Green Guide to Specification

This easy-to-use guide to the environmental impacts of building materials is based on sound data from the BRE. It is part of BREEAM (BRE Environmental Assessment Method), an accredited environmental rating scheme for buildings. The Green Guide now contains more than 1200 specifications used in various types of building. Since the last edition, information on the relative environmental performance of some materials and components has altered reflecting both changes in manufacturing practices, the way materials are used in buildings, and our evolving environmental knowledge. The guide has been expanded to cover six generic building types: Commercial; Educational; Healthcare; Retail; Residential; and Industrial. Materials and components are arranged on an elemental basis so that designers and specifiers can compare and select from comparable systems or materials as they compile their specification. The elements covered are: External walls; Internal walls and partitions; Roofs; Ground floors; Upper floors; Windows; Insulation; Landscaping; and Floor finishes. This data is set out as an A+ to E ranking system for environmental performance and impact based on the following issues: Climate change; Water extraction; Mineral resource depletion; Stratospheric ozone depletion; Human toxicity; Ecotoxicity to freshwater; Nuclear waste; Ecotoxicity to land; Waste disposal; Fossil fuel depletion; Eutrophication; Photochemical ozone creation; and Acidification