Have you noticed that everything these days is made from bamboo? It’s not just panda food anymore. From bamboo flooring to clothing made of bamboo fiber, this new, versatile material is all over the marketplace. But is bamboo a green material that promotes sustainability and environmentally conscious living? The reports about the benefits of bamboo appear to be mixed.
Bamboo Flooring Positives
While bamboo flooring may be just as beautiful and durable as hardwood, it has other benefits as well. Bamboo floorin g costs less than hardwood flooring and takes less time to replace itself than wood. For example, a tree requires 25-70 years to be ready to harvest, while bamboo is ready to harvest in four to five years and grows up to four feet per day. That’s a considerable time savings in terms of renewability. Other big bamboo pluses are that it reseeds itself and requires no pesticide to thrive.
Bamboo Clothing
Bamboo clothing is soft. Really, really soft. The feel of the texture of bamboo fabric is akin to the soft, buttery feel you get from a high-quality, heavy silk fabric. Bamboo fabric is durable and can go through the washer and dryer. This is a highly desirable fabric that is being used to create skirts, dresses, tops, blouses, blankets, and sheets.
Bamboo Investment
Thinking that bamboo is the next hot commodity, I scanned the internet looking to make an investment. An investor can purchase a share in a bamboo plantation and expect to yield a 25% yield on a minimum $5,500 investment. The whole process lasts from planting, to harvesting in the fourth year, to a 15-year term of investment. Bamboo plantations are growing in China, the Phillipines, Thailand, Nicaragua, and Vietnam.
The Downside of Bamboo
While it seems like bamboo is just all good, there are several downsides to this hot material. The material of bamboo itself may bleach in areas that receive direct sunlight. Additionally, there is not a Fair Trade certification for bamboo. Bamboo flooring is typically manufactured in third world countries where working conditions and pay are often substandard. There are also no bamboo companies with environmental certification, which means the bamboo manufacturers are probably having some negative effect on their local environment.
The mixed reviews of bamboo indicate that bamboo is not as perfect a material as it seems. Is bamboo better than wood? In some ways, yes. In other ways, no. But because bamboo is so versatile it has been sold to manufacturers who are doing some great marketing work for this popular material.
Source:
http://greenbydesign.com/2008/12/11/impress-your-friends-with-these-fun-facts-about-bamboo/
Mary Rayme - Mary Rayme is a graphic designer and arts educator with a BFA from the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore.
Join the Conversation