Green Building Blog - Jetson Green

USGBC Accepting Comments On Wood Certification [USGBC Email]

The following is taken from an email from the USGBC relating to taking comments in relation to certified wood.  Friday August 8, 2008, the USGBC opened the first 30-day Public Comment Period for proposed revisions in how the LEED Green Building Rating System awards points for the use of certified wood.  Comments are being sought on: (1) the proposed revisions to the credit’s intent and requirements and (2) the criteria proposed in the USGBC Forest Certification System Benchmark.

The Public Comment Period will be open Friday, August 8 through Sunday, September 7, 5:00 PDT. 

High Design at The Riverhouse

This is an interior shot of the new Vivavi Pop-Up Store at The Riverhouse in Battery Park City.  I was emailing with Josh Dorfman, founder and CEO of Vivavi, about the store prior to the giveaway last week and he's pretty excited about the designers slated for the store.  You may notice the Girado chairs, Signature 2.0 console, club chair & ottoman, and Spring Chairs, but probably one of my favorite designs in the store is the artwork by Sandy Schimmel.  I've included a few images below -- they're made from junk mail scraps. 

Giveaway: Ripple 3D Recycled Wallpaper & The Lazy Environmentalist

This is part of the Jetson Green birthday giveaway, so make sure to leave a comment by midnight Friday, July 25, 2008, if you want to be considered for the contest.*

Ever the activist, environmentalist and friend of Jetson Green, Josh Dorfman has contributed two items to be given away with this article.  You've probably heard of Josh through his website and Sirius Satellite Radio show, The Lazy Environmentalist.  He's also the author of The Lazy Environmentalist: Your Guide to Easy, Stylish, and Green Living, which he generously autographed and provided for this giveaway.  You may also know about Josh's ventures with Modern Green Living and Vivavi, both of which we've mentioned previously.  Vivavi has some serious green eye candy -- but the one for our focus is the Ripple 3d Recycled Wallpaper. 

Top 10 Green Building Products [Sustainable Industries]

Just recently, Sustainable Industries announced their list of the Top 10 Green Building Products for 2008.  To get that magic number of 10 products, SI accepted roughly 80 nominations and narrowed those products down based on their ability to meet the following criteria: LEED compatibility, environmental performance, value, scalability / market impact, innovativeness, and design aesthetic.  Without further ado, here are the Top 10 Green Building Products for 2008:

[Video] Peel and Stick Solar For Commercial Buildings

Lumeta has developed what's said to be the world's first commercial-scale, "peel and stick" solar modules called Lumeta Power-Ply 380.  The Power-Ply solar modules use adhesives to attach to the roof, making the system a cinch to install.  The short video below shows two guys installing six modules on a roof in roughly 34 minutes -- it seems so simple anyone could do it!  Of note, the 4' x 8' modules don't require roof penetrations or mounting systems, as opposed to most solar power systems.  You may also note that the flat roof style installation sacrifices the optimal solar angle (and loses about 5% of the power production), but Lumeta is confident that the benefits to the peel and stick solar product outweigh the slight losses in production.

Oceanside Glass Tile offers Beautiful, Recycled Tiles

Oceanside Glass Tile offers an absolutely beautiful line of glass tiles.  Not all tiles contain recycled content, but a good amount of them do.  The recycled content is according to the tile color.  For instance, cobalt, has almost 75% post-consumer content.  The great thing is that you can see which colors contain recycled content, and how much, right on their site; there is a simple table that makes it easy to evaluate your color choice. 

Sustainable Eucalyptus Flooring by Duro Design

Duro Design is offering a beautiful collection of eco-friendly Eucalyptus flooring.  The wood is grown in managed forests in Europe and is available in 12 colors ranging from gray to natural to a warm apricot color.  Premium German and Swiss pigments give the flooring its wonderful tints and depth of color. 

Kirei Board, It's Kirei, So Use It! [Video]

I've mentioned Kirei in projects previously, but I've never really blogged about it.  Kirei, or きれい, is Japanese for pretty, beautiful, pure, or clean -- an apt description for this popular green product.  Constructed of reclaimed agricultural fiber (which is heat-pressed with a non-toxic adhesive), Kirei Board is lightweight and durable.  It's often used as a finish material in flooring, furniture, cabinets, and other interior design applications.  Use of Kirei Board may help contribute towards credits for LEED certification, depending on a variety of factors ...

Edificio BIP Computers, Simple Transitivity Design

I was blown away by Alberto Mozó's simple and clean design for the Edificio BIP Computers building in Santiago de Chile.  It's an unassuming three-story structure built on a lot that's zoned to allow a larger structure of up to twelve stories in height.  Knowing that the building may not last very long (due to the favorable location and zoning), the design makes use of standard-sized, laminated timber beams that can be dismounted and used to reconstruct the entire building somewhere else.  Mozo calls the idea "transitivity" -- designing structures that can be easily broken down and reconstructed elsewhere.

AmCork, Affordable and Beautiful Cork Flooring Option

Amcork, a Texas based company, offers an incredible variety of cork flooring and wall covering options.  Their flooring is available in floating floor planks (12"x36") and glue-down parquet tiles (12"x12").  Wall tiles are 12"x24" size.  There are two things that set this company apart from others that I have found: price and style.  Amcork has 21 colors of wall tiles and 25 colors of flooring available.