Ask anyone to characterize a green, sustainable tile or installation material and the response is rather predictable—durable, long-lasting, non-emitting, natural ingredients, recycled content. But is any one of these attributes more relevant than another? Are there other important attributes? How many green attributes must a product possess before it can truly be considered sustainable?
While a spectrum of environmental concepts need to be considered when evaluating product sustainability, in the absence of a standard it is not always clear which concepts to emphasize and to what extent. Seemingly every product touts one environmental benefit or another, and it can be difficult to obtain reliable, transparent and easy-to-understand information when navigating through a marketplace filled with varying perceptions, requirements and associated claims.