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Sustainable flooring is produced from sustainable materials (and by a sustainable process) that reduces demands on ecosystems during its life-cycle. This includes harvest, production, use and disposal. It is thought that sustainable flooring creates safer and healthier buildings and guarantees a future for traditional producers of renewable resources that many communities depend on. Several initiatives have led the charge to bring awareness of sustainable flooring as well as and healthy buildings (air quality).〔(Forest Stewardship Council ), FSC〕〔(The Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification ), PEFC〕〔(Sustainable Forestry Initiative ), SFI〕 Below are examples of available, though sometimes less well-known, eco-friendly flooring options.〔Luetdke A. (2002). Floor coverings, dust and airborne contaminants. Available: http://www.flooringsciences.org/e-journal/0407/0407_Luedtke_Dust-Airborne-Contaminants.pdf. Last accessed 16 May 2009〕〔DEFRA. (2009). What is sustainable development?. Available: http://www.defra.gov.uk/sustainable/government/what/index.htm. Last accessed 16 May 2009〕〔Brenda&Robert Vale (2000), ''The new Autonomous house'', Thames &Hudson 〕〔DEFRA. (2008). Consumer products and the environment: green labels and claims . Available: http://www.defra.gov.uk/ENVIRONMENT/consumerprod/glc/types.htm. Last accessed 16 May 2009〕 The Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America recommends those with allergies to dust or other particulates choose flooring with smooth surfaces – such as hardwood, vinyl, linoleum tile or slate. The Building for Energy and Environmental Sustainability (BEES) program of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) 〔(BEES software )〕 provides a one-stop source of life cycle assessment-based information about flooring options. Life cycle comparisons of flooring alternatives by research groups around the world consistently show bio-based flooring products to have lower environmental impacts than other types of flooring. The life cycle environmental impacts associated with producing and using flooring alternatives such as cork, linoleum, and solid wood are clearly lower than other alternatives. Wool carpeting and composite marble exhibit the greatest impacts, and impacts linked to typical carpeting used in residential structures are higher than those shown in the BEES system due to the use of a pad under the carpet layer.〔(Dovetail Partners Life Cycle Assessment of Flooring Materials: A Guide to Intelligent Selection )〕 == Wood == The development of life cycle assessment methodology in the early 1990s has shown the environmental advantages of wood and wood-based products.〔(FAO Corporate Document Repository Comparison between wood, PVC and linoleum flooring )〕 Wood is a unique and renewable material. Trees absorb carbon during their growing cycle, and this carbon remains stored in products like wood flooring during its service life, thus keeping it out of the atmosphere. At the end of its service life, wood can be reused (in which case the carbon continues to be stored in the wood) or used for fuel.〔(CORRIM Phase II Final Report Life-Cycle Inventory of Solid Strip Hardwood Flooring in the Eastern United States )〕 A life cycle assessment of flooring materials made of solid wood, linoleum and vinyl found the wood flooring had lower energy use and carbon dioxide emissions. It also performed better in environmental impact categories such as resource use, environmental toxin emissions, air pollution emissions and waste generation.〔(Science Direct Life Cycle Assessment of Flooring Materials: Case Study )〕 Solid wood products, particularly flooring, are often specified in environments where the occupants are known to have allergies to dust or other particulates. Wood itself is considered to be hypoallergenic; its smooth surfaces are easy to clean and prevent the buildup of particles that are common in soft finishes like carpet.〔(Naturally:wood Building Green with Wood: Health and Wellbeing )〕 These technological advances have made many types of hardwood floors easier to install. They can be ordered pre-finished so there is no need to finish or seal the floor before or after installation – they can be installed straight out of the box.〔(How Hardwood Floors Work )〕 Reclaimed wood is used for wood flooring, it is wood taken for re-use from many different sources including old warehouses, boxcars, coal mines and wine barrels, and wood recovered from rivers. Using reclaimed wood can earn credits towards achieving LEED project certification. Because reclaimed wood is considered recycled content, it meets the Materials & Resources criteria for LEED certification and because some reclaimed lumber products are FSC certified, they can qualify for LEED credits under the "certified wood" category〔(LEED )〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Sustainable flooring」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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