Sustainability

Clean, Modern Classic: American Black Walnut

*The beautiful elegance of TerraMai’s MC Walnut flooring, made from premium pre-consumer wood. TerraMai image.*

When high-end wood veneers made, there are remnants of beautiful wood left behind.

MC (Modern Classic) Walnut is TerraMai’s answer to saving these materials for the creative minds of the A&D world – bringing you high-quality, quartersawn wood which features linear and nearly flawless grain patterns for your next project.

These pre-consumer remnants are turned into clean, reclaimed products like flooring and paneling. Without businesses like TerraMai to reclaim this wood, it would likely be sent to a landfill as waste. Instead, we show how high quality wood (even off-cuts) still yields high quality products.

*With its clean grain pattern and beautiful character, MC Walnut brings sophisticated classiness to any project. TerraMai image.*

In addition to the allure of a classy background, TerraMai’s MC Walnut comes from American Black Walnut trees. The grain pattern features a variety of chocolate to golden tones – a classic representation of this coveted American hardwood.

Available in multiple stains and finishes, MC Walnut dazzles a space with cool sophistication and exceptionally clean character.

And for creators seeking that elegance, there is something perfect about bringing the style of sustainability from pre-consumer reclaimed wood into their next project.

Love the clean qualities and history of MC Walnut like we do? Get your hands on samples here.

TerraMai’s sustainable second life for aging orchard trees

TerraMai’s Orchard Walnut in our Square Slat Modular Panels. TerraMai image.

Time impacts every living thing on our planet – and trees are no exception. While many trees can live for hundreds, sometimes thousands of years, others have shorter life cycles. Trees that stop producing materials and nuts are culled or burned; the wood wasted. Enter, Orchard Walnut.

The current life cycle of an orchard tree (from left to right) begins with young fruitful trees producing walnuts for harvest, to trees aging and contracting diseases, and eventually burned when they can no longer produce nuts. Video courtesy of Paxxcis.

Orchard Reclaimed Life Cycle from TerraMai on Vimeo.

TerraMai’s Orchard Walnut comes from aging orchard walnut trees that have lessened production after many decades of harvests. The aging trees are culled and replaced with younger ones. TerraMai creates strong markets for old orchard trees, saving the wood from being burned or chipped as is customary. Fewer trees being burned means less CO2 released into the air as well. This gives these trees another breath of life and illuminates the wood’s natural quality and beauty.

Orchard Reclaimed

TerraMai’s Orchard Walnut in our Honeycomb Modular Panels. With care and precision we give failing Orchard Walnut trees a second life, saving them from burn piles. TerraMai image.

A somewhat softer wood on the janka scale, Orchard Walnut has a rich complexion of color, and a striking appearance compared to its cousins. Orchard Walnut has exceptional luster – gleaming with depth and maturity. This wood is a natural fit for interior applications. The allure of Orchard Walnut creates warmth in any space as paneling, flooring, ceiling applications, and more.

Look for our Orchard Reclaimed badge to find which tree species are ethically harvested with this method.

Follow this link to see another species of Orchard Reclaimed, Acacia, in gorgeous tabletops. The clean, live edge grain of TerraMai’s Orchard Reclaimed Acacia makes the space come alive with this once fruitful tree – now a beautiful and fruitful installation.

Got a project coming up that Orchard Walnut (or any of our other orchard reclaimed woods) would be perfect for? You can find our incredible team of wood experts through this link to get the ball rolling. Want to get your hands on samples of Orchard Walnut (and other wood species)? We got you covered.

Subscribe to TerraMai’s blog for more wood news and keep in the loop on upcoming products with our eCards.

Dive into the process behind TerraMai’s Water Reclaimed Wood

High-value tropical hardwoods are renowned across the globe for their exceptional beauty, durability, strength, and resistance to rot and insect attack. This has generated a huge market for illegal logging and deforestation. TerraMai has one of the only sustainable sources of some of the most coveted species of tropical hardwoods on the planet.

Water Reclamation

Decades ago, huge, ancient forests in Central and South America were flooded, creating reservoirs for water storage and power generation. Below these manmade lakes is an abundance of perfectly preserved tropical woods. TerraMai harvests these submerged giants alongside local communities.

A massive tree, over 100 ft tall, rises above the surface of the reservoir. The portion of the tree exposed to the air will decay, but the immense trunk below the surface is perfectly preserved, thanks to the lack of oxygen. TerraMai image.

