Environmental Issues in Construction
Green design is not merely the use of energy-efficient materials. It also involves the creation of products and systems that leave a light footprint on the environment over the full life-cycle—from production to transportation, installation, use and renewal. As such, sustainable green design should be thought of as a process, not just a goal—allowing for a broader evaluation of the environmental, economical and societal impacts of product, as single units and as part of their environment.
When considering environmental issues in construction and life cycle, some focus on evaluation of manufactured products in terms of waste disposal (although a product’s end-use can account for as much as 90 percent of a product’s impact on the environment). Instead, a host of factors and influences of a product’s impact on society should be evaluated and contrasted to the product’s performance. A systems approach allows for determination of the environmental impact of a product in terms of energy consumption at each state of a product’s life cycle, beginning at the point of raw materials extraction from the earth and proceeding through processing, manufacturing, fabrication, end-use and disposal. Transportation of materials and products to each process step should also be included.
In support of this systems approach to sustainable and green building design, the Plastics Division of American Chemistry Council (ACC) has drafted the following guidelines for building design, systems and products:
National TV-radio personality and home improvement expert Danny Lipford has developed a series of do-it-yourself videos that show homeowners how to update their homes and improve energy efficiency by using plastic home building products.
Home improvement expert Bill McCauley shows homeowners how to build sustainable buildings, buildings that meet the test of time, and a healthy home.
Learn more about how EPS reduces global warming.
GBS asked the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) to build several walls, use ASTM standards to measure performance and report the results at ASHRAE ‘s NY Conference.
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