Successfully installing healthier materials requires explicitly specifying acceptable products in the project documents. While not difficult, the design team must be more precise than usual by listing product model numbers—not simply manufacturers or product lines—and by specifying ancillary products such as adhesives, sealants and finishes. The R2G platform provides a structured product management tool that […]
True progress on climate change requires government action, a notion perhaps best summarized by environmentalist Rev. Fred Small, “Changing a light bulb is good. Changing a senator is better.” However, for healthier materials policy is not the primary solution, as it is with climate change. Instead, when lawmakers regulate chemicals a common result is that manufacturers turn to regrettable substitutions, rather than identifying healthier chemical alternatives.
1. Start now: Begin with small actions (use one step from side two) and expand from there.
2. Define your goals:
1. Composite Woods: Specify No Added Formaldehyde (NAF), which is more stringent than No Added Urea Formaldehyde (NAUF).
2. Resilient Flooring
If your organization wants to reduce embodied carbon in your building projects, what can you do? The best way to answer the question of whether new construction or renovation is preferable from a climate perspective is do a life cycle carbon scenario analysis of both possibilities. Ultimately, you may even decide on renovation or new construction based on other factors, but commit to prioritizing low-carbon construction in the chosen scenario. Depending on the project, careful decisions in either a renovation or new construction may be more important for climate impact than whether you undertake one or the other.