Expert divers are sent out in barges with specialized underwater harvesting tools, dive in, and reclaim the riches these flooded forests provide.

Local experts bringing a tree to the surface of the reservoir. TerraMai image.

Water reclamation is an ecologically friendly alternative to obtaining tropical woods where no living trees are cut. The species TerraMai reclaims are Ipe, Angelique, and Rock Walnut. To know you are getting the most sustainably sourced, water reclaimed products, look for the Water Reclaimed badge below.

Look for our Water Reclaimed badge to find which tree species are ethically harvested with this method.

Water Reclaimed Project Spotlight: Angelique in Modular Panel Square Slat

A warm example of TerraMai’s water reclaimed Angelique in the form of our Square Slat Modular Panels. Image courtesy of Virtuoso Interior Design.

For wood pulled from the depths of a flooded forest, TerraMai’s Angelique shines with cozy confidence in this residential installation in California. Virtuoso Interior Design created a beautiful accent wall for this home office using TerraMai’s Square Slat Modular Panels, backlit by lights and the natural warmth of wood.

TerraMai’s Angelique is an exquisitely clean tropical hardwood with the toughness to take on the elements in graceful style. The standing submerged exotic trees are extracted to produce TerraMai’s Angelique Siding and Decking are incredibly free of knots and signs of surface character. And it’s naturally Class A fire resistant; making it a beautiful, sustainable, and smart selection.

Got a project coming up that Angelique (or any of our other water reclaimed woods) would be perfect for? You can find our incredible team of wood experts through this link to get the ball rolling. Want to get your hands on samples of Angelique (and other wood species)? We got you covered.

Subscribe to TerraMai’s blog for more wood news and keep in the loop on upcoming products with our eCards.

Meet TerraMai’s latest: Orchard Walnut

TerraMai image

Straight from rows of quaint nut-producing groves, TerraMai is thrilled to introduce you to Orchard Walnut. An incredible example of the warmth and elegance wood exudes. This species is ethically harvested from trees in orchards that no longer produce nuts, but they can live on and used for scores of applications.

Scroll down to learn more and find your next inspiration.

Meet: Orchard Walnut

Traits: A somewhat softer wood, Orchard Walnut has a rich complexion of color, and a striking appearance compared to its cousins.

Appearance: Ombré waves of dark, almost obsidian striations give way to ripples of bronze and champagne-colored ribbons. Orchard Walnut has exceptional luster – gleaming with depth and maturity.

Reclamation method: Orchard reclaimed. This wood comes from aging orchard trees that have lessened production after many decades of harvests. The older trees are culled and replaced. TerraMai creates strong markets for old orchard trees rather than chipping or burning them. This gives these trees another breath of life and illuminates the wood’s natural quality and beauty.

Uses: Orchard Walnut is a natural fit for interior applications. With regular treatment and attention, the allure of Orchard Walnut creates warmth in any space as paneling, flooring, ceiling applications, and more. With a comforting coziness Orchard Walnut looks incredible in spaces designed to soothe, whether in bedrooms or common spaces. The rich luster lends itself to a natural Biophilic design using natural material.

TerraMai image

With its natural elegance Orchard Walnut will make your next design shine. Find your samples here.

An enduring family tree: Meet Amish Oak

Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Among the rolling hills of the Northeastern United States, Amish farmers care for centuries-old forests of Oak, as their forefathers before them did. TerraMai has worked with these communities to bring you our latest wood species for your next project: Amish Oak.

This wood is logged using both modern and traditional methods. Every farm has some forest connected to it and local Amish farmers treat their forests like a crop, cultivating their trees and hand selecting for harvest.

These forests are never clear cut. To preserve the nature of the forests, Amish loggers take only a few trees at a time, which thins the canopy and lets sunlight reach smaller growth close to the forest floor. With the focus of living off the land in sustainable ways, local farmers see themselves as stewards of their land, and as a result, stewards of their forests. Whether or not the Oak harvested is sold for lumber, it is never wasted.

To top it off, these Oak forests do the hard work of replanting themselves over the course of their lifetimes. An average Oak tree can produce upwards of 10,000 acorns during a reproductive season, keeping these beautiful Pennsylvanian forests green and growing.

Amish Oak will fit the bill for whatever your next creation calls for, as well as benefit local families who’ve been forest farmers for centuries.

Inspired? Visit our website to bring Amish Oak to your next project. Sign up for our blog here.

