya, now code-approved for fungus and termite resistance, relies on acetylation as a benign alternative to conventional pressure-treated wood.
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BuildingGreen Announces Top 10 Products for 2017
Product Review
Our innovative Top 10 product selections reduce stormwater and wastewater, improve efficiency and IAQ, and contain fewer hazardous materials.
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Game-Changing Products from Greenbuild 2016
Product Review
USGBC’s 2016 expo showcased innovative products, including building-integrated ERV and an industry-first PV solar water heater.
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Fiberglass, XPS, Cork? Insulation Options for LEED v4 and Living Buildings
Product Review
Choosing insulation with an eye to points in LEED v4 or Living Building Challenge compliance? Here’s how insulation materials compare.
In The News
We break news down to the essentials and provide expert analysis.
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Underwriters Laboratories to Validate Environmental Claims
News Analysis
UL, one of the most trusted brands in product safety testing and labeling, will begin third-party certification to green product standards as well as validation of environmental claims.
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Federal Eco-Labeling Law Taking Shape
News Analysis
A federally sanctioned eco-label for green products would result from legislation now being crafted in Congress.
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PureBond Exempt From CARB Testing Requirements
News Analysis
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Green Standard Registers First Environmental Product Declaration
News Analysis
Nonprofit organization The Green Standard is registering ISO-compliant environmental product declarations, starting with InterflacFLOR's Convert carpet products.
Perspective
Thought-provoking opinions from the most trusted minds in sustainability.
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Wingnut Real-World Testing of Basement Waterproofing
Blog Post
A basement testing of UGL Drylok Extreme, Koster NB1 Grey, Xypex Concentrate negative-side waterproofing
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Material Transparency for LEED v4: EPDs and HPDs for Metal Studs
Blog Post
Reducing your building’s carbon footprint or health impacts? Going after new LEED credits? Transparency documents for steel studs can help.
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The Sustainable Spec Language You Should Be Using
Blog Post
Selecting the greenest products doesn’t do any good unless strong specifications support your choices. Here’s some language you can use.
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Google Goes Public with Ambitious Carpet Tile Standard
Blog Post
With a new procurement program, Google adopted comprehensive sustainability requirements for modular carpet tile that raise the bar for major manufacturers.
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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