Thinking Globally, Building Locally

(This article was originally published in the November '10 issues of Merchant Magazine and Building Products Digest.)

The green building movement is rooted in big thinking, but the USGBC is beginning to think small and local. Their mission is to transform the built environment – that’s thinking big with over 125 million buildings in the US, most of which are energy and water hogs. Considering that buildings account for a third of the US carbon footprint, success is of global importance. After over a decade of leading the commercial building revolution, USGBC has become a transformative force with a valuable brand. But there still remain 120 million less than efficient residential buildings, which is where action must now be focused. This is why the USBGC is putting considerable effort into boosting residential green building in concert with local leaders, which is good news for LBM dealers.

In residential building, there was already a green building movement well under way by the time LEED for Homes arrived on the scene two years ago. Local and regional residential programs have existed for years in progressive cities like Austin, Texas, whose Austin Energy Green Building program was the first in the nation. LEED for Homes shares many similarities with these programs, even though each reflects its own local conditions, both in terms of content and approach. In addition, there are alternatives to LEED, including EnergyStar, NAHB’s program, the new, (to the US,) PassivHaus approach, the International Living Building Institute, the NauHaus Institute, and a host of natural building organizations.

Given these realities, I really like the USGBC’s collaborative approach. They recognize that they’re part of a budding community of green building leaders and that there’s more than one way to build a green home. So, rather than attempt to impose their rating system, they launched the LEED for Homes Affiliate Program with the pragmatic aim of forging working relationships with many green building organizations and local green building leaders, thereby promoting the broader movement in the context of local needs.

“We’re market oriented and are looking to support and promote what’s working in each community,” Nate Kredich, USGBC’s VP for Residential Market Development, told me recently. For example, they’ve been working with North Dallas Green Built and the NAHB, developing educational materials for production builders, dealers and distributors. They’re even helping to produce a “mini GreenBuild” in the area. (By the way, USGBC’s GreenBuild is November 17-19.) In Minnesota, they’ve joined a coalition with Minnesota GreenStar, with its new-build and remodeling rating systems, and Minnesota Green Communities, which advocates for healthy, affordable housing. They’ve also launched the Green Home Guide (www.greenhomeguide.com), a website to help connect homeowners, builders and dealers with trusted information, and with each other.

In terms of economic clout, green residential building is only just finding its feet and, in any case, current economic conditions have strangled most building of any kind. But when homes start to be built again, it’s likely a great percentage will be guided by a national or regional program. “We recognize that for green home building to scale rapidly, it’s important that everyone in the value chain understand the rating systems and are well-connected with their local green builders,” said Kredich, emphasizing the value of education. They’re reaching out to support interested independent dealers, like Shaw Stewart in Minneapolis, as well as the big chains. With many more new green residential products and materials coming to market in 2011, it should be easier for proactive dealers and distributors to rise with the green home building market. If that’s true, then the USGBC’s big thinking could very soon be taking root in a community near you.

Sorting out the Recyclables

(This article was originally published in the September '10 issues of Merchant Magazine and Building Products Digest.)

Nothing says “green” like recycling, or so many people assume. Since the pioneering programs in the 1970s, it seems that now the habit has become ingrained, collection infrastructure ubiquitous, and recycling is among the greenest of virtues we Americans can claim. However, all is not what it seems. Like most issues in the realm of sustainable business and green building, there are various shades of gray, not to mention green.

In today’s green building and green consumer markets, “recycled” and “recyclable” have become the low-hanging fruit for marketers eager to pin green credentials on their products. But these attributes alone don’t necessarily signify sustainable or green in any meaningful sense. Context is everything. What kind of material? What percentage is recycled, and is it post-consumer or post-industrial waste? How relevant is “recyclable” if in fact the material is not recycled? In addition, LEED guidelines vary by application and product type, so a building material with some recycled content may or may not earn LEED credits depending on how and where it’s used. It behooves the merchandiser to dig a little deeper to determine whether these terms indicate real value or are simply a “greenwash.”

