naturally:wood, a resource of British Columbia’s Forestry Innovation Investment, has released “A Natural Choice: How Wood Contributes to Sustainability’s Triple Bottom Line,” the third CEU course in a three-part series dedicated to examining and comparing the environmental footprint of wood, concrete and steel. Together, the three courses offer architects and specifiers an overview of each material’s performance attributes and explore how wood fits into the overall design of a sustainably built structure.
The three courses comprise:
Designing sustainable buildings requires an understanding of the environmental footprint of each material in the structure. Using research and facts, “Materials Matter” examines the differences between three common building materials—wood, steel and concrete—in terms of their environmental footprint at several stages of the life-cycle process, including raw resource extraction, manufacturing and transportation. Responsible procurement, sustainability and community issues also are discussed.
The second course delves even deeper by exploring how wood, concrete and steel have an environmental impact on building construction, operation and end of life. This article explains the differences between these three materials in terms of basic characteristics and material properties, performance during the building operations phase, and sustainability factors including carbon footprint and material reuse.
By examining how wood contributes to a project’s environmental bottom line, the final course in the series provides a broader view of the meaning of sustainability, while offering specific examples of rating systems and defining green design. BD+C
Related Stories
Sponsored | | Dec 3, 2014
Modular Space Showcase: Bringing work-life balance to energy workers in the Bakken region
To meet the demands of the booming energy business, Williston needs to provide homes, recreation centers, restaurants, hotels, and other support facilities for the tidal wave of energy workers relocating to the Bakken Shale area. SPONSORED CONTENT
| Dec 3, 2014
U.S., Canada, and Mexico finalize agreement to recognize architect credentials
The agreement represents over a decade of negotiations, bringing cross-border recognition of professional credentials from concept to reality in the spirit of the North American Free Trade Agreement.
| Dec 3, 2014
35 cities added to Rockefeller Foundation's 100 Resilient Cities Challenge
Chicago, Dallas, and Pittsburgh are among the U.S. cities to join the 100 Resilient Cities Challenge, pioneered by The Rockefeller Foundation.
| Dec 2, 2014
First existing multifamily buildings to earn Energy Star certification unveiled
River City in Chicago is one of 17 existing multifamily properties to earn Energy Star certification, which became available to this sector on Sept. 16 via a scoring system for multifamily properties that Energy Star and Fannie Mae had been developing for three years.
| Dec 2, 2014
Nashville planning retail district made from 21 shipping containers
OneC1TY, a healthcare- and technology-focused community under construction on 18.7 acres near Nashville, Tenn., will include a mini retail district made from 21 shipping containers, the first time in this market containers have been repurposed for such use.
| Dec 2, 2014
Main attractions: New list tallies up the Top 10 museums completed this year
The list includes both additions to existing structures and entirely new buildings, from Frank Gehry's Foundation Louis Vuitton in Paris to Shigeru Ban's Aspen (Colo.) Art Museum.
| Dec 2, 2014
Nonresidential construction spending rebounds in October
This month's increase in nonresidential construction spending is far more consistent with the anecdotal information floating around the industry, says ABC's Chief Economist Anirban Basu.
| Dec 2, 2014
Hoffmann Architects announces promotions
The architecture and engineering firm specializing in the rehabilitation of building exteriors announces the promotion of members of its Connecticut staff.
| Dec 2, 2014
SPARK designs urban farming housing for Singapore’s elderly population
The proposal blends affordable retirement housing with urban farming by integrating vertical aquaponic farming and rooftop soil planting into multi-unit housing for seniors.
| Dec 2, 2014
Bjarke Ingels unveils cave-like plan for public square in Battersea Power Station
A Malaysian development consortium is guiding the project, which is meant to mimic the caves of Gunung Mulu National Park in Sarawak, East Malaysia.