One precept from the great minimalist architect Mies van der
Rohe that applies beautifully to sustainable design is “Less is more.” When those of us who specialize in green
design use this phrase, we’re not referring to style, but to the use of
materials and resources. There are four
basic precepts to conserving materials and resources, all of which begin with
an R – recycle, reuse, regional, and renewable.
Storage and Collection of Recyclables
Recycling materials that can be reused is so important that
the U.S. Green Building Council has made storage and collection of recyclables,
including paper, corrugated cardboard, glass, plastic and metals a prerequisite
in order for a building or an interior project to achieve LEED Certification.
Tenant Space, Long Term Commitment and Building Reuse
In many cases, the greenest thing that you can do is to
avoid or limit construction. LEED
recognizes this by encouraging people to find space that will serve their needs
for a long time (and to commit to a long-term lease) and that needs relatively
little reconfiguration (to limit the need for demolition and new construction).
Construction Waste Management, Resource Reuse, and
Resource Reuse – Furnishing, and Recycled Content
Resource Reuse – Furnishing, and Recycled Content
LEED encourages limiting the materials that wind up in
landfill by salvaging or recycling construction, demolition and packaging
debris. The standard encourages the reuse of building materials from the
original building (for example, refurbishing and reusing existing hardware) or
other buildings (for example, using paneling or beams from a resource specializing
in architectural salvage).
LEED also awards points for reusing furniture
that you already own and / or purchasing used furniture.
Recycling only works if the materials saved are then
used. It has become relatively easy to
find high-quality attractive construction materials and furnishings with high
recycled content. LEED awards more points for recycling post-consumer materials
than industrial materials.
Regional Materials and
Regional Materials, Extracted and Manufactured Regionally
Regional Materials, Extracted and Manufactured Regionally
The further things travel, the more energy is used for
transportation, so a project can earn LEED credit by using materials and
furnishings that are manufactured locally, or better still, manufactured
locally from materials extracted locally.
Rapidly Renewable Materials and Certified Wood
LEED encourages the use of rapidly renewable materials
instead of those that take time to mature. Trees take a long time to grow,
whereas bamboo can grow a foot a day and cork (which is the bark of cork trees)
can be harvested every year without damaging the trees. Wheat not only matures quickly, the material
used in buildings can be a by-product of producing food.
While the United States and most of Europe have high
standards for forest management, many other countries allow trees to be
clear-cut. Clear-cutting rapidly
depletes a valuable natural resource and causes problems with erosion, floods, climate
change and air quality. A project can
earn LEED credit if at least half of the new wood used is certified by the
Forest Stewardship Council.
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