Sustainable Materials
enhanced indoor air quality.There are
iCase Studies a large number of sustainable
Refer to the end of this section of the products available that do not cost any
manual for case studies on the Regional more than the standard product.
Waste Management District Office 4. The perception that sustainable
Building and the EPA’s Regional products are not readily available.
Headquarters in Philadelphia. Some sustainable products are not
available in all locations. A good
Misperceptions example is products made from
industrial waste or certified wood.
There are a few key misperceptions that
However, it is rare that there would be
may hinder the use of sustainable
a delay on the delivery of a
products. These include:
sustainable product due to delays in
1. The perception that sustainable
the manufacturing process.
products are lesser in quality than
5. The perception that a number of
standard products. Sustainable
sustainable products are proprietary or
products should be required to meet
do not have competitive
the same performance requirements
manufacturers. There are some
as any other product. It is true that
products that are proprietary, but this
some products may have had
is the exception rather than the rule.
problems associated with them, such
as difficulty with installation, or
durability, but this rarely is due to the
Evaluating Materials
sustainable characteristics of a
product. Product Life-cycle
2. The perception that sustainable Evaluating a material, or comparing two
products “look different” than standard materials to determine if the product(s) is
materials. Certainly some products a sound environmental product depends
may look like they are environmentally on the evaluation of a material’s life cycle,
friendly (such as some agricultural often called the cradle-to-cradle analysis
products, for example). However, of a material.
many sustainable products would not
be noticeable to a building owner or This process typically addresses the
building occupant. These include such environmental impacts of:
products as refurbished furniture
partitions, low VOC paints, or recycled Resource acquisition. This includes
content ceiling tiles. addressing the environmental impacts of
3. The perception that sustainable extracting the resources necessary to
products always cost more. Some manufacture the product.
sustainable products do cost more
than ‘typical’ products. However, this Manufacturing. This includes evaluating
additional first cost is often offset by the environmental impacts of the
increased durability of product, manufacturing process.
reduced maintenance costs, or other
benefits to building occupants such as
California Sustainable Design 8.1
Training
Sustainable Materials
Transporting. This includes considering Notes:
the impacts of transporting the material to
the manufacturing or assembly location,
as well as transporting the material to the
site.
Installation. This includes considering the
impact the installation of the product will
have on the installer as well as any
building occupants.
Impact to Building Occupants. This
includes evaluating what impact the
product will have on occupants during its
use.
Performance. This includes considering
how durable the product is, as well as
what kind of maintenance requirements
the product has.
End of use options. This includes
considering if the product can be
disassembled, recycled, or reused.
Methods of Product Evaluation
There is not one ‘standard’ for evaluating
the sustainable characteristics of all
building materials. There are some tools
that can be used, however, when
selecting materials, at least in part, due to
their sustainable characteristics. They
include:
Institute of Standards and
Technology Building for Economic and
Environmental Sustainability (BEES).
BEES measures the environmental
performance of building products by
using the environmental life-cycle
assessment approach specified in ISO
14000 standards
’Environmental Resource Guide. This
guide presents detailed life-cycle
8.2 California Sustainable Design
Training
Sustainable Materials
information about a number of building California, in fact, has a State Agency Buy
products. Recycled Campaign, requiring that state
LEED Material Credits. The material agencies purchase products that contain
credit requirements in the LEED recycled materials whenever the following
Green Building Rating System are comparable
address some of the key criteria for Price
product selection. Quality
Environmental Building News Availability
simplified criteria, outlined in the
article, Building Materials: What State agencies must spend a specified
Makes a Product Green? minimum on products that have recycled
content. The required minimum
procurement goal is 50 percent of all the
Environmental Building News Criteria
funds the agencies spends in 11 product
The criteria highlighted in the
categories. Construction products include
Environmental Building News called
glass products, paint, tire derived
Materials: What Makes a Product Green?
products, steel products
Represent a simplified methodology that
can be utilized by anyone attempting to
Products that are Green Because of
consider the sustainable qualities of
What Isn't There
building products. This article is
Specifically:
reproduced at the end of this section.
Alternatives to ozone-depleting
Note that information on materials
substances
presented in the training is also included
Alternatives to products made from
at the end of this section.
PVC and polycarbonate
Alternatives to conventional
The general idea presented in the article
preservative-treated wood that
is that certain key product criteria can be
contains toxins
evaluated to determine how sustainable a
Alternatives to other components
product might, or might not, be.
considered hazardous
Products that Reduce Environmental
The criteria are as follows:
Impacts during Construction,
Products made from Environmentally-
Renovation, or Demolition
Attractive Materials
Specifically:
Specifically:
Products that reduce the impacts of
Products that reduce material use
new construction
Salvaged products
Tackable carpet
Products with post-consumer recycled
Products that reduce the impacts of
content
renovation
Products with post-industrial recycled
Raised flooring
content
Products that reduce the impacts of
Certified wood products
demolition
Products made from agricultural waste
Low mercury fluorescent lamps
material
Products that Reduce Environmental
Natural or minimally processed
Impacts of Building Operation
products
California Sustainable Design 8.3
Training
Sustainable Materials
Specifically: Notes:
Building components that reduce
heating and cooling loads
Equipment that conserves energy
Renewable energy and fuel cell
equipment
Fixtures and equipment that conserve
water
Products with exceptional durability or
low maintenance requirements
Products that prevent pollution or
reduce waste
Products that reduce or eliminate
pesticide treatments
For example, consider the following
comparison of the use of a 27 watt
compact fluorescent vs. a 100 watt
incandescent lamp.