In the LBM and home improvement supply chain, aluminum, steel, glass, plastics, paper and wood are the predominant materials potentially recycled or recyclable. Aluminum, glass and steel can be used again to manufacture the same kinds of products indefinitely and can therefore be truly RE-cycled. For example, products like Maze Nails (www.mazenails.com) typically contain a high percentage of recycled steel, as do most steel products made in the USA. Generally, plastics and paper can be used again to manufacture things of lesser material integrity in a limited number of cycles, and are therefore DOWN-cycled. A great example here is Green Fiber (www.greenfiber.com) cellulose insulation, which is made from over 50% post-consumer recycled paper.

Whether a material is recycled, downcycled, or even upcycled, it’s a good thing, since manufacturing from recycled feedstock is often orders of magnitude less energy intensive than manufacturing from virgin feedstock. So, buying and stocking products with recycled content is a good thing, too, creating a market for such products and keeping the demand cycle going, so to speak.

But when evaluating products, all “recycled” and “recyclable” claims are not created equal. Post-consumer recycled content trumps post-industrial every time. Claims that don’t make this distinction should be assumed, if true, to be post-industrial. Is this still good? Yes. Is it the mark of truly sustainable product? Not always. Post-industrial recycled content is usually scraps and cuttings that may or may not be easily put through the production process again. In some cases, such as “re-grind” in the world of plastics, it’s easily reprocessed and is normal operating procedure. Generally speaking, it’s also harder to earn LEED credits with post-industrial recycled content.

The term “recyclable” is next down the list. In fact, it’s very often misused by over eager marketers and can be deceptive. If the material is recyclable in theory, but not in practice, then the claim is probably not worth the virgin paper it’s printed on. In fact, deceptive claims of this sort violate the FTC’s Guides for the Use of Environmental Claims. Where there is no recycling infrastructure, per se, a manufacturer may have a “take back” program, which accomplishes the same thing.

In sorting out products claims concerning recycled content and recyclability, manufacturer transparency and third-party certifications can help separate the green from the greenwash. It can also help to determine whether the product will meet your customer’s LEED project requirements.

Better Living Through (Green) Chemistry

(Originally published in the December '09 issues of Merchant Magazine and Building Products Digest.)

If you’re like me, that phrase brings back memories of nerdy high school science films extolling the modern marvels of convenience, value and progress, made possible by the Chemical Industry. It was a huge post-war economic engine that expanded its reach into nearly every product category and helped fuel the rise of the American suburb. There are now about 80,000 chemicals on the market, but only a few hundred have been tested for human or ecological safety. One unintended consequence is that many of these chemicals have reached into our ecosystems, including the very top of our food chain – us.

“Body burden” is the term toxicologists use to describe the toxic load an individual might be carrying at a given moment – several hundred substances, some of which will accumulate, others metabolized and excreted. Pregnant mothers will pass these substances to her child. One of the common pathways for exposure to toxic chemicals is through inhaling airborne pollutants. Most people have heard by now that indoor air can be far worse than outdoor air, and that the rise of asthma, multiple sclerosis, and other diseases could be caused by long-term, low-level exposures to the chemicals that surround us in daily life. And of course, we spend most of our time indoors.

The LEED rating systems aim to drastically reduce potential exposures to building occupants by limiting the use of emitting materials in the first place, and promoting active measures for improving indoor air quality. I always recommend stocking products that contribute to LEED credits, especially low-emitting, less-toxic products, that appeal to the green builders in your area. Products like formaldehyde-free plywood and cabinets, formaldehyde-free insulation, zero-VOC adhesives, zero-VOC paints and coatings – the list of less-toxic alternatives is long. But the list of emitting products, products that would not meet LEED’s requirements for indoor air quality, is much longer.

I invite you now to get up (after reading the article first, of course!) and follow your nose around your store. Pick up a few products and pronounce their ingredients. The paints, strippers, cleaners, pest killers, weed killers, plywood and treated lumber – what is the quality of this air that you and your staff breathe everyday? There’s a very good chance that some nasty neurotoxins, carcinogens, and endocrine disruptors are floating around in the mix. Unintended consequences, yes. More importantly, the people who might be exposed to off-gassing chemicals are probably the people you most care about. Swapping out the high-emitting products in your inventory, in favor those with zero or dramatically fewer toxic emissions, contributes to a healthier workplace with fewer liability issues.

