Recycled content materials are classified as having a percentage of post-consumer content, meaning the material was recycled after being used by consumers, or a percentage of post-industrial content, which means materials were diverted from the waste stream of manufacturing processes. At Four-Six Athens Terrace/17 Grant Street, fly ash was used in large quantities in the Portland cement. Fly ash is a waste product of coal, oil, and gas-fired power stations. It is introduced into structural concrete to reduce temperatures inside large volumes of concrete. Rapidly renewable materials have been harvested from plants that grow quickly or rapidly regenerate. Bamboo grows at a rate of over one foot per day. To harvest cork, only the bark is removed from tree, which regenerates quickly. Purchasing locally harvested and manufactured materials reduces the dependency on fossil fuels to transport materials long distances, which in turn reduces carbon dioxide emissions. See the Recycled Content materials listing by CSI division developed by the California Integrated Waste Management Board.

Local Certified Wood: F.D. Sterritt Lumber company is the first Retail Lumber Yard in New England to receive FSC certification. They stock hundreds of certified products including dimension lumber and plywood in raw, fire and pressure-treated form. They also stock many certified hardwoods including red oak, poplar, cherry, maple and genuine mahogany.

FSC certified products are derived from ecologically and socially responsible forests. See the Forest Stewardship Council for a list of certified products. Search here for chain of custody certificate holders. Include requirements for certified wood in the project Specifications. See MRc7: Certified Wood for details.

In some composite wood, high-VOC adhesives are used to bind the components. Preferable composite wood has no added urea formaldehyde resins. Details for composite wood should be included in the Specifications. See EQc4.4: Composite Wood for details.

A new product on the market, SkyBlend melamine particleboard by Roseburg Forest Products, utilizes phenol-formaldehyde, rather than urea-formaldehyde, to bind wood particles. The phenol-formaldehyde reduces the formaldehyde emissions from the product. 

All of the carpets below meet Carpet and Rug Institute (CRI) Green Label Plus standards.

Carpets must meet the requirements of the Carpet and Rug Institute Green Label Plus Testing Program, which identifies low-emitting carpets and adhesives. Green Seal maintains information and product recommendations for environmentally-friendly carpets.

Many carpet tiles specified in Harvard projects have high-recycled content, no VOCs in the fabric or adhesive, and can be recycled. Carpet tile is cost-effective in that the tiles can be removed for cleaning or replacement without having to install an entirely new system.

A typical 12,000-square-yard carpet project diverts 50 tons of carpet from the landfill and saves an additional 50 tons of virgin resources from being used for new carpet.

Adhesives must meet or exceed VOC limits of South Coast Air Quality Management District Rule #1168. Also see the Carpet and Rug Institute Approved Adhesives.

Maximum VOC content (g/L)

Maximum VOC content (g/L): Substrate Specific Applications

LEED Requirements: Sealants must meet or exceed Bay Area Air Resources Board Reg. 8, Rule #51: “Sealant Product Limits: Except as provided in Section 8-51-305, a person shall not use in the following applications any sealant product with a VOC content, as defined in Section 8-51-226, that exceeds the following limits":

Sealant (g/L)

Sealant Primers (g/L)

(Stains are not included in LEED v2.1, but they are included in LEED-NC 2.2)

Paint with low levels or no VOC content is less toxic to occupants and costs about the same as standard paint. As a general rule, one ton of smog-forming VOCs is eliminated for every 1,000 gallons of low-VOC paint used. LEED Requirements: Meet or exceed the VOC and chemical component limits of Green Seal GS-11 Requirements:

VOC Limits for Paints and Coatings (g/L)