| GreenClips.235 03.03.04 GREENCLIPS WELCOMES ARMSTRONG CEILING SYSTEMS, OUR NEWEST SPONSOR GreenClips comes to you free of charge thanks to the generous support of individual readers and sponsors including Armstrong. Scroll down for more about all our sponsors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . TERRAZZO FLOORS: HIGH PERFORMANCE, LASTING BEAUTY A comparison of various flooring products using the BEES 3.0 lifecycle assessment tool shows terrazzo to be more environmentally friendly over the product's life than linoleum, carpet or vinyl composition tile. Terrazzo is a poured-in-place or precast composite material used for floor surfaces and wall treatments. It consists of marble, quartz, granite, glass or other "chips" held together with a cementitious or resinous binder. Terrazzo is cured, ground and polished to produce a smooth or uniformly textured surface. Historically, cement has been the binder matrix, but about 30 years ago polymer products were substituted for the cement, leading to the development of thin-set epoxy terrazzo. Thin-set epoxy terrazzo typically contains no volatile organic compound (VOCs) or formaldehyde and produce no toxic emissions. In addition to marble or granite chips, other design options include recycled glass and recycled plastic chips. Installation accounts for most of terrazzo's cost, with prices varying from $9.00/sf to over $50.00/sf ($100/m2 to $550/m2). [For the Glass Packaging Institute's list of cullet (used glass) processors visit: http://www.gpi.org/Processors.html ] More: tmurphy@generalpolymers.com The Construction Specifier, Feb 2004, p 64, by Tom Murphy. EPA LAUNCHES SMARTWAY TRANSPORT PARTNERSHIP FOR FREIGHT INDUSTRY In February the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) launched a new program focused on making America's freight industry more efficient and less polluting. The SmartWay Transport Partnership involves partnerships between EPA, freight carriers, and shippers that hire these carriers. Suggested strategies for carriers to improve their environmental performance include using wide-base tires and low-viscosity lubricants, and reducing highway speeds and idle times. Suggested strategies for shippers include selecting the most efficient mode of transportation, combining orders to create full truckloads, and scheduling raw-material pick-ups to coincide with product deliveries. The program also includes an educational component to encourage idling reduction, and promotes the use of railways for freight. On average, trains are nearly ten times more efficient than trucks in terms of energy use per ton-mile. More: http://www.epa.gov/smartway Environmental Building News, Mar 2003, p 3, by Jessica Boehland. DAYLIGHTING NEEDS A NEW GENERATION OF DESIGN TOOLS To directly compare various daylighting designs or optimize glazing to maximize net energy savings, it's important to know the kWh/m2/y (kWh/sf-yr) for the entire lighting system. This figure, which indicates the system's energy use and space heat gain, provides a measure of the true efficiency of the system. To calculate system energy use, an integrated software package is required that not only looks at how daylight is introduced to the space, but also addresses the lighting design and system controls. There currently don't seem to be any programs that can easily and accurately produce such a figure. An ideal program would treat daylight design as a specialty in its own right and would accommodate all the requirements of the engineer, architect and end-user. Such a program would calculate daylight levels from a three-dimensional model using a radiosity or ray tracing method; include electric lighting design and controls; simulate the zoning of lights; include a full simulation of outside light levels for every hour; and be integrated with thermal simulations to allow for heat gain analysis. None of the software packages currently available provide the holistic information that would enable daylight design to be easily integrated into the building process. Building Services Journal (U.K.), Feb 2004, p 55, by Chris Croly and Martin Lupton. HOMEOWNERS: HOW TO FIND A GREEN GENERAL CONTRACTOR Thinking about building or remodeling -- and want to be sure it's as green as you can make it? Finding the right contractor is crucial. Green contractors are trained to build and/or design projects that are energy-, water-, and resource-efficient, as well as to employ methods that ensure proper indoor ventilation. Unfortunately, most contractors don't have this type of training. Your best bet is to seek out a contractor who has been designated a Master Builder by the Energy and Environmental Building Association (EEBA) or has been certified by the National Association of the Remodeling Industry (NARI). In the San Francisco Bay Area, NARI has begun offering Certified Green Building Professional status to licensed building professionals who complete a course on applying green building methods and materials (http://www.sfbanari.com). If you can't find a certified contractor but are lucky enough to have a contractor who is willing to work with you, then it's important to do your own research on green building. A good place to start is the publications available at http://www.eeba.org. Natural Home, Mar-Apr 2004, p 80, by Barry Chalofsky; and SFBA NARI website. