Record Online
November 12, 2006
Imagine if we could have entire neighbourhoods designed green, with solar and wind power, geothermal heating and cooling and energy-efficient green buildings that make us feel good and breathe easier.
This would be a better world.
As it is, traditional buildings drain the world's natural resources by 3 billion tons each year, or roughly 40 percent of the world's total use, according to the World Watch Institute's 1995 report.
By using green building materials and products, we conserve dwindling non-renewable resources. By integrating green building materials into new building projects, we reduce the environmental impact of extraction, transportation, processing, fabrication, installation, reuse, recycling and disposal of these building materials.
And, we enjoy reduced maintenance costs over the life of the building, energy efficiency and improved health and productivity from a better working and living environment. As homeowners and consumers, we are the ones who determine whether green building materials are used in our homes and who installs them.
Many architects will not automatically include passive solar or green building ideas unless their clients press them for those things. Most builders will opt for the cheapest material to get the job done quickly, not the best materials to do the job right for the next generation. We can't wait for government initiatives to reduce the costs, or mandates to start the green ball rolling. We have to do it ourselves.
What makes a material "green" is not always clearly defined. In 1998, the U.S. Green Building Council in Washington, D.C., came up with a checklist for a green building certificate, called LEED, or Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design.
What most of these products have in common is that they come from renewable sources and don't contain toxic chemicals that leach into the home environment. Here are a few green materials and suppliers that you might be able to find locally.
Recycled-plastic lumber or decking — like Trex, for instance — is a highly durable material that won't deteriorate or fall prey to pests. You can find it on occasion at the Hudson Valley Materials Exchange or order it through your local hardware or home-supply store.
Bamboo and cork floorings are 100 percent natural, as well as being renewable wood sources. We have both in our home, and they look beautiful.
Bamboo flooring is as hard as maple, more stable than oak and usually comes with a lifetime structural warranty. Cork is softer, bacteria-resistant and has interesting burled wood grains. Cork flooring is actually made from the waste of the cork wine-stopper manufacturing process.
Green Courage in Cold Spring has an assortment of floor coverings that qualify as green building materials.
Marmoleum floor coverings are a natural alternative to linoleum. They are available in sheets or tiles, are made from natural flax, rosins, wood flour and are backed with jute.
Green Courage offers wool rugs and carpets produced in North America made with natural jute, rubber and hemp. None of these floor covering contains pesticides or solvents, and they don't leak terrible things into your home. Many can also be ordered through your independent flooring stores and installers.
Bio-boards are a light, strong, moisture-resistant and cost-effective engineered core that binds agricultural waste products like wheat straw fibre, sunflower hulls, palm or sorghum stalks into boards that come in a variety of widths, lengths and thicknesses.
Most of these boards will outperform particleboard, are lighter and are easier to cut and use. All are produced with formaldehyde-free resin binders and off-gassing, which is a boon for asthmatics and small children. You can find them at Green Courage as well as wholesale to builders at Bettencourt Building Supply in Brooklyn.
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