Green

Piscataway, N.J.-based American Standard's 2011 Responsible Bathroom Tour begins rolling this month with stops at more than 100 plumbing wholesale locations. 

The star of the show is a walk-through mobile plumbing showroom displaying WaterSense-certified toilets, faucets and shower heads.

Development of the 2012 edition of the National Green Building Standard (NGBS), ICC 700, is now under way, with members of the consensus committee and the seven task groups officially appointed on Feb. 25.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced plans to address the potential health risks to consumers of certain chemicals contained in spray foam insulation, sealing concrete and finishing floors. These chemicals, methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI), toluene diisocyanate (TDI) and other related compounds, are known to cause severe skin and breathing responses in workers who have been repeatedly exposed to them, according to the EPA.

Vienna, Austria-based Mondi industrial Bags developed its Green Range line of industrial bags to help support the sustainability agenda of customers across multiple industries.

"Waste prevention, re-usage, recycling and composting will be the key words for sustainable packaging in the future," the company said in a prepared statement.

Charlotte, N.C.-based Bonsal American named Meredith Ware as the company's director of sustainability. Ware, a LEED Accredited Professional, will lead the company’s sustainability initiatives and report to President David Maske.

The Home Depot has agreed to showcase a high-performance