Is Bamboo Really The Superior Material For Sustainable Living?

From clothing to construction, bamboo has recently been touted as an eco-friendly alternative to more traditional materials. But, how accurate is the hype? Is bamboo really a useful option for sustainable living?

The Good

There are a lot of qualities that make bamboo a desirable alternative to wood. 

It grows very rapidly. Bamboo is actually the fast growing plant on earth!  In fact, certain species of bamboo can grow 36 inches one day. 

Harvesting it doesn’t kill the plant. Bamboo self-regenerates from a continuously growing underground stem called a rhizome. Even when the bamboo is cut, the rhizome remains to produce more bamboo. That means that not only is the new bamboo ready for harvesting much faster than a tree, but also that the plant is able to hold the soil in place.

It releases a lot of oxygen into the air. Like other plants, bamboo exchanges carbon dioxide for oxygen. But it does so faster than any other plant and releases over 30% more oxygen into the air than a comparable mass of trees.

It doesn’t need fertilizer. The bamboo’s rapidly growing root system requires no fertilizer or other chemical assistance for successful growth

It grows in very moist or very dry soil. While bamboo requires a warm climate, it can flourish in both moist and dry conditions.

Bamboo has great tensile strength. It’s so strong that it can even substitute for steel in some applications, including reinforcing concrete.

The Bad

While bamboo is one of the most eco-friendly of all raw materials, much of its sustainability depends on how it’s processed to make different products.

Monoculture bamboo plantations deplete the soil. Monoculture planting is when each field or plot of land grows only a single crop. There are several issues with monocultures. The first is that clearing the ground displaces the existing wildlife and reduces biodiversity.  Another concern is that, while in typical fields, one species of plant will supply some of the nutrients other species need, in a monoculture field, fertilizer is needed. Monoculture plantations also concentrate the pests that feed on one species, necessitating pesticides.  

Most bamboo comes from China. Although bamboo can grow in many areas around the world, most of it currently comes from China. This means that it has to be transported great lengths from where it's harvested to the factories where products are produced and then again to reach consumers. The environmental impact of all of these methods of transportation have to be considered when determining how sustainable bamboo is.

Both bamboo fabric and bamboo plastic replacements require less eco-friendly additives. Bamboo fabric uses a range of toxic chemicals and bamboo plastic replacements use about 60% plastic resin. Also, bamboo plastic is not recyclable or biodegradable and can’t be used for kitchenware because both heat and acidic foods could make it release harmful chemicals. 

The Verdict

While bamboo has the potential to be a key component to eco-friendly living, its sustainability depends on how it’s processed to make products. As new research is conducted on making bamboo powder moldable without using a plastic matrix, bamboo could become even more useful in living a sustainable lifestyle.