Using materials recovered from the waste stream typically results in less waste, pollution, and energy use than using virgin materials. From an environmental standpoint, post-consumer is typically considered preferable to pre-consumer recycled content because post-consumer recycled materials are more likely to have been diverted from landfills.
In some cases, we consider products with recycled content green but with some caveats regarding where they should be used. For example, rubber flooring made from recycled automobile tires should not be used in most fully enclosed indoor spaces due to the likelihood of VOC emissions.
Recycling can have downsides. For example, some studies show that curbside collection programs and some recycling processes use more energy than they save. Closed-loop recycling is generally preferable to “down-cycling,” in which a lower-grade material is produced—but due to contamination of waste streams and the difficulty of extracting high-value ingredients, down-cycling may be as good as it gets. At times recycling can re-introduce hazardous components. Some products, like copper and aluminum, include a high level of recycled content as a matter of course—which we applaud, but don’t consider justification for listing in GreenSpec. As more complete life-cycle information on recycled materials and processes becomes available, we use that to increase our scrutiny of recycled products.
Recycled-Plastic Site Furnishings
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Pre-consumer (also called “post-industrial”) recycling refers to the reuse of industrial by-products, as distinguished from material that has been in consumer use. The iron-ore slag used to make mineral wool insulation and the fly ash used to make concrete are examples of post-industrial recycled materials. While post-consumer recycled content is preferable, a product that uses pre-consumer content or recycles a seldom-used waste product, especially in an area where recycled products are hard to find, can be considered green.
Excluded from this category, by FTC definitions, is the use of scrap within the same manufacturing process from which it was generated—material that would typically have gone back into the manufacturing process anyway. -
These products are environmentally attractive because they need to be replaced less frequently or their maintenance has very low impact, both of which can reduce costs as well as environmental impact.
Robust answers on typical service life of products can be hard to come by, however. In GreenSpec we reserve this criterion for products where the material is clearly more durable than alternatives, such as an exceptionally traffic-resistant polyurethane floor finish. We refer to standardized tests for durability when they are available and appropriate.
We also consider “appropriate durability”: long life is more important in a building envelope than in interior finish materials that will be replaced for aesthetic reasons. Here, reduced maintenance can be particularly important. An example is resilient flooring that doesn’t require regular waxing: an unnecessary use of resources and a health hazard.
Wishbone Industries manufactures outdoor site furnishings, including benches, picnic tables, trash receptacles, planters, and bike racks from 100% pre- and post-consumer recycled plastic. They use plastic lumber from manufacturers Cascades Re-plast, New City Resources Polyboard, and Xpotential Impact Posts.
Outdoor furnishings are made from a wide variety of materials, each with its own environmental and health issues. Whether you're looking for seating and tables, trash and recycling bins, outdoor planters, or other site furnishings, choose durable, low-maintenance products made with lower-impact materials and manufacturing processes, which do not use hazardous preservative treatments or finishes.
GreenSpec evaluates outdoor furnishings based on the key environmental attributes of the materials used. For example, wood products must be FSC-certified or made from salvaged materials. We look for plastic site furnishings using recycled HDPE or commingled plastics. Recycled commingled plastics may have slightly inconsistent properties, but they make use of lower-grade waste material that is generally more of a disposal problem. Other products embody creative reuse or other unique green attributes.
The attributes GreenSpec looks for in products listed here include salvaged material, post-consumer recycled content, certified wood, rapidly renewable material, or alternatives to hazardous components.
Enabling homeowners and commercial building occupants to be good environmental stewards is important. Systems that make it easy to recycle wastes should be provided in houses, apartment buildings, offices, and institutions.
GreenSpec lists products with recycled content, usually from either high-density polyethylene (HDPE) or commingled plastics, with post-consumer content generally exceeding 60%.
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MRc4: Recycled Content
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