Designing with Green building materials

	Airtightness & Intelligent membranes In lightweight construction, the airtightness layer typically functions both as a barrier to air leakage and as barrier to moisture penetrating the building fabric. New types of membranes allow air movement according to environmental conditions.
	Recycled content Thanks to the introduction of the ISO 14021 standard, it is now far easier for the specifier to determine the recycled content of building materials and products.
	Rammed earth A traditional form of construction is once again becoming popular owing to its very low embodied energy and ready availability.
	Unfired clay bricks Dr Ali Aratesh looks at current research into the potential of unfired clay bricks in construction. A key finding demonstrates that they can be used in the construction of domestic loadbearing walls as well as partitions.
	Windows With the contribution made by windows to energy efficiency, understanding the performance dynamics and technologies is the key to successful specification.
	Reclaimed materials Direct substitution of reclaimed materials for new can radically reduce the environmental impact of that particular item. It removes the need to extract more raw materials and it largely removes the need for processing and manufacture.
	Plaster and render Successful specification of renders and plasters relies on a thorough understanding of the properties of a wide range of available materials.
	Lime mortar and render Traditional lime mortars and renders often offer a superior performance to their cement equivalents.
	The environmental impact of producing plastics This page examines the variety of plastics commonly used in construction and illustrates their environmental impacts.
	Cement substitutes With cement production regularly topping the emissions' tables, the need for using cement substitutes is becoming more acute.
	'The greening of concrete' Andrew Minson of The Concrete Centre argues that concrete has much to offer the Green specifier.
	Green roofs 1 Types and construction.
	Green roofs 2 Design guidance

Wood

	UK wood species A review of commonly available timber species native to the UK.
	Imported wood species A review of commonly available timber species imported to the UK.
	Wood preservatives The actual risks of rots and insect infestations arguably do not merit the extent to which we habitually specify often highly toxic cocktails of preservative chemicals.
	Alternatives to wood preservatives Specifying durable woods and careful detailing can avoid the need for preservative treatment in many cases.
	FSC certified timber The Forest Stewardship Council has grown to be the definitive international guarantor of managed and protected forests. Specifications requiring FSC certification are rapidly becoming the norm.
	Accoya Enthusiasts of Accoya hail it as the 'new wood species', but its innovation really does represent a major development in wood technology which can enable the consistent supply of durable, dimensionally stable, non-toxic solid wood.