By K.J. Quinn
Consumers and the A&D community are demanding the use of environmentally friendly building materials like hardwood, observers say, but green means much more than simply being renewable. In addition to the life cycle, one must consider how those resources are used when making a finished product and what happens to them once their useful life is over.

All types of hardwood—whether it is solid, engineered or acrylic impregnated—is the only flooring option completely sustainable, experts concur. “They are the only floor coverings that come from renewable resources,” noted Don Finkell, president and CEO, Anderson Hardwood Floors. “Engineered wood flooring yields about twice as much square footage per board foot of raw material as solid wood flooring.” Engineered wood, in particular, gains more yield from trees because it is thinner than its solid wood counterparts.

Because hardwood can last for hundreds of years, the inventory planted today will be ready to harvest long before it is needed. The proof is in the pudding, as the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service (USDAFS) reports the average annual net growth for hardwoods is greater than average annual removals. For every cubic foot of hardwood removed, 1.66 cubic feet is added, USDAFS reports, and current hardwood volume of 328 billion cubic feet represents a 90% increase since 1953.

When compared to other floor coverings, such gaudy numbers are further reinforced by other superior green benefits. For instance, many environmental groups recognize wood as a carbon neutral material since it has the added benefit of storing carbon during its service life. Trees remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and release oxygen, a unique process which makes wood a carbon neutral substance.

“As people become more aware of issues such as global climate change or tropical deforestation, for example, it is logical to suggest that consumer behavior in the marketplace will favor products that pose fewer threats to sustainability,” said Ed Korczak, executive director, National Wood Flooring Association ( NWFA).

Green benefits

Word is quickly spreading in the residential and commercial sectors about these and other environmental advantages offered by hardwood. An NWFA report comparing solid strip and solid plank hardwood to alternative flooring found environmental concerns are influencing purchasing decisions. These findings are consistent with a recent study conducted by Bernstein-Rein in conjunction with NWFA, which found interior designers prefer natural to man-made materials and recognize the value and appeal offered by wood flooring.

“Most people are just beginning to be interested in environmental issues in the flooring industry, and many manufacturers have only addressed the green part,” said Luc Robitaille, vice president marketing, Mirage Hardwood Floors. “Mirage has decided to take it a step further by implementing a progressive approach to sustainable development.” This focus, Robitaille said, is not only relevant to environmental issues, but also takes into account social equity in manufacturing and long-term economic efficiency to ensure jobs and community thrive.

The fact that wood floors can last the life of a home is a benefit often conveyed by real estate agents and retail salespeople to prospective home buyers. “No other flooring option available lasts as long, which means other flooring alternatives will need to be replaced sooner, using more resources to produce and creating more landfill waste to discard the old, worn-out material,” NWFA’s Korczak said. Wood is also one of the few, if not only, flooring option that does not end up in a landfill after its service life.

In fact, wood is recyclable; materials salvaged from a variety of sources, including old barns and factories, are a popular high-end design trends. “Wood recovered from riverbeds is another growing segment of the wood flooring industry,” Korczak pointed out.

Healthy choice

Indeed, the ecological benefits of wood flooring are one of its strongest selling points, experts say. Because wood does not collect dust and other allergens, many leading health associations recommend the product as being ideal for healthier living. There are no emissions for methane, nitrogen oxide and other particulates, and minimal emissions for carbon dioxide, according to a recent life cycle analysis of solid wood flooring conducted by the University of Wisconsin.

Wood floors have the added benefit of not harboring allergens, micro-organisms or harmful pesticides that can be tracked in from outdoors, according to NWFA. In addition, dust, mold and animal dander contamination is minimal in homes with wood floors, which can significantly improve indoor air quality. Manufacturers such as Mirage are taking the air quality issue a step further by producing engineered wood flooring finished with products that do not emit VOCs or contain formaldehyde.

With new guidelines promoting responsible forest management and flooring certification programs emphasizing environmental friendliness, industry watchers say wood is quickly becoming the preferred flooring of many eco-friendly builders, architects, specifiers, designers and consumers. “The impact of the USGBC possibly opening up its rules to other certifications will highly contribute to more LEED projects that will use wood as a building material in all aspects of construction,” Mirage’s Robitaille said. “This is only good, common sense as we know that wood is one of the most environmentally friendly raw materials.”