Environmental Impact of Carpeting

When considering the environmental impact of your flooring decisions here are some things to consider about carpet as a possible choice.

The carpet industry is minimizing carpet’s impact on the environment through the “3 Rs” – reduce, reuse and recycle. When carpet reaches the end of its long life, it is reused to make new carpet or is recycled into a variety of products, ranging from roofing shingles and railroad ties to automotive parts. There are avenues for you to recycle in order to reuse your replaced carpets.

The industry supports NSF/ANSI 140, the Sustainability Assessment for Carpet. Intended for commercial, hospitality, designers, facility managers, and government purchasers who want to ensure their purchases have the best sustainability performance adhere to NSF/ANSI 140.

Environmental stewardship can also be seen through the work of the Carpet America Recovery Effort (CARE). With over 400 industry members,CARE has helped divert nearly 3 billion pounds of carpet from landfills since the group organized in 2002. That's not an insignificant progress.

A well maintained carpet is also a better choice for indoor air quality. New carpet is the lowest VOC-emitting flooring choice available. And it actually acts as a passive air filter, trapping dust, pollen and other particles and removing them from your breathing zone. Studies have shown that people with asthma and allergy problems have seen symptoms improve with carpet, although this point comes with a caveat. The less you vacuum and clean your carpet the less benefit you will see. If you never vacuum and never professionally clean there will come a point where the carpet will become unhealthy for allergies and asthma.

There is so much information around it's difficult for people who want to be environmentally responsible to make their decisions. In most cases it's not a clear cut no brainer. Most times it's more of a trade off. Whatever way you go I hope I can simply add to your knowledge base in order for you to make the best choice for you.

As it is with our choice to use all natural biodegradable non toxic chemicals if there is information available to our customers about the carpets we clean that is helpful to them in making their carpet choices we want to help. You don't have to want your carpets cleaned in order to call us. We happily take the time to answer questions. Feel free to call 413-323-7568 or visit our contact uspage to request a quote or call back.

Are you looking for sustainable, eco-friendly flooring? Tell us more about your search in the comments below.