Timber: How shipping delays and supply shortages have hit the A&D world

In a constantly shifting world, natural building resources like Baltic Birch have become harder to obtain. Image: TheGypsyThread.com

Recent world events from the pandemic to the war in Ukraine have created shortages and shipping delays in everything from microchips to building materials. This severely impacted construction material prices, which surged 20% between January 2021 and January 2022.

How did we get here, and what is the solution when your upcoming project calls for a reliable supply of wood for your projects? Let’s dive in.

How we got here

Toward the end of February, Russia invaded Ukraine. Many countries, including the United States, imposed sanctions to pressure Russia into calling off its war effort. One such sanction was preventing the import of Baltic Birch into the U.S.

Baltic Birch has become a staple in the production of engineered flooring for many manufacturers in the U.S. One National Wood Flooring Association (NWFA) survey conducted earlier this year indicated that 95% of member respondents used Baltic Birch in their engineered flooring products.

According to industry sources, this will drastically impact trades that rely on this wood species in the coming months. For companies that did not stock up, that could be as soon as several months to a year when supply runs dry. With this level of disruption in supply, engineered flooring products may become hard to find and will most likely have significant price increases.

So, what’s the solution? A shift toward regional materials.

Exploring local options

Fortunately, Baltic Birch is not the only choice for quality plywood and engineered flooring substrates. TerraMai works with FSC^® Certified Monterey Pine – a more dimensionally stable option than species like Downy Birch, typically used in Baltic Birch plywood.

Over the years we’ve seen millions of square feet of TerraMai engineered flooring and paneling installed in a variety of projects and climates, showcasing its flexibility in application. The supply chain is well established and stable, leaving TerraMai in a strong position to be able to supply the market with high quality engineered flooring and paneling during the forecasted shortage.
Get inspired here, and sign up for our blog here.

Four Reasons to Celebrate Earth Day with TerraMai

TerraMai illustration

It’s Earth Day – and at TerraMai, our focus on eco-friendly practices in sustainably harvested and reclaimed wood is what we’re all about. If you want to celebrate Earth Day everyday, here are four reasons to work with TerraMai to get beautiful, high-quality, sustainable materials for your next project.

1. Wood: A building material to minimize carbon emissions

There are plenty of ways that using wood as a building material helps the environment. This can include reducing deforestation, reusing perfectly good materials destined for a landfill – as well as lowering emissions associated with logging, transport, and processing of traditional wood.
When it comes to carbon in the atmosphere wood is the only building material that draws out and stores more carbon than emitted during production. This makes it an excellent resource given its net positive impact on carbon footprint.

The ways that wood is reclaimed and salvaged goes beyond wood from older structures – it can be sourced from old orchards (preventing common chipping or burning operations at end the of fruit-bearing life), rescued from flooded forests, saved from the forest floor after being abandoned as imperfect or non-targeted species, and restored from off-cuts in the manufacturing process of furniture, flooring, mass timber production, and the like. All of these practices are in use at TerraMai where wood is given new life and purpose; from locations across the globe.

Humanity has had sweeping environmental impacts, not limited to depleting our old growth forests, making it crucial to protect our remaining few. Old growth wood from projects will become available for reclamation and new purposes for generations down the road. This wood continues to be an ideal (and ethical) material given its stability, durability, and character long after it was harvested.

Reclaimed Solid Teak at the High Line, NYC.

Reclaimed Douglas Fir Stair Treads.

2. Reclaimed wood takes less energy to produce

Aside from providing sustainably sourced material, wood from TerraMai neatly ducks many of the environmentally harmful ways that new wood is harvested. Most of the steps needed to prepare the wood are complete, and at TerraMai it’s a high priority to have the wood milled as close to the source as possible both domestically and overseas. TerraMai only works with operations that meet high workplace and technical standards and facilities are visited and inspected regularly.

NYC Fifth Avenue Apartment Lobby with Acacia Metro Paneling.

Teak Engineered Flooring at AT&T’s Flagship Chicago Store.

Reclaimed MC Walnut Paneling at Shore Club.

3. Sustainably-sourced wood means less need for new wood from living forests

A great deal of the wood at TerraMai is certified by the Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC); which means that it is deemed responsibly sourced. Want to look it up? Our FSC number is located under License Code FSC-C021798.

Wood that hasn’t been certified by the FSC sometimes falls outside of the organization’s jurisdiction, but is considered ethically sourced, like wood harvested through water reclaim and orchard salvage.

Reclaimed Mission Oak Engineered Cowboy Coffee at US AmeriBank in Florida.

