Bamboo’s environmental benefits are numerous in relation to wood and other resources, and today's heightened eco-awareness has given sales of bamboo flooring, clothing, building materials and other items a huge boost. Pictured: a new finished bamboo living room floor.
Image: library_chic, courtesy Flickr.
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Dear EarthTalk: I’ve noticed that bamboo is very trendy right now, apparently—in part—for environmental reasons. Can you enlighten?
-- Eric M., via e-mail
Bamboo has a long history of economic and cultural significance, primarily in East Asia and South East Asia where it has been used for centuries for everything from building material to food to medicine. There are some 1,000 different species of bamboo growing in very diverse climates throughout the world, including the southeastern United States.
Bamboo’s environmental benefits arise largely out of its ability to grow quickly—in some cases three to four feet per day—without the need for fertilizers, pesticides or much water. Bamboo also spreads easily with little or no care. In addition, a bamboo grove releases some 35 percent more oxygen into the air than a similar-sized stand of trees, and it matures (and can be replanted) within seven years (compared to 30-50 years for a stand of trees), helping to improve soil conditions and prevent erosion along the way. Bamboo is so fast-growing that it can yield 20 times more timber than trees on the same area.
Today, heightened consumer environmental awareness has given sales of bamboo flooring, clothing, building materials and other items a huge boost.
As an attractive and sturdy alternative to hardwood flooring, bamboo is tough to beat. According to Pacific Northwest green building supplier Ecohaus, bamboo—one of the firm’s top selling flooring options—is harder, more moisture resistant and more stable than even oak hardwoods. Ecohaus carries both the EcoTimber and Teragren brands of bamboo, and ships worldwide.
Bamboo is also making waves in the clothing industry as an eco-chic and functional new fabric. Softer than cotton and with a texture more akin to silk or cashmere, bamboo clothes naturally draw moisture away from the skin, so it’s great for hot weather or for sweaty workouts. It also dries in about half the time as cotton clothing.
Some critics point out that the process of converting bamboo to fabric can take a heavy environmental toll, with the most cost-effective and widespread method involving a harsh chemical-based hydrolysis-alkalization process followed by multi-phase bleaching. The Green Guide counters, though, that bamboo still has a much lower environmental impact than pesticide-laden conventional cotton and petroleum-derived nylon and polyester fabrics. Consumers interested in trying out bamboo clothing should look for the Bamboosa and EcoDesignz labels, two of the leaders in the fast-growing sector of green fashion.
Bamboo is also making inroads into the paper industry, though there are fears that too fast a transition there would threaten ecologically diverse bamboo forests across Southeast Asia and elsewhere. The Earth Island Institute, among other groups concerned about forest loss due to paper consumption, would instead like to see more research into using agricultural waste to make paper instead of wood pulp or bamboo. Regardless, bamboo in all its forms might one day soon be one of the most important plants in the world.
CONTACTS: Ecohaus, www.ecohaus.com; The Green Guide, www.thegreenguide.com; Bamboosa, www.bamboosa.com; EcoDesignz, www.ecodesignz.com; Earth Island Institute, www.earthisland.org.
EarthTalk is produced by E/The Environmental Magazine. GOT AN ENVIRONMENTAL QUESTION? Send it to: EarthTalk, c/o E/The Environmental Magazine, P.O. Box 5098, Westport, CT 06881; submit it at: www.emagazine.com/earthtalk/thisweek/, or e-mail: earthtalk@emagazine.com. Read past columns at: www.emagazine.com/earthtalk/archives.php.
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12 Comments
Add CommentThe trouble is - bamboo has to take a long ocean voyage before it gets to N America. I can't help but think local materials are better.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisBamboo grows quite well locally. Actually I think it's listed as invasive here in the south. Though it doesn't really spread by seed.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisBamboo may be environmentally friendly, but using oak and other hardwoods that have been grown in a sustainable manner in local forests creates a demand that encourages landowners to maintain those forests and lessens that chance that they may be cleared for development or agriculture.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisThere are 1000s of species of bamboo and the ones usually made into flooring and furniture are laminated into strips, usually in Asia.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisIf you know of a N American company making products from native bamboo, share it with us.
The bamboo flooring I tested scored and dented much more noticably than the hardwood flooring. The bamboo shirt I have is nice, but it sure is not silky. It's like a slightly starched cotton in texture.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thishttp://images.google.com/images?um=1&hl=en&q=+glass+floor&btnG=Search+Images http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=metal%20deck%20%20grating&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wi glass or metal deck transmit sunlight. you don't have to burn coal for light
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI have spent my spare time for the last three years building my home in as responsible a manner as possible. icf walls, soy foam insulation, lyptes wood counter top and yes Bamboo flooring. I priced it and by purhasing it at lumber liquidators it was only about $2.79 a sqft. for 5 coat protectant with a vert. orientation. I JUST LOVE IT AND COULD NOT BE HAPPIER WITH IT'S PREFORMANCE. I have to tell you cost was a big issue with me and if you compare it to hardwood or even good carpeting it is a darn good value and easy to install yourself.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisBeing green doesn't always mean spening more.
Thank you for your article.
Michael Gannon
Rogers , AR
Bamboo flooring is "relatively" for the environment and it looks great once installed; however, if it gets a scratch it is very hard to fix, and specially to resurface. Bamboo flooring is made with strips of thin bamboo and if you sand more than necessary it could totally ruin you floor. Moreover, bamboo flooring chips easily at the end cuts. I do not recommend it for steps (staircase)because I have seen two getting broken in less than 2 years. I really feel as if bamboo is very delicate. I am an environmentalist myself and so is my uncle, reason why he got the bamboo flooring, but it is not standing to its famous hardness and efficiency. Also, we should consider investing more at home and not so much one more ship with loads from Asia. Ships also consume fuel, don't they? and once in one coast, they have to be transported in large diesel trucks to a lumber yard, right?
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI think we should investigate more on this issue.
Max B.
Connecticut
The silky shiny bamboo fabrics are made from viscose process i.e. a lot of harmful chemicals are being used during manufacturing that cannot be considered as eco friendly... Yup the original bamboo clothing will be like starchy cotton as bamboo has gummy substance (hemicellulose, lignin and so on) in its chemical constituents... to make finer softy clothing, effective manufacturing method is required to be developed.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisBamboo flooring(http://www.floorproducer.com) is considered to be one of the best choices for interior design, and especially for kitchens. Bamboo could bring some warm feeling to the room while linoleum and tile are bringing cold feeling. It is quite easy to clean as well as it is high resistant to water and fire.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisBamboo flooring(http://www.floorproducer.com) is considered to be one of the best choices for interior design, and especially for kitchens. Bamboo could bring some warm feeling to the room while linoleum and tile are bringing cold feeling. It is quite easy to clean as well as it is high resistant to water and fire.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisMore green-washing of a highly manufactured product.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisIf only people had the real cost of this product.
http://kmswoodworks.wordpress.com/2010/04/18/the-great-green-washing-of-bamboo-flooring/