OVERVIEW
Materials really do matter to the health of occupants and the environment, but finding out what is in a product—and why—is not easy.
Products also have to perform as intended, so there are often tradeoffs between performance and the most sustainable materials.
Here you will find articles on:
-
the least hazardous, most environmentally sustainable materials used in products
-
environmental product declarations that can reveal the life-cycle impacts of materials
-
standards and third-party certifications that provide important VOC criteria and other health and performance metrics
-
chemicals of concern in building materials
You’ll also learn how what makes a product green can differ from product category to product category, and why multi-attribute vetting is critical no matter what product or material you’re selecting or specifying.
IN-DEPTH
Filter results:
- Blog Post (15) Apply Blog Post filter
- Feature Article (40) Apply Feature Article filter
- Feature Short (5) Apply Feature Short filter
- Infographic (4) Apply Infographic filter
- News Analysis (68) Apply News Analysis filter
- News Brief (67) Apply News Brief filter
- Op-Ed (9) Apply Op-Ed filter
- Primer (8) Apply Primer filter
- Product Review (33) Apply Product Review filter
- Reports, Courses, Study Guides, Live Webinars (1) Apply Reports, Courses, Study Guides, Live Webinars filter
- Spotlight Report (3) Apply Spotlight Report filter
- Webcast (5) Apply Webcast filter
-
Mass Timber to Be Recognized in Washington Code
News Brief
Supporters of Washington’s new mass timber law hope it will increase tall wood construction.
-
Wingnut Real-World Testing of Basement Waterproofing
Blog Post
A basement testing of UGL Drylok Extreme, Koster NB1 Grey, Xypex Concentrate negative-side waterproofing
-
New Insulated Metal Panels without Halogenated Flame Retardants
Product Review
Kingspan and Centria IMPs are using halogen-free flame retardants, resulting in less toxic, better performing insulated cladding.
-
Would Wood Skyscrapers Improve Urban Sustainability?
News Analysis
Plans to build a wood skyscraper in Tokyo will promote large-scale mass timber construction in cities.
-
Installing Insulation With the X-Floc Ventilated Dry Injection System
Blog Post
X-Floc claims the blowing equipment they use delivers cellulose at a more consistent density, and they were willing to prove it with this demonstration.
-
Concrete Pours through Loophole in New Carbon Law
News Analysis
Buy Clean California requires contractors to specify lower-carbon products, but industry pressure quashed the law’s potential.
-
Materials Transparency & LEED
Webcast
This deep dive into the three Building Product Disclosure and Optimization (BPDO) credits in LEED v4 provides the rationale for why product choices are so important, the details on how to achieve points within the three credits, and which options you shouldn't bother pursuing.
-
BuildingGreen Announces Top 10 Products for 2018
Product Review
Our innovative Top 10 product selections improve IAQ, save energy and water, contain fewer hazardous materials, and promote material transparency.
-
An Embarrassment of Riches: Products and Materials at Greenbuild 2017
Blog Post
A new focus on embodied carbon and LEED v4 are driving designers to dive deep into what we choose for our buildings
-
California Law Uses Environmental Product Declarations to Drive Low-Carbon Procurement
News Analysis
Buy Clean California is the first law in the nation to address embodied carbon in construction materials.