4. A material that builds up the benefits of the built environment

The LEED^® (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) program holds national acclaim as one of the top ways to rate a sustainable building. During this rating a building’s use of sustainable materials is factored in. This makes TerraMai a perfect resource for those seeking these certifications.

Other ranking systems such as the WELL Building Standard and Living Building Standard put their focus on incorporating biophilia as a way to measure elements of an environment that positively impact human health and well-being.

TerraMai strives to meet all three of these standards by using zero and low-VOC finishes and adhesives and the majority of our materials are within compliance of the LEED program’s non-emitting and low-emitting sources requirements.

Products that are inherently non-emitting sources of VOCs – specifically unfinished/untreated solid wood flooring, stone, ceramics, powder-coated metals, plated metals or anodized metals, glass, concrete, and clay brick– are considered fully compliant without any VOC emissions testing if they do not include integral organic-based surface coatings, binders, or sealants.

To wrap things up

Through high standards, promoting sustainability, and by putting compassion for the environment first across the board, TerraMai aims to treat every day like it’s Earth Day and we’re here to help you do the same.

Happy Earth Day!
– From TerraMai

The Earthly Miracle of Wood

On this Earth Day, we at TerraMai are reminded that wood lies at the heart of the human experience. From the very origins of our species (whether we came down from the tree tops or took the Adam, Eve & Tree route) to the boundless wood objects, artifacts, structures and materials that adorn our lives, wood provides humankind with a unique and limitless source of beauty and utility.

Wood has played a central role in the great innovations and events of human history, including shelter, fire, the wheel, the plow, bridges, boats, windmills, the first airplanes, musical instruments and virtually infinite other examples.

Not to mention the immeasurable presence of wood in everyday life, the wood handle of a trusted tool worn smooth from years of faithful service, wood floors underfoot, cherished wood blocks and toys rubbed to a gentle shine from children’s hands, sturdy kitchen tables, beloved musical instruments, old wood structures both humble and grand and on and on. Wood is perhaps the most fundamental, versatile and all-around practical material in human existence.

Simply look around, wherever you may be, chances are wood surrounds you in a startling variety of ways. Most them likely beautiful to gaze upon while also serving useful purpose.

To enumerate wood’s many aesthetic and practical qualities is to compile an astounding list of attributes.

Wood is the only building material that appeals to all five senses (lovely to the eye, warm to the touch, soft to the ear, fragrant to the nose and flavorful to the tongue with smoked foods, wine and fermented drinks).

Wood is unique in its ability to make a space feel warm and welcoming – whether a home, workplace, store, restaurant or hotel. Science shows wood helps people feel calm and at ease in a space, boosting test scores in classrooms and recovery rates in hospital facilities that deploy wood finishes and furnishings.

Wood is the only renewable construction material. Wood products require much less embodied energy to produce than other materials, such as plastic, vinyl and metal products.

Wood is naturally carbon sequestering, with 50% of wood’s total weight coming from carbon. This carbon also remains sequestered for as long as the wood material remains in service and only releases into the atmosphere once the wood is discarded or burned, which highlights the additional benefits of recycled/reclaimed wood.

Reclaimed wood comes with unique history and character that adds instant soul and story to a space. Reclaimed wood also provides an infinite variety of unique looks, from classic weathered barn wood to beautifully clear all-heart, old-growth redwood with deep burgundy tones imbued by decades as wine tanks in Northern California.

The use of reclaimed wood also helps preserve standing trees and reduce manufacturing energy. It takes 1/13th the energy to produce wood cladding and flooring from reclaimed wood than new wood.

TerraMai continues to innovate and lead the industry in new ways to reclaim wood and manufacture it into beautiful products for architects and designers on projects of all types. TerraMai is unique in the variety of ways we reclaim wood, including “post-consumer” reclaimed wood salvaged from old structures, “pre-consumer” reclaimed wood rescued from manufacturing waste, “orchard-salvage” reclaimed wood from culled orchard trees, and “underwater” reclaimed hardwoods from reservoirs in the tropics.

But on this day, we are reminded it all points back to Mother Earth, the provider of life and all we behold before us. Long may she live in peace and good health. Knock on wood.

Matt Nichols, TerraMai VP of National Accounts – Western U.S.

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Earth Day

Earth Day is upon us, and it is time once again to give our support and attention to environmental protection. With that said, TerraMai will be launching a new sustainable product line of tropical hardwoods that could one day lead to the end of rainforest destruction. Stay tuned!

