Material Use and Reuse

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    Efficient Design and Building Practices Can Effectively Reduce Your Waste Stream and Boost Your Bottom Line

    Through the point of installing insulation in his 3,600-square-foot custom home near Columbia, S.C., architect Mark Bostic has yet to make or pay for a trip to the local landfill. In Ft. Wayne, Ind., Jeff Zolnik serves about three-quarters of the area's builders with his construction waste...

     
  • The Week in Green: September 8-12

    A roundup of green building news, including San Diego's new recycling mandate and USGBC's strategic plan.

     
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    Carlisle Development Completes First Two Phases of Florida Affordable Green Development

    The Carlisle Development Group announced the opening of phases I and II for Tallman Pines, a 200-apartment affordable housing development in Deerfield Beach.

     
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    Mind the Waste: Deconstruction Vs. Demolition

    Demolishing an existing house for a renovation or infill project may be quick and easy, but a lot of those building materials unnecessarily end up in land fills. According to the EPA's 2003 estimates, 164 million tons of waste was generated from building activities, including construction...

     
  • Waste Not, Want Not

    For years, there's been a huge global effort to recycle. From aluminum cans to cell phones, Americans are urged to consider recycling rather than just throwing things into the garbage and overloading landfills. But what's the point of all the recycling if there isn't an end use for all that...

     
  • Green Building Basics

    The first time I remember hearing about green building was in the early-'70s, when a perfect blend of hippie culture and rising oil costs resulted in, among other things, houses called "earth ships" that incorporated wall systems made from old tires filled with dirt. But also, through some hits and...

     
  • Exterior Products Review: Reclaimed Lumber

    Even with surging interest in green building and sustainability, new construction and renovation projects continue to deplete vast quantities of resources. Remodeling, in particular, is a double-edged sword--the new house consumes materials, the demolition of the old structure generates debris. You...

     
  • Deconstructing the Future

    The worthy goal of diverting construction materials from the landfill is fraught with obstacles, but recycling opportunities are growing.

     
  • Alternative Lifestyle

    In its Building Material Emissions Study,. the waste board concluded that recycled-content building products and traditional ones, on average, performed about the same in terms of indoor air pollution.