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Rubber
flooring is generally considered a "low-impact,"
environmentally friendly building material. Virgin rubber
is sustainable as it is derived from trees, and the manufacture
of synthetic rubber also has a low impact on the environment.
Flooring that contains recycled rubber, however, is cheaper
and more durable choice than synthetic or virgin rubber, and
is considered a better choice as far as environmental impact
is concerned. For reasons in favor of using recycled rubber
over virgin or synthetics, see this list under the heading
"Advantages of reclaiming and recovering rubber"
at http://www.tve.org/ho/doc.cfm?aid=636.
Recycled
rubber flooring's low impact on the environment indeed carries
over into all areas that you mention: manufacture, use and
disposal. To stretch your question just a bit, also consider
that rubber's sound absorbing qualities impact the environment
by reducing noise pollution.
There
is an excellent breakdown of the areas in your question here,
under the heading "Rubber Tile, Recycled:" "The
Green Renovation Guide: Floor Coverings" (DesigningGreen.com)
http://www.designinggreen.com/main/gcg/part_e6.htm#rubber
In
summary:
1. The energy required to process the used tires and chemicals
is lower than that used to produce other resilient flooring.
2. Adhesives and tiles continually produce minor but non-hazardous
gasses; not enough however to fall out of strict air quality
ranges.
3. Rubber tiles are flammable but are 100% recyclable. If
installed without adhesive, additional recycling benefits
are realized.
I
have collected some supporting documentation regarding rubber
flooring and placed them in their appropriate sections below.
*
Manufacture
"Using
recycled content rubber flooring assists in closing the recycling
loop as opposed to using a product with little or no recycled
content."
"Sustainable Materials Selection," (State of California,
Integrated Waste Management Board) http://www.ciwmb.ca.gov/GreenBuilding/Training/StateManual/Materials.doc
"Rubber
flooring which contains chlorine-based ingredients should
be avoided. Ethylene propylene diene (EPDM) type rubber is
recommended by the Danish Environmental Protection Authority
as an alternative to PVC."
"Alternatives to dioxin sources in the Mediterranean,"
by Beverley Thorpe, Clean Production Action for Greenpeace
Mediterranean Project (September 1996)
http://www.greenpeace.org/~toxics/reports/gopher-reports/altern.txt
*
Use and Installation
Minor
off-gassing is an issue with rubber flooring. The gasses have
an odor but will not release hazardous chemicals. "In
some cases, products with recycled content are included with
caveats regarding where they should be used. Rubber flooring
made from recycled automobile tires is a good example--the
caveat is that these products should not be used in most fully
enclosed indoor spaces due to offgassing concerns." Rubber
flooring is not known for it's indoor air quality ratings
as much as cork (which is also excellent for it's hypo-allergenic
properties)."Building Materials: What Makes a Product
Environment Friendly?"
(Earthwise.com)
http://www.earthwise.ca/prods.html
Since
rubber flooring can be applied without adhesive, there is
an extra benefit in the elimination of the impact of manufacturing
of the adhesive as well as the improved air quality of the
area where the adhesive would have been. See the section titled
"Adhesive-Free Installation of Floor Coverings"
here:
"The Green Renovation Guide: Floor Coverings" (DesigningGreen.com)
http://www.designinggreen.com/main/gcg/part_e6.htm#free
*
Disposal
Adhesive-free
installation could promote recycling used rubber flooring
in another application, thus eliminating disposal concerns.
However, disposal is inevitable at some point. Rubber flooring
is 100% recyclable, as opposed to vinyl (petroleum-based)
products.
"Rubber
flooring is also a long-life product (20 years) and is derived
from a potentially sustainable source (trees). Furthermore
it can be recycled for use in cars, although the same practical
problems of removal and contamination apply."
"Walls, Ceilings and Floors...," Stepping Stones,
No.64 (December 2001) http://www.naturalstep.org.uk/steps_64.pdf
Some
manufacturers of rubber flooring:
Artigo
http://www.artigo.com/uk/rubber-uk.html
Unilfex
http://www.klpworld.com/
Johnsonite
http://www.johnsonite.com/
Nora
Rubber Flooring
http://www.norarubber.com/
R.C.A.
Rubber Company
http://www.rcarubber.com/
Roppe
http://www.roppe.com/
Additional
Resources:
Sustainable
Building Sourcebook: Floor Coverings (Sustainable Sources)
http://www.greenbuilder.com/sourcebook/FloorCoverings.html
"Highlights
of Environmental Flooring," by John Sailer (Environmental
Design and Construction, 2/8/01)
Search
strategy:
"environmental impact" "rubber flooring"
"environmental impact" "rubber tile"
"rubber tile" off-gassing
"sustainable building" "rubber flooring"
"virgin rubber" flooring "environmental impact"
-manufacturing
- any reports of specific problems with chemical emissions
from rubber manufacturing plants?
- indoor air emissions - any specific testing results out
there?
- the flammability issue - just how flammable is it and what
does it give off when it burns?
Manufacturing emissions
"Joint
Workshop of the International Rubber Study Group and the Secretariat
of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development
on Opportunities and constraints for the internalization of
environmental costs and benefits into the price of rubber"
http://www.unctad.org/trade_env/docs/manch-ws.pdf
- This document may help you the most, though it deals with
the tire manufacturing segment of the rubber industry. You
have to consider the manufacture of tires because first of
all, recycled rubber must first have tires and the impact
includes "all of the above," and second, manufacture
of rubber flooring from synthetic rubber will follow that
of tire manufacturing. Here are a few general excerpts that
I found most relevant, though a thorough reading of the document
will prove more useful:
page 8: Table 1: Taxonomy of environmental consequences of
rubber usage
page 11: "Unfortunately, primary processing of natural
rubber can lead to significant environmental pollution, especially
of watercourses and through localized unpleasant odours."
page
12: "Mixing natural rubber can lead to the emission of
unpleasant odours and this can become a serious problem in
urban areas."
"Industry's
impact on the environment" (Sangonet) http://www.sn.apc.org/sangonet/environment/indust.html
- Scroll to "Chemical Industry," which outlines
the environmental impact of the chemical industry (of which
rubber manufacturing is one)
"Documents
related to: Rubber Manufacturing" (EPA.gov) http://www.epa.gov/ost/pc/rubber.html
-A list of EPA documents that you can order. The page lists
only titles, no abstracts
*
Indoor air emissions
Most
specific IAQ test results are those relating to rubber-backing,
adhesive, and underlayments used in carpet installation. Recycled
rubber is currently in vogue for use in carpet padding; I
would surmise that these results would be comparable to rubber
tile flooring in an enclosed space. For more information about
this testing program, see the CRI Indoor Air Quality Carpet
Testing Program's web site at
http://www.carpet-rug.com/drill_down_2.cfm?page=8&sub=4.
"Healthy
Indoor Environments" (The Sustainability Project) http://www.thesustainabilityproject.org/pdfs/6indoor.pdf
*
Flammability: The
flammability of rubber flooring depends on what materials
are in the mix, and that will depend on the manufacturer.
Flooring containing chlorine and PVC's should be avoided,
as these chemicals are released when burned. Here is a comparison
chart of PVC-free resilient flooring (such as rubber) which
includes materials used, flammability rating, and environmental
impact:
http://www.healthybuilding.net/PVC/PVCAltsResilient.htm
(Healthy Building Network)
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