A group of product manufacturers and other building professionals has just founded the U.S. Green Building Council, with the goal of promoting environmentally sound and energy-efficient buildings worldwide. The Council was officially established at a May 27 meeting in Washington and already has over thirty... Read more

Dear Editor,

First of all, thank you for publishing an article on the northwestern timber debate that was, for the most part, a fair and accurate view of the issues. I was especially encouraged by your recognition that different forest types grow differently and “a simple ban on clearcutting does not always... Read more

Steve Loken. 1993. Center for Resourceful Building Technology, PO Box 3866, Missoula, MT 59806; 406/549-7678. 56 pages. $12.50 postpaid.

Foam-Tech, Inc. of North Thetford, VT, this past April became the first company to offer a urethane spray or injection foam with zero ozone-depletion potential. Super Green™ is produced with hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) 134a, which contains no chlorine and thus does not damage the Earth’s protective ozone layer. In 1991,... Read more

The Northeast Sustainable Energy Association (NESEA) is planning a demonstration building project that will exhibit energy- and resource-efficient technologies and provide office and meeting space for NESEA and affiliated organizations. The “Northeast Sustainability Center” is slated to be built in 1994 in the five-college area of western... Read more

Dear Editor,

I was sorry to see that in your product review (Vol. 2, No. 3) you folks did not mention that Fiberbond is hard and smooth like plaster (a big plus over sheet rock) but needs to be sized (water proofer, primer) before painting, as it is much more absorbent. Unsuspecting painters can lose their shirts if... Read more

David W. Bearg. Lewis Publishers, 1992. C/O CRC Press, Inc., Boca Raton, FL 33431; 407/994-0555. 220 pages, hardcover; $59.95.

David Bearg’s new book is a terrific overview of a very complicated subject. Heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems for commercial buildings have become increasingly... Read more

Fact: More than 130 sawmills and plywood mills have... Read more

Greenpeace has recently launched a $1 million campaign aimed at the elimination of all chlorine-based compounds. One of the primary targets for phase-out is PVC (polyvinyl chloride), which is used in many flooring, siding, and plumbing materials. PVC is the largest single use of chlorine in the U.S., according to Greenpeace,... Read more

The nation’s first self-contained, commercial-based recycling facility is in operation at the Mall of America, Bloomington, Minnesota. The mall generates as much trash as a city of 20,000. Built and operated by Browning Ferris Industries, the recycling facility can process 35 tons of material from over 400 stores during an eight-hour work-shift... Read more

The Official Recycled Products GuideAmerican Recycling Market Inc., PO Box 577, Ogdensburg, NY 13669;

800/267-0707, 315/471-3258 (fax)

$155 single issue; $275 annual subscription including updates, monthly newsletter, online database.

Builders, designers, and specifiers who search out recycled... Read more

Buyers of wood products are increasingly concerned about the effects of their buying decisions on the environment, according to surveys conducted by the Western Wood Products Association (WWPA). The association distributed a survey to more than 20,000 lumber retailers and wholesalers in late 1992... Read more

A couple of fiber-reinforced cementitious siding products have been getting a lot of attention in the sustainable building community recently. These products have some advantages, especially when they are used to replace top-quality wood products that come from old-growth forests. They also provide excellent fire ratings and... Read more

Building With Value: Resource-Efficient Construction, a two-day regional conference on sustainable construction issues to be held November 12th and 13th, 1993 in Seattle, Washington. See Calendar for details.

FiberBond, made by Louisiana Pacific Corp., and a similar but now discontinued product, Gypsonite, (which was made by Highland American Corporation), have received a lot of attention among green builders because of their use of recycled cellulose fiber. They have been widely used in environmental demonstration homes,... Read more

Ozone levels dropped to record low levels in parts of Canada this past March, according to the

Global Environmental Change Report (Cutter Information). Environment Canada’s Ozone Watch Service found low ozone levels as far south as Toronto, where values reached a record 24% below normal. The low values are thought to be a result of... Read more

The National Materials Exchange Network

Since its launching last fall, the National Materials Exchange Network has made it a lot easier for companies to find the resources they need in someone else’s waste. Here’s how it works: companies with unwanted by-products, overstock, or discards list their material with a... Read more