by Michael Smith (Veshengro)
Once again in September 2013 – I know this one is late – at a trade fair in London, which shall remain unnamed, however, plywood and concrete were presented as green and environmentally friendly products. Right! Sure! And pigs do fly too!
Plywood is thin sheets of wood bonded under pressure using glues and resins and those glues are, more often than not, not very green at all and neither is the energy used for the application of heat and pressure in the production. So green plywood definitely is not.
When it comes to concrete that has been greenwashed and is being greenwashed at so many eco-design and eco-building shows and events it is and remains concrete, a mix of cement, sand and other aggregates and water, period.
While concrete in some form or other, and I do not mean lime mortar and such, ever since Roman times it does not make it green and eco-friendly, and no amount of greenwash will change that.
The latter also applies to plywood. It is NOT green and metaphorical speaking painting it green will not make it an environmentally friendly product, regardless of how many trade fairs and other such events try to make it thus and wish people to believe this.
Honesty is not part of industry, it seems, in most cases and as they are very well aware that people are undergoing somewhat of a paradigm shift as regards to becoming conscious of the environmental impact of things greenwash is a real great business right now.
As consumers and users we must learn discernment and those of us who are in the field of journalism must expose such things at every possible opportunity in order to industry to understand that people will not be conned and also, hopefully, to make true changes.
© 2014
