Abstract
Building materials need to be carefully considered, from harvesting through the reuse or dismantling of the building. The best materials are green building materials (Yudelson 2007). Commonly, products that use natural local resources or recycled ingredients in place of virgin ones, recycle any waste generated by their processes, have low embodied energy, are biodegradable, have minimal derivation from petrochemicals, and are designed for reuse and recyclability are considered the most sustainable (Woolley and Kimmins 2000). Green building materials are also nontoxic, nonhazardous, energy and water efficient, durable, and environmentally responsible in manufacturing, occupancy, and demolition. Architects and builders have an opportunity to influence the sustainability of a manufacturing process by specifying which building materials will be used. Importance should be given to products that have ISO 14000/14001 environmental labels, which encourage demand for and supply of products that stress the environment the least (GBES 2009).
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© 2012 Avi Friedman
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Friedman, A. (2012). Building Materials. In: Fundamentals of Sustainable Dwellings. Island Press/Center for Resource Economics. https://doi.org/10.5822/978-1-61091-211-2_6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.5822/978-1-61091-211-2_6
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