Fluorescent
Incandescent
Cost of Lamps $14.00 $0.50
Lamp Life 4.5 years 0.5 years
Annual Energy $ $5.91 $21.90
# Lamps Replaced
in 4.5 years 0 10
Total Cost $40.60 $103.55
Savings Over
Lamp Life $62.95 0
Products that Contribute to a Safe,
Healthy Indoor Environment
Specifically:
Products that don't release significant
pollutants into the building
Products that block development and
spread of indoor contaminants
Products that remove indoor pollutants
Products that warn occupants of
health hazards in the building
Products that improve light quality
Other Methods of Evaluation
There are also some resources for
evaluating specific products. They
include:
8.4 California Sustainable Design
Training
Sustainable Materials
Carpet. The Carpet and Rug Institute’s By reducing unnecessary resource
Green Label Indoor Air Quality Test extraction
Program indicates that a carpet By minimizing waste generation
manufacturer is committed to developing
ways to minimize any adverse effects on 5. Reduced impacts to air quality; for
indoor air quality. A representative sample example
of the product type is tested by an By selecting low-emitting materials
independent laboratory and meets the By using indoor air quality monitors
established requirements for each
program.
No Cost Material Solutions
Certified Wood. There are certification There are many products that may be
programs for wood products that come considered sustainable that would not add
from well-managed forests. They include: anything to a project’s cost. They include,
and Forest Stewardship Council. for example
Low VOC sealants, adhesives and
Seal. Green Seal is the independent, paints
nonprofit organization dedicated to Recycled content ceiling tiles
protecting the environment by promoting Recycled content ceramic tile –
the manufacture and sale of Ecocycle by Crossville Ceramics
environmentally responsible consumer Reclaimed nylon in carpet
products. It sets environmental standards Reprocessed or consolidated latex
and awards a "Green Seal of Approval" to paint
products that cause less harm to the
environment than other similar products.
Cost Competitive Sustainable
Materials
Benefits of Green Materials
There are a number of products that are
There are many benefits to selecting cost competitive with standard products.
sustainable products, such as
1. Reduced maintenance costs; for
example Agriboard in lieu of particleboard
By specifying easy-to-maintain Agriboard is a term used for agricultural
materials based products such as wheatboard or
By leasing equipment or materials strawboard. These products do not
contain formaldehyde like most
2. Reduced operational costs; for example particleboard does, and they are as
By selecting products that result in durable.
energy savings
3. Reduced replacement of materials Recycled content rubber flooring in
By selecting durable materials
lieu of vinyl composition tile
Using recycled content rubber flooring
4. Reduced environmental impact; for assists in closing the recycling loop as
example
California Sustainable Design 8.5
Training
Sustainable Materials
opposed to using a product with little or no Notes:
recycled content.
Linoleum in lieu of sheet vinyl flooring.
Linoleum is made primarily from
renewable resources, such as linseed oil,
pine resins, jute, cork, and wood wastes.
Specifying linoleum also eliminates
specifying a product that uses chlorine in
the manufacturing process.
Polyolefin wall coverings in lieu of
vinyl wall coverings
Polyolefin wall covering, in contrast with
vinyl wall covering, allows the wall to
“breath”; it does not require the use of
chlorine in the manufacturing process;
and it may be recycled.
TPO Energy Star roofing in lieu of
EPDM
Energy Star roofs have high reflectances
and can assist in reducing a building’s
operating costs by reflecting heat.
“ChipSeal” treatment for improving
solar reflectance asphalt paving
Chip seals are applied in a three-part
process. The asphalt emulsion binder is
first sprayed onto the pavement. This is
followed immediately by an application of
rock chips. Finally, the rocks are pressed
into the asphalt binder using a heavy
roller.
Comparing Materials
Following are two examples of how two
products might be compared for both
environmental and economic criteria.
Polyisocyanurate roofing insulation as
alternate to extruded polystyrene
insulation.
Pros:
8.6 California Sustainable Design
Training
Sustainable Materials
No ODS used as blowing agent.
Reclaimed resins per CPG.
Available in boardstock, tapered and
nailbase.
Meets UL, FM, ICBO criteria for
roofing applications.
Cons:
Proprietary
Cannot be used in vertical
waterproofing applications.
Cannot be used in building interiors
because of toxicity when burning.
Cost is same as other polyisocyanurates
and, depending on market, less than
extruded polystryrenes.
i This manual is being developed as part of a
ten-point plan to implement the Governor's
sustainable building goal as outlined in
Executive Order D-16-00 and the report
Building Better Buildings: A Blueprint for
Sustainable State Facilities (Blueprint). Task 7
of the Blueprint calls for developing
sustainable building technical assistance and
outreach tools, including a training program for
state departments, as well as local
government and private sector partners. This
manual was developed by DGS, the
Sustainable building task force, and CIWMB
as one component of the sustainable building
training program for state departments. This
document will be undergoing constant revision
as other deliverables outlined in the Blueprint
are completed and technological and process
breakthroughs advance the rapidly emerging
field of sustainable design.
California Sustainable Design 8.7
Training
