Donald Williams Wood Floors 515 Washington Street, Calistoga, CA 94515 License #468199
Ph: (707) 942-6034 FAX: (707) 942-9205 email: dwwf@sonic.com
Until the 20th century the world was still not entirely explored, and people thought of the environment as an obstacle to master, not a home to care for. Now, however, we are increasingly interested in proper stewardship of our planet. Participating in the planet's ecosystem means using its resources but also respecting and renewing them.
We at Donald Williams Wood Floors agree with the emerging philosophy that by respecting natural resources we also show respect for ourselves. The wood flooring industry in the United States seeks to address the desire of consumers for a beautiful, natural product while still conserving those natural resources for the future.
But while the general philosophy is widely accepted, there is not yet agreement on how best to go green. For example, "because of its ability to rapidly regenerate many people consider bamboo to be green, while others would argue that rapid regeneration doesn't make a product any greener than wood products from a sustainably managed hardwood forest" (Hardwood Floors, Aug/Sept 2007). Also, "consumers should be very concerned about being just focused on products. The key is taking a systems approach, not putting a bunch of Band-Aids on a house. [Individual] products are important, but they are not as essential as, for example, orienting a house to take advantage of passive solar heating or ensuring that a building is tightly sealed to conserve energy" (Utne, Nov/Dec 2007).
Domestic woods are nearly all sustainably harvested, meaning "foresters analyze each area of the forest tree by tree and designate a percentge to be removed, leaving the majority to grow and also leaving the ecosystem intact. In reality, most forest destruction in the U.S and Canada is caused by development, not the need for timber. Giving economic value to the forest creates an incentive to maintain the area as forest, as opposed to a subdivision, strip mall, or parking lot. Trees are the ultimate renewable resource, helping reduce global-warming-causing carbon dioxide in the process.
"The green story continues past the forest into the wood flooring mill. The latest floor manufacturing equipment scans each piece of lumber for its most efficient use, and oftentimes, the wood dust created in the milling process is then used to power the mill or the dry kilns" (Hardwood Floors, Aug/Sept 2007).
In North America, moreover, a number of organizations are working to establish criteria for assessing the environmental impact of wood products. However, certifying organizations must weigh complicated considerations: effects on human health, effects on environmental health, resource depletion, notions of rapid renewability. And, says Brad Guy, president of the Buildings Materials Reuse Association, in Utne magazine: "the biggest environmental impact in construction is trnsportation of the materials. It's not even the manufacture; it's moving stuff around. " The Utne article continues: "bamboo may be the trendy wood substitute, but if it's shipped from China, you're greener going to a nearby sawmill or finding a local source for reclaimed wood."
So as Hardwood Floors sums up, "consumers buying domestic species can be reasonably confident that the wood came from a sustainably managed hardwood forest. With regards to the multitude of exotic species from around the globe, however, it is often difficult to know exactly where the wood came from."
WOOD FLOORING COMPARED TO OTHER FLOOR COVERINGS
How does wood flooring measure up against competing floor coverings? Hardwood Floors magazine (June/July 2008)reports that in a recent study from the University of Wisconsin compared the Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) "of solid wood flooring in four categories (harmful emissions to air, water consumption, total primary energy consumed and product life expectancy) with those of four competing floor coverings (generic VCT, generic linoleum flooring, generic nylon carpet tile and generic wool carpet tile). The results of the study were consistant with previous European studies concluding that wood flooring has environmental advantages over other floor coverings, including less air emissions, less primary energy use and its renewable nature, among others. For more information, visit www.nwfa.org"
A GREEN GL0SSARY (Hardwood Floors Aug/Sept 2006)
Sorting through all the "green" certifications, guidelines and programs can be confusing. Here's a quick guide:
For wood flooring:
FSC: The forest Stewardship Council (www.fsc.org) promotes responsible management of the worlds forests. Products labled as FSC are tracked with a rigorous chain-of-custody system from the forest to the end product.Independent certifiers-SCS: Scientific Certification Systems (www.scscertified.com/forestry) and smartwood, which is part of the Rainforest Alliance
(www.rainforestalliance.org) -are used to determine FSC eligibilty.
SFI: The Sustainable Forestry Initiave (www.aboutsfi.org) was developed by the American Forest & Paper Association
(www.afandpa.org) and is overseen by the Sustainable Forestry Board (www.aboutsfb.org), an independent organization. Participation in the SFI program is a condition of membership in the AF&PA.
CSA: The Canadian Standards Association (www.csa.ca) has the National Standard for Sustainable Forest Management, a chain of custody program designed to chart the progress of forest products from the forest through all stages of production to the consumer.
For Any Product:
Greenguard: The Greenguard Environmental Institute (www.greenguard.org) is an industry-independent, nonprofit organization with a mission to improve public health and the quality of life through programs that improve indoor-air quality. Among others, Greenguard offers a certification program for low-emitting interior products and materials.
For Construction:
Leed (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design): This voluntary standard is best known for its certification of new construction of commercial and institutional buildings. It was developed by members of the U.S. Green Building Council (www.usgbc.org). Buildings can earn up to 69 points resulting in four possible levels of recognition. A LEED for homes rating system is currently in the pilot testing phase.
Green Globes: This voluntary standard program for commercial buildings has been more widespread in Canada. In 2004, the Green Building Initiative (www.thegbi.org), a nonprofit network of building industry leaders, aquired the rights to distribute Green Globes in the United States. Green projects can earn up to four globes. (www.greenglobes.com).
NAHB Model Green Building Guidelines: These guidelines for residential buildings from the National Association of Home Builders were designed to help local homebuilder associations create their own green building programs. To download a PDF version of the guidelines, visit www.nahb.com/gbg. The GBI has the license to market and promote the NAHB Green Building Guidelines.