In the long run, there are large-scale initiatives underway that will eventually lead to safer alternatives through greener chemistry. The Toxic Substances Control Act, the current federal chemical oversight regime, will likely be strengthened, giving the EPA more power to eliminate toxics and require manufacturers to prove health and safety before bringing new formulations to market. In California, the Green Chemical Initiative is undertaking a range of activities designed to make rapid progress eliminating toxics and stimulating growth of greener alternatives. However, the positive effects of these efforts won’t be felt for years.

In the meantime, the motivated dealer can learn more about body burden, LEED and indoor air quality from dozens of informative online resources – start Googling! SCS, GreenGuard and GreenSeal publish lists of their certified products, and there are other green product databases out there, too. The intended consequences could be felt immediately, leaving those you care most about breathing a little easier.

Get Ready for Green Home Builders

(Published in March '09, Merchant Magazine and Building Products Digest)

This year may be remembered for its gargantuan financial meltdown and economic crisis. It may also be remembered as a foundational year for green home building for two big reasons. First, energy and water conservation are more important issues than ever before. With government incentives, such as rebates and weatherization financing, and water rationing looming in some regions of the country, energy and water efficiency are top of mind concerns for home owners and new home buyers. Second, green homes are selling faster than non-green homes. This has been borne out by research conducted by various local green home building programs, but a recent press release from the US Green Building Council indicates that new homes meeting the LEED for Homes standard built by Pulte in Las Vegas, are selling about twice as fast as their conventional homes. The LEED for Homes program is barely a year old and already there’s a ten-fold increase in new homes slated to be certified this year. With production home builders now taking notice, you can bet that a dramatically larger percentage of new housing starts will be green.

If a rebound in new home construction will be led by green, how can retailers position themselves to benefit? To get a broader perspective on this question, I organized a virtual roundtable discussion with some green building professionals. It seemed everyone wanted to talk about LEED for Homes and rising consumer demand. Why? While it’s not necessarily a good fit for every project, it’s a national standard and a strong brand, which is especially good for production builders. New home buyers are already looking for energy efficiency and healthy indoor air quality, so a credible national green certification for homes will help builders sell their green homes quicker, which is what we’re already seeing. And to meet the growing demand for green homes, the new professional credential, LEED AP + Homes, is rolling out this year, which will dramatically increase the number of professionals working in the area. This is precisely where retailers should take notice.

“Retailers who are serious about serving their pro customers need to get themselves educated about the changes transforming the home building industry,” says Michael Strong, president of GreenHaus Builders (www.greenhausbuilders.com) of Houston, Texas. He was one of the first to build a LEED for Homes project, 2008 NAHB Green Building Advocate of the Year, and has been building green for years. He recommends retailers have at least one staff member go through the LEED AP + Homes training and to bring the rest of the staff up to speed – floor staff and buyers. “Nothing’s more frustrating than to spec a product, educate my supplier, only come back for a second purchase to find they no longer stock the product because they didn’t understand it,” says Strong.

Education and training was also a main theme for Heather Gadonniex, LEED AP, and president of sustainability consultancy Green it Group, (www.greenitgroup.com.) “When I meet with major retailers or distributors looking for help in getting into the green building market, I find there’s enormous confusion about green building guidelines and product certifications,” she says. Part of the blame must go to product manufacturers whose sales and marketing people often add to the confusion. But retailers must ultimately know about the products their pro customers want and develop the expertise to anticipate their needs as technologies, green building guidelines and product certifications evolve. “Retailers should look for products from manufacturers who provide back up documentation to support the validity of their green product claims and, when necessary, obtain third party certification,” says Gadonniex.

While LEED for Homes is a national standard, it includes credit for locally produced materials and innovations appropriate for local conditions. Of course, there are also local and regional green building programs that very often offer a simpler alternative for local builders. According Clarke Snell, author and principal of Think Green Building, (www.thinkgreenbuilding.com), a green and natural builder in North Carolina, thinking local is the right approach. “Building for local climate conditions with locally produced materials is what builders should be focused on, therefore it should be the focus for retailers, too,” says Snell. “Selling FSC certified lumber products from the other side of the planet just doesn’t make sense.” While sourcing locally might be hard for big box chains, it could be a valuable differentiator for knowledgeable independents.