Recently, there has been a lot of pressure and focus on homeowners to become environmentally responsible, or "green." This could mean anything from finding ways to conserve household energy, recycling household trash, and using building materials that are renewable and environmentally friendly. Luckily for the homeowner, this movement of "going green" has also applied to the decking industry and there seems to be a multitude of environmentally friendly options available on the market today. The purpose of this article is to research a few different options out there and see which is truly "green."
The first on the list is PVC decking. As a plastic, PVC decking is resistant to mold, mildew, pest infestations, and other issues that may lessen the lifespan of other decking methods. This means a longer lasting product that has low impact on the environment, right? Wrong. Plastic is derived from petroleum, or refined oil. Drilling for oil is one of the industries that are the most destructive to the environment. Plus, refining the crude oil into petroleum releases thousands of toxins into the atmosphere and water supply. PVC is also manufactured with toxic products that are known to cause health problems such as neurological damage, immune system damage, birth defects, child development impairment, and cancer. What homeowner wants their children playing on a deck that contains these harmful chemicals?
A similar product to PVC decking would be composite decking. Instead of boards that are completely plastic, composite decking is a mixture of wood and plastic. Most of the raw materials are recycled, and mixing the plastic in with the wood helps to curb a lot of the issues that natural wood decking faces (insect infestations, moisture damage). However, the majority of the wood product going into the decking is soft woods like pine that are extremely porous and tend to soak up moisture. This actually increases the likelihood of mold, mildew and rot within the deck boards. This means the deck boards tend to wear out faster than other decking methods, and will need to be replaced more often, increasing the cost involved and lowering the "green" factor of the product. In addition, while the plastic materials are usually recycled, using any plastic at all means encouraging the production of the product. This increases the amount of oil being drilled, and the number of toxins being released into the air and water.
So what about natural hardwood decking? Exotic species such as Ipe decking, or Garapa (both from South America) are usually resistant to domestic insect attacks and are dense hardwoods that do not absorb water as quickly as softer woods. This would mean an extremely low risk of mold, mildew or rot problems, lengthening the life span of the decking. And contrary to popular opinion, logging is not a destructive practice (when done correctly). In fact, over 80% of deforestation in the Amazon comes from cattle ranching, not logging. The practice of clear-cutting to make room for the cattle destroys the nutrients in the soil, making it impossible for new forest growth. A logging company can responsibly harvest a few trees per acre of forest, clearing out older trees that no longer reproduce and making room for the younger saplings to grow. That acre of forest also becomes protected from clear-cutting for several years, ensuring the continued growth of the forest.
It's important to consider all of the factors that make a product "green"; lifespan, production process, and product makeup. Hopefully, the preceding facts have helped make the decision easier and homeowner's can make the most environmentally responsible decision.
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