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GreenClips is free of charge thanks to individual members and these sponsors: ARMSTRONG CEILING SYSTEMS http://www.armstrong.com/commceilingsna/article10790.html Armstrong offers an expanding portfolio of sustainable ceiling products. Through the Ceiling Recycling Program, an industry first and only one of its kind, old tiles are shipped to an Armstrong plant, not a landfill; 17 million square feet recycled to date. ENVIRONDESIGN8 Explore the emerging issues, global perspectives and real-life solutions that define 21st-century sustainable design and building practices. April 21-23, 2004, Minneapolis, Minnesota; http://www.environdesign.com EPA'S ENVIRONMENTALLY-PREFERABLE PURCHASING PROGRAM Greening the government, one purchase at a time. http://www.epa.gov/opptintr/epp 5th ANNUAL RECYCLED PRODUCT TRADE SHOW The California Integrated Waste Management Board (Board) is hosting the 5th Annual Recycled Product Trade Show, March 10-11, 2004 at the Sacramento Convention Center in Sacramento, California. The Trade Show brings together approximately 2,000 attendees from the public and private sectors to explore environmental products and services in over 100 booths. The purpose of the show is to increase purchasing of recycled-content products and environmentally preferable products and services. Along with a myriad of other diverse products, this year's show will highlight sustainable building products and services. In addition, the Board has scheduled the Trade Show to coincide with the California Resource Recovery Association's Training Conference, March 8-10, 2004, also at the Convention Center. Admission to the Trade Show is FREE and walk-up registration is available. For more information, please visit http://www.ciwmb.ca.gov/buyrecycled/Events/TradeShow/ or call 916. 341.6481. GREEN BUILDING SERVICES http://www.greenbuildingservices.com Green Building Services offers environmental design and energy efficient consulting services to help you design, build and market high-performance commercial buildings, through design charrettes, energy analyses and the entire LEED certification process. WSU ENERGY PROGRAM http://www.energy.wsu.edu Providing objective research, information and solutions. Washington State University Cooperative Extension Energy Program in Olympia, Washington. Subscribe to GreenClips and other mailing lists on energy and the environment at http://listserv.energy.wsu.edu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GREENCLIPS NEEDS YOUR SUPPORT! Twice a month GreenClips is distributed electronically to over 10,000 readers interested in sustainable building design. But we can't do it without the financial support of our sponsors and members. If you find GreenClips valuable, please consider becoming a sponsor or voluntary member. Email chrishammer@greenclips.com for details. ABOUT THE PUBLISHER: Sustainable design consultant Chris Hammer publishes GreenClips in San Francisco. Ms. Hammer helps her clients with environmentally responsible approaches to urban planning and development, and to building design, construction, and operation. GreenClips is edited by Jennifer Roberts, author of "Good Green Homes: Creating Better Homes for a Healthier Planet" (http://www.goodgreenhomes.com). To CONTACT THE PUBLISHER: Email chrishammer@greenclips.com or call 415.928.7941. BACK ISSUES Two Internet sites host GreenClips archives for reference and research: http://listserv.energy.wsu.edu/greenclips/visit.html (keyword search) http://www.greenclips.com (browse contents) REDISTRIBUTION Please do not redistribute or post copies of GreenClips regularly. Encourage readers who receive GreenClips from you to subscribe directly. Continuing sponsorship depends on accurate reader counts. SUBSCRIBE / UNSUBSCRIBE To subscribe via e-mail send a blank message to subscribe-greenclips@listserv.energy.wsu.edu To unsubscribe via e-mail send a blank message to unsubscribe-greenclips@listserv.energy.wsu.edu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Copyright 2003 Sustainable Design Resources. All rights reserved. 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