 |
Materials |
Building materials should be considered in terms of their entire life-cycle. In addition to natural resource consumption, their impact depends on the energy required for manufacture and transportation, product durability, and the ability to be reused or recycled.
Goals
- Minimize consumption and depletion of material resources
- Reduce life cycle impact of materials on the environment
- Minimize waste generation in building construction, occupation, renovation, and demolition
Strategies
| M1: | Do a durability plan | |
| M2: | Use life cycle analyses of all major building materials to reduce their impact
Insulation |
|
| M3: | Consider general approaches to lessening environmental impact of materials
Insulation | Paints, Stains and Coatings |
|
| M3a: | Use local materials | |
| M3b: | Reuse and salvage buildings and materials | |
| M3c: | Use recycled and recyclable materials | |
| M3d: | Use materials from renewable and biodegradable sources | |
| M3e: | Use durable materials | |
| M3f: | Use materials with low-impact manufacturing processes | |
| M4: | Design for less materials use | |
| M5: | Design for adaptability | |
| M6: | Manage construction waste responsibly | |
| M7: | Manage resident waste responsibly | |
Other Resources
Publications and Links
University of Michigan. Center for Sustainable Systems. U.S. Material Use Fact Sheet. 2007. css.snre.umnich.edu/css_doc/CSS05-18.pdf.
See full list of recommended resources and links in our library.
