How green is the granite industryHow environmentally green is granite for building! At first glance I said “very green”, there is an endless supply, and it last fore ever. Then I remembered flying over a paper bag plant that discharged waste water into Lake Michigan and killed everything around, recognizing the negative environmental impact and thinking “I wonder if at the grocery store I really should be asking for paper bags instead of plastic?” (This was before the idea of using cloth bags). The point is, there is much to consider when determining how different products effect the environment. The jury is preparing for deliberation.

There is a unique opportunity to have input and assist the green movement as they prepare to evaluate the slab granite industry. Where the rubber meets the road is in public perception. There is an opportunity to spearhead industry wide policies that will encourage a positive perception of our industry and positively effect our cost of goods. We need to identify the green building organizations that will be most influential in determining our ranking amongst alternative products and assistance them in accumulating research data so an accurate determination can be made.

The factors and process to compare building materials are defined, numerous and complicated. The two most important are life cycle assessment and life cycle cost. What we need to recognize is how important accurate data will be in determine our positioning amongst laminates, or other cultured products. The leaders of the industries that compete with us for market share are well organized and have positioning themselves within the green movement to influence outcomes and determinations. Please understand, I am not suggesting anyone is doing anything inappropriate. What I am saying is we need an equivalent voice in the process and I am prepared to do what I can to ensure we have that voice. Formica Co. is busy telling how they are greener than you. This ranking is important. The reason for high positioning relative to our competition is for the coveted specification. This site is a perfect example of why we need to get our message out. (So you don’t have to cut and paste look under links green home guide). http://greatlakes.greenhomeguide.com/index.php/knowhow/entry/893/ If the client tells the architect that they want a green building you want natural stone to be at the top of the list for consideration.

As representatives of our industry it is our responsibility to be environmentally respectful and to communicate our socially responsible attitudes and efforts to our communities. An obvious example could be that you recover and recycle up to 100% of your water in the manufacturing process and explain to the media (or anyone who will listen) that Mother Earth News touts the benefits that only granite dust can provide for gardening soil and you’re looking for nursery’s to pick up your bagged granite dust. http://www.motherearthnews.com/library/1988_November_December/Grow_Powder After you get a nursery picking up your dust you can suggest they look into buying a crusher and give them your waste slab material to pulverize into ornamental landscaping stone. As an industry we need to work with our suppliers and figure a way to reclaim our waste product and put it in our roads or gardens, not in our landfills. I have other ideas to put a smile on the face of environmentalist and will share them soon.

Another important fact is most countertops are not specified but are chosen, by a home owner or designers. In all the million dollar homes or the average homes I have worked in, I have only worked with only one architect. I want these decision makers to have a good perception of our business. These clients are very happy to hear about the positive green aspects of the products there choosing. If your sales staff understands and knows the facts about green products it will differentiate you from your competition.

We need to keep ourselves informed about new products and really be able to understand how the green industry is accepting them. Our web site is under development, we surely will have a green page.