Start From the Ground Up When it comes to the home, some of the greatest green strides are being made in flooring. While bamboo has long been a green industry favorite (a bamboo stalk takes four years to mature versus 120 years for an oak tree), expanded use has led to clear-cutting of forests, creating an unsustainable monoculture. However, you can still buy truly green bamboo; just look for flooring certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), such as Smith and Fong's popular Plyboo. Cork is another fantastic alternative, and Jelinek Cork Group offers a modular product you can install yourself. Rapidly renewable, cork trees are never cut down but instead trimmed every nine years, and the flooring is actually made from a by-product of the wine cork industry. For the kitchen or bathroom, consider Marmoleum, a plant-based and naturally antibacterial alternative to linoleum that's available in myriad colors. And if you prefer the warmth and texture of carpet, the Flor carpet system has long been popular with eco-minded designers. Available as tiles rather than large rolls, the carpet system allows for flexibility; if a square is stained or wears out, it can be removed and sent back to the manufacturer to be recycled and replaced with a new square (as opposed to a whole new carpet).
When it comes to the home, some of the greatest green strides are being made in flooring. While bamboo has long been a green industry favorite (a bamboo stalk takes four years to mature versus 120 years for an oak tree), expanded use has led to clear-cutting of forests, creating an unsustainable monoculture. However, you can still buy truly green bamboo; just look for flooring certified by the 