How Green is Bamboo?
by Stephanie Dickison
Once it Gets to You, the Consumer, Probably Not Very
Everything from flooring to furniture, clothing to makeup, is now made from bamboo. We can buy bamboo sunglasses, purse handles, screens, salad servers, fiber, picture frames, towels, umbrellas, wine racks, underwear, paper, bowls, socks, tiki bars, blinds, baby’s and children’s wear, even fuel. The market for bamboo is growing at an exponential rate, largely because bamboo has been deemed a green, eco-friendly product.
Many articles tout the benefits of bamboo– it grows quickly; it’s environmentally friendly; it’s a renewable, sustainable resource; it’s better than wood, cotton, everything.
But what if what you’ve read is wrong?
A company called K&M Silkroad claims, “Silkroad Bamboo Flooring is stronger, more versatile, eco-friendly, longer-lasting, and more dimensionally stable than oak or maple.” Juzd Streetwear describes itself as “the planet’s first bamboo designer label” and says its clothes are “made from the most eco-friendly plant on the planet.” They also include a “Bamboo Fabric Research Article,” last updated December 8, 2009, that sounds very authoritative, with sections on the history, characteristics and “eco-friendliness” of bamboo. But almost all of their cited sources are other bamboo clothing companies and blogs, rather than environmental sources or experts.