GreenClips.236 03.17.04 HAPPY BIRTHDAY GREENCLIPS! This year is GreenClips' 10th birthday! Celebrate by donating to GreenClips. Your donations keep us going year after year. Visit www.greenclips.com for info. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . SUSTAINABLE DESIGN CHOICES FOR AMERICAN HARDWOODS Even though the volume of hardwood in American forests has increased 90 percent since 1953, architects, specifiers and designers could be doing more to ensure hardwood -- oak, maple, cherry, ash and poplar, to name just a few of the available species -- is used in an environmentally responsible manner. Despite the increased emphasis on green choices, little has changed since 1928 when American conservationist Aldo Leopold lamented "our universal insistence on clear hardwoods" for furniture and interior woodwork. "The greater part of our enormous hardwood waste occurs in the process of trimming out knots," he wrote. To reduce this waste, choose products that have more natural color variations and character markings, rather than primarily specifying upper-grade FAS (firsts and seconds) and Clear grades that have limited knots and markings. Also, consider the sawing method. The design community often demands quarter-sawn or rift-sawn products out of concern for dimensional stability. However, flat sawing produces more and wider lumber at lower cost, and performs just as well when handled and stored properly on-site, allowed to acclimate before installation, and installed properly at the recommended moisture levels. And select hardwood species that are native to your particular region or species that are abundant, such as oak, which makes up 52 percent of the total American hardwood resource. The Construction Specifier, Mar 2004, p 24, by Susan Regan. DESIGN SCIENCE FIRMS AIM FOR ARTFUL, ECOLOGICALLY ACCURATE LANDSCAPES Some landscape architecture firms -- they might be called "design science" firms -- are working to unite the artistic and scientific sides of their profession, rather than merely recognizing that landscape design and ecology make separate contributions to the dialogue about landscape. A design science firm is different from a conventional landscape architecture office in several ways. Design science firms include professionals with design training and professionals with scientific training in the same offices and on the same projects. They perform ongoing research, through either test projects or post-occupancy monitoring. And they lean more heavily on the science than they do on the design. Ultimately, design science firms have a different definition of a beautiful landscape. To them, a deeply resonant landscape results from a correctly functioning ecosystem. Once that is established, the human experience -- the plazas, walkways, roadways, art -- is laid lightly into the landscape. The resulting aesthetic quality can be quite rustic. Notable design science firms include Conservation Design Forum in the Chicago area, Kestrel Design Group in Minneapolis, and Applied Ecological Services in southern Wisconsin. Landscape Architecture, Mar 2004, p 46, by Adam Regn Arvidson. [More: http://www.cdfinc.com ; http://www.kestreldesigngroup.com ; http://www.appliedeco.com ] NEW PERMEABLE WALLCOVERING SUBSTRATES RESIST MOLD GROWTH Mold, which has become a major health concern in homes and commercial buildings, often occurs when moisture trapped in the wallboard and adjacent air space is unable to migrate through a non-permeable wallcovering. Materials can be separated into three classes based on their perm ratings [a perm measures, at 73.4 degrees F (23 degrees C), the number of grains of water vapor that pass through a square foot of material per hour at a differential vapor pressure equal to one inch of mercury]: 0 to 1 -- Impermeable (Vapor Barrier); 1 to 10 -- Semi-permeable (Vapor retarder); More than 10 -- Permeable (Breathable). A Type I vinyl wallcovering may have a perm rating of just over 1 (semi-permeable), whereas a Type II vinyl wallcovering has a perm rating of less than 1 (impermeable). The low permeability of vinyl wallcovering is more likely to trap moisture in the wallboard and wall cavity. Some manufacturers are introducing permeable wallcovering substrates that resist mold development. For example, Hollingsworth & Vose's Holltek line of commercial and residential substrates have perm measurements above 30 before printing and about 13 to 20 after inks and stain retardant layers are applied. Made of synthetic fiber and a combination of virgin and recycled cellulose, these substrates allow water vapor to easily migrate through the wallcovering. In addition, they are made without PVC and formaldehyde. Environmental Design + Construction, Mar-Apr 2004, p 64, by Jim Vogt. [Full text: http://www.edcmag.com/CDA/ArticleInformation/features/BNP__Features__Item/0,4120,120742,00.html ; More: http://www.hovo.com/products/industrial/wallcovering/index.htm ] GREEN HOME REMODELING GUIDES ONLINE Seattle, Washington's Sustainable Building Program has created a series of colorful guides certain to entice residents to think green when it comes to remodeling their homes. The Green Home Remodel guides include a general overview of green remodeling plus detailed booklets on specific projects, including kitchen, bath and laundry, and roofing. Future publications will focus on paints and finishes, landscape materials, and hiring a professional. Each guide includes resources. To download: http://www.seattle.gov/sustainablebuilding/greenhome.htm In Business, Jan/Feb 2004, p 9. RESEARCHERS WORKING ON TINY WIRELESS SENSORS TO REDUCE ENERGY DEMAND Researchers at the University of California at Berkeley are developing a building technology called Smart Dust "motes" -- coin-size wireless sensors that keep a constant vigil on temperature, light, motion and power consumption. The motes, some of which run on tiny solar cells or batteries, are loaded with TinyOS, an operating system developed with Intel. They function by self-organizing into wireless networks that pass along data to a central computer for processing. Another effort, supported by the California Energy Commission, combines a network of tiny sensors, smart thermostats and demand-response pricing to reduce brownouts. "From June through September, we always see huge peaks in energy demand," says mechanical-engineering professor Paul Wright, who is working on the project with Ed Arens, director of Berkeley's Center for the Built Environment. Demand-response cooling could help reduce that peak demand, using motes to monitor temperatures in various parts of a building and relay data to a networked thermostat. Meanwhile, sensors coupled to electrical circuits in breaker boxes could monitor the power consumption of other appliances. As energy prices shifted hourly, they would be transmitted wirelessly from the utility company to a smart meter at the site. One key to such a system is for energy companies to institute a time-of-use pricing structure for households as well as commercial buildings. Interior Design, Feb 2004, p 122, by David Pescovitz. [More: http://www.cbe.berkeley.edu/RESEARCH/briefs-Demand.htm ] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 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