Eco Friendly Flooring: Sustainability and Health
-
Sustainability and health are two main aspects of eco friendly flooring.
Sustainability and Health
Sustainability is a broad concept that encompasses many issues. A common definition for sustainability is "meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs" (Source: Brundtland Commission). When working with eco friendly flooring materials there are a few important questions that need to be answered:
- Were the raw materials extracted in such a way that they did not degrade natural habitats?
- Did the energy that was used in manufacturing and transporting the product cause as little ecological damage as possible?
- Were the scrap and waste materials recycled or re-used?
Health Concerns
There are also questions about health concerns regarding eco friendly flooring:- Was the product manufactured in a manner that did not release toxic chemicals into the air, water, or soil during the manufacturing process?
- Once installed, does the product release any harmful chemicals into the air in a home or office?
Wood as an Eco Friendly Building Material
As a material, wood is inherently "green," especially in comparison to non renewable resources such as steel and concrete. The manufacturing of a non-renewable building material such as steel studs requires 25x more water, causes 2x the water pollution, and creates 3x more CO2 in the atmosphere. Besides being renewable, wood is non-toxic, energy-efficient to grow and manufacture, as well as recyclable and biodegradable. Wood is the only major building material whose production yields life sustaining oxygen and absorbs the main agent of global warming, carbon dioxide.
Wood can be a truly sustainable resource, but to realize that potential it must be sourced and produced responsibly. Eco friendly wood can come from salvaged, reclaimed and recycled sources, or it can come from ecologically well managed forests and plantations.
Recycled Wood
Most recycled wood incorporates by-products of another manufacturing process (such as sawdust) and is referred to as "pre-consumer" or "post-industrial." Recycled wood that is taken from existing structures or products and re-used could be described as "post-consumer." Some recycled wood is particularly valuable, especially if the product has come from an old growth forest and it has the opportunity to be re-used.
Reclaimed and Salvaged Wood
The terms reclaimed and salvaged wood are often used interchangeably. If there is a distinction between them, it is because "reclaimed" wood usually refers to already manufactured wood products that are remanufactured into new ones. Examples of this process include timbers from the deconstruction of old buildings that are re-milled, or more unusual sources such as old crates and pallets.
"Salvaged" wood frequently refers to the direct reuse of wood products (salvaged doors) or logs that can be salvaged from a variety of sources such as street trees, river and lake bottoms, orchards, and even forests (diseased and dead wood or small diameter trees that are thinned out as part of fire prevention measures). An example of a reclaimed hardwood that is certified by the Forest Stewardship Council includes remanufactured railroad ties from Southeast Asia. Tropical hardwood railroad ties are being replaced with concrete ties in that region and the old ties are then milled into flooring and other products.
Harvested Wood
People are generally less comfortable with harvested wood than they are with recycled, reclaimed, or salvaged wood, but of course all wood is harvested at some point in time. The reason a lot of people are not fond of the idea of logging forests is because it reminds them of the huge amounts of clear-cut land from traditional, industrial forestry. Logging does not have to destroy forests, but it often has in the past and still does today.