For me, Earth Day is a not only a time to celebrate this beautiful planet we all call home, it is a time to reflect, to ask ourselves “am I having a positive impact on our planet in my day-to-day life?”. For many in the architect & design community, their entire career is devoted to solving some of the world’s most pressing environmental problems. To them, every day is Earth Day. I reached out to some of these leaders in sustainable design to see if they have anything special planned for April 22^nd. Maybe it will inspire you to get out there and make a difference in your community:

Sandy Musante of L2P will be running the Clear Air Run (go Sandy!), dedicated to clean air and a celebration of Earth Day. L2P is dedicated to sustainability, and has completed almost half of all LEED-CI projects in Philadelphia.

Miki Sullivan and SOM in San Francisco are dedicating an hour to turn off all lights in the office, and have an initiative to use less PVC in their projects. SOM recently won the prestigious 2019 Green Good Design Award for their Chengdu Tianfu International Airport City Master Plan

Jean Hansen from HDR in San Francisco will be in DC, working with the AIA to drive a conversation on healthy and sustainable materials. Back at the office, Ruth Abbe (zero waste engineer & expert) will be doing a lunch and learn on recycling/compost best practices in the workplace. HDR is engaged in numerous sustainability partnerships & commitments, including the Architecture 2030 Challenge.

Jill Hintze and Hager Design International have the day off in observance of Earth Day, which will save electricity and gas, and will be attending an Earth Day event in Vancouver BC. Jill sees a big area for improvement in the use of re-used products in interior design, saying finishes have come a long way but finding things like re-upholstered furniture is rare.

Dan Heinfeld and LPA will be having an all-hands meeting to discuss their recent 2030 Challenge results. LPA is committed to the Architecture 2030, who’s goal is to achieve a dramatic reduction in energy and greenhouse gas emissions in the built environment. LPA has one of the largest LEED Gold & Platinum project portfolios in the country.

Kirsten Weeks and Arup in San Francisco have an entire week devoted to Earth Week celebrations. Events include: Earth Day trivia, energy use awareness, zero-waste day, Eat Vegan day, and wrapped up with a Vegan bake-off. Arup is currently developing the Sustainability Master Plan for the Mexico City New International Airport, aiming to become the first LEED Platinum-certified airport

Natalie Engels and Gensler – San Jose will be participating in a beach cleanup in Santa Cruz. Gensler is on the cutting-edge of sustainable design, employing over 1,200 LEED accredited professionals and completing 700+ USBGC certified projects.

Kate Stuart and GBD Architects have participated in the EcoChallenge, which offers challenges for various activities related to environmental awareness & improvement, as well as a Spring Cleaning / recycling event with games & prizes. GBD’s work is largely confined to the Pacific Northwest, yet they have just completed their 50^th LEED certified project.

Thanks to the above list, and to all of our customers for the work that they do to make the world a better place, for ourselves and future generations.

Happy Earth Day!

Photo by Brianna Santellan on Unsplash

These Are the Best Sustainable Building Materials for Combating Climate Change

Based on the news, it may feel sometimes like scientists are the only ones focused on mitigating climate change, but architects and designers hold enormous power and opportunity through design to create a better world. The built environment has a significant impact on the earth, and if left unchecked, buildings become sources of pollution, excess energy consumption, and even deforestation.

Thankfully, it’s not all doom and gloom. There is much positive work being done to ensure built spaces are better for the earth. One way is to use sustainable building materials. While many materials can emit carbon and other dangerous toxins into the environment, choosing green building materials can lower greenhouse gases and with low to no toxins, they are the go-to choice for sustainably-minded designers.

Many governments have ambitious goals in place resulting from the Paris Climate Agreement. Within those goals are policies aimed at new construction. Architecture 2030, a non-profit organization, is partnering with many organization in support of these policies. Through Architecture 2030, there are tools and resources available to designers focused on carbon neutral built environments.

The Effect of Building Materials

The numbers are astoundingly high. Buildings have a huge impact on the environment. According to the United States Green Building Council (USGBC), buildings account for over a quarter of all greenhouse gas emissions.

Obviously, normal building operations contribute to greenhouse gas emissions, however, there’s more than just the finished building that impacts the environment. The manufacture, transport and creation of building materials produces heavy amounts of greenhouse gases. One of the most dangerous greenhouse gases is carbon, which is emitted by the production of materials like cement, iron, and steel. This effect is compounded when these materials are turned into buildings. The USGBC found that buildings produce 39 percent of all carbon emissions, and emission levels are only expected to grow.

