OVERVIEW
Is wood a sustainable material? It depends: a table made from reclaimed wood has a much smaller environmental footprint than one sourced from a monoculture plantation that replaced a rainforest.
Defining responsible material sourcing—and then finding responsibly sourced products—is complicated. Here you will find in-depth resources that detail the benefits and challenges of using biobased materials, reclaimed wood, fly ash, and other materials. Our resources also detail which companies and industries are ahead of the curve in offering responsible choices.
What about the materials you don’t use? Using less is always a good idea—as long as that doesn’t compromise performance.
Doing more with less takes knowledge and attention: it’s about investing in human resources instead of wasting natural resources. And since our small planet has more humans every day, we’re not likely to run out of them anytime soon. Durability, efficient structural systems, and repairing and retrofitting rather than replacing are all key strategies to consider.
IN-DEPTH
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Making Carpet Environmentally Friendly
Feature Article
Carpets are the most popular floorcovering in the U.S., but they have also been associated with environmental problems including indoor air emissions and intensive resource use. However, manufacturers have worked to curb their environmental footprints by recycling carpet, examining their life-cycle impacts, and pursuing broad-based certification.
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Piping in Perspective: Selecting Pipe for Plumbing in Buildings
Feature Article
Potable water supply piping and drain-waste-vent piping represent a significant fraction of a building's materials. Choosing the greenest pipe for both applications, particularly deciding between metal pipe and plastic alternatives, requires evaluating a variety of environmental and human health impacts as well as durability and performance issues.
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Bamboo in Construction: Is the Grass Always Greener?
Feature Article
An increasingly popular building material, bamboo is celebrated for its quick growth and ability to regenerate after being harvested. But bamboo also has its downsides. In this feature article, EBN examines the pros and cons of building with bamboo.
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Stone Certification Recognized in LEED v4, Living Buildings
News Brief
Natural stone is one of the oldest green building materials, but it’s the newest to have a rigorous multi-attribute certification recognized by USGBC
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Bark Cladding Is First Cradle to Cradle Platinum Product
News Brief
C2C Platinum certification sets a very high bar for sustainability. A decade in, Bark House shingles are the first product to make the grade.
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CalStar Suspends Fly Ash Brick Production
News Brief
CalStar Products, Inc. stopped production of its fly ash brick products on October 1 due to financial difficulties.
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Wood Structures Could Reduce Global Carbon by Almost a Third
News Brief
Using sustainably harvested timber in place of concrete, steel, and brick would have a massive positive impact, a new study asserts.
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EPA Finds Coal Fly Ash Safe in Concrete and Gypsum Wallboard
News Brief
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Milk Byproduct Could Become New Flame Retardant
News Brief
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NSF Certification Verifies Sustainability of Stone
News Brief
