Mar 13 2010
Green Bamboo Flooring
Green is not just the color of grass anymore. It is the word of the century and is on the topic of many discussions, from the Monday morning water cooler gab to the million dollar business board meeting, green and saving the environment has become synonymous. Going green or being green is the term used to describe sustainability and recyclable products. Green bamboo flooring is another way to bring sustainability into the business or home by way of the flooring chosen.
Many people are taking extra steps to help save the planet by recycling, purchasing products that are made from recycled materials, turning off lights to conserve power and many other steps. What many people do not realize is that they can also go green using bamboo flooring.
Choosing bamboo flooring saves hundreds of trees from being harvested and made into hardwood flooring. In addition, it saves the environment from up to a hundred years of being without those same trees to protect the land from runoff that occurs when there are no trees to protect the ground.
The atmosphere suffers from the reduction in the carbon dioxide and nitrogen exchange that occurs during a trees lifetime. With bamboo, the harvest period is from four to five years. This means that the window of barren land is narrow, a four to five year period compared to a fifty to one hundred year period with traditional hardwoods.
In addition to the atmosphere and soil conditions changing when hardwood trees are harvested for flooring there are many different species of animals that are dislocated due to deforestation. Over time this dislocation can lead to the extinction of some species and an altering of the biodiversity of the planet. In some cases this could have repercussions, such as disease being carried to man that would not have been if the mosquito had been eaten by an animal that lived in the forest. Using bamboo to create green flooring systems helps to prevent scenarios like this from becoming reality.
Green bamboo flooring has been used in China for hundreds of years; in fact, bamboo has been used for much more than just flooring and has proven to be as strong and durable as traditional hardwoods. In addition to its beauty and green factor, bamboo is relatively inexpensive, when compared to solid hardwood floors made of oak or other hardwood.
Green bamboo flooring is not the answer to the entire sustainability and recycling issue. But it is a major step in the right direction and another piece of the overall picture that needs to be in place. Homeowners and developers should consider green bamboo flooring when making decisions on remodeling or building a new home. Bamboo is both beautiful and smart for the environment.
-Sharon Chapman
Related posts: