Sustainable floors

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Having sustainable floors in your home is an excellent way to support a green lifestyle. Americans make up five percent of the world’s population. Despite this small percentage, we manage to use up twenty-seven percent of all the wood harvested in the world. There are many different ways in which consumers can do their part to reduce the strain placed on the forests of our planet.

The concept of owning sustainable floors does not do away entirely with the possibility of wooden flooring. Sustainable living implies taking what we need from planet in such a way that nature has time to replenish itself so that the balance of resources is not offset. You can have beautiful wooden floors and know that you are not wasting the earth’s resources by selecting wood which you know has come to you through sustainable methods. This means it was either grown through sustainable farming, or the wood has been reclaimed or recycled.

Choose wood which has been approved by the Forest Stewardship Council, or FSC. Wood coming with the FSC label has met their standards of sustainability. Some important factors they consider in giving this label are:
• The protection of the soil and indigenous species of a forest.
• Minimal use of chemicals and genetic engineering.
• The protection of forest watersheds.
• The input of local populations on forestry procedures.
• The upholding of fair-labor policies.

A competing labeling program is the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI.) However, this program does not meet some basic criteria of the Consumers Union (CU.) The CU’s eco-label website notes that the SFI has no standard of chemical management. It also does meet their standards of checks of interest, or have satisfactory definitions of crucial terms, such as “old growth.” (“Old growth forests” are often rare habitats with rare species. Many people feel a necessity to protect such places. For this reason, having a definition of what areas deserve to be protected could be considered a crucial point of interest for an organization truly dedicated to sustainable methods.)

There are other options for sustainable floors beyond making wise choices in wood. Bamboo is not a tree but instead a type of grass. It grows much more quickly than trees and its populations are far easier to sustain than any hardwood tree. Linoleum is another eco-friendly option, though it is not to be confused with vinyl flooring. Linoleum is made from solidified linseed oil backed with burlap or canvas. Another flooring option is to use recycled glass tile.

Concrete can also be a green decision for your flooring needs. Because of its density, concrete is capable of retaining heat very efficiently. There is a lot of potential for using concrete to increase the energy efficiency of your home. It can also be stamped, stained, and finished to resemble a variety of materials.

The production of concrete can require large amounts of energy. However, there are various ways to offset this drawback. For instance, you can use concrete which incorporates fly ash (a coal-burning byproduct,) or that is made with recycled materials like ashcrete or foamcrete.

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