It’s clear if the 2030 goal to design embodied and operational carbon out of new and renovated buildings is to be met, that traditional building materials are no longer a conscientious option going forward. That’s why green building materials with low/no embodied carbon have been on the rise. These materials produce little to no carbon or other greenhouse gases and are overall environmentally beneficial.

We’re already seeing the benefits thanks to initiatives like LEED in operational efficiencies. A 2014 study revealed that LEED Certified buildings contributed significantly lower levels of greenhouse gases due to their conservative treatment of water consumption, waste management, and transportation. The attention is now turning to the reduction of embodied carbon in the built environment.

With that in mind, let’s look at some of the most popular sustainable building materials and the evidence behind them.

Reclaimed Wood

It’s no secret that we at TerraMai love reclaimed wood, and its eco-friendliness is one of the biggest reasons for our passion. When it comes to sustainable building materials, reclaimed wood is a leader. It’s sustainably and responsibly sourced, harming no living trees and using minimal energy consumption in the process.

From TerraMai: Reclaimed wood can be sustainably sourced from unused structures like this vintage building.

Reclaimed wood is also one of the best materials to use in order to reduce contributions to climate change. Wood naturally sequesters carbon. When wood paneling and flooring are chosen for homes and offices, large amounts of carbon can be stored reducing the emissions associated with the production of other materials. Several studies have confirmed that wood is a particularly beneficial material that produces much lower amounts of greenhouse gases than other traditional building materials. A study from the Journal of Forest Engineering analyzed the use of four building materials: wood, brick and tile, aluminum, and concrete. The study concluded that wood produced the least amount of carbon, with the other three materials emitting noticeably higher levels.

A later study in Forest Products Journal confirmed this fact but noted the importance of sustainability: “use of wood products can help to reduce contributions to GHGs in the atmosphere that increase the greenhouse effect, with the caveat that sustainable forestry continues to occur.” In other words, if new wood is used, there’s still the issue of cutting down living trees and producing the new wood.

Reclaimed wood avoids this problem entirely by repurposing existing wood, which in turn eliminates the processes that accompany the production of new wood. In addition, since reclaimed wood keeps forests intact, it allows those forests to act as natural carbon sinks, further reducing the amount of carbon in the environment. This is one of the biggest reasons why reclaimed wood is so highly sustainable, and it explains why the material is such a popular building material choice today.

From TerraMai: Reclaimed wood’s low carbon emissions make the material highly sought after by eco-friendly designers

Recycled Non-Wood Materials

Over the last several years, some serious progress has been made in the area of recycled material creation. Many traditional building materials, such as steel and tile, can be found in recycled form. The Building Materials Reuse Association (BMRA) is one group that’s pushing for adoption of recycled and reused materials. While these materials initially had a negative impact due to their creation and production, reusing them is a great way to keep them out of the landfill and reduce their future impact on climate change.

From Inhabitat: This vibrant, biophilic cafe in Turkey uses recycled metal plates for its exterior

Many architects are getting creative with using various types of recycled materials. Plastic buckets, bottles, bedsprings, and ice cream containers have all been used for innovative projects that make for some head turning building facades. The very act of reusing materials helps to contribute to carbon emission reduction by extending the lifespan of existing materials while also preventing the harmful production of new materials.

From ArchDaily: The facade of the Bima Microlibrary in Indonesia was constructed from recycled ice cream containers

Rammed Earth

You might not think of the earth itself as a building material, but using compacted earth is an age-old construction technique that’s seeing a resurgence today. Rammed earth is a method of compacting soil in layers to create a surprisingly sturdy and completely organic building material. Naturally, rammed earth is a low carbon option that’s accessible, affordable, and entirely sustainable. Even stabilized rammed earth, which uses small amounts of cement or lime to fortify the soil, is a better alternative to using a material like cement for an entire project.

From WDM Architects: Rammed earth is a great low-carbon substitute for materials like cement

Conclusion

Climate change is an ongoing issue that we need to keep focusing on, and through design, the built environment can minimize its effects and work to prevent further greenhouse gas contribution. Using sustainable building materials is one way to lower carbon emissions. As more architects and designers specify sustainable materials, and with the guidance of organizations like Architecture 2030, Carbon Leadership Forum and Embodied Carbon Network, the built environment will continue to make great progress ––and we and the earth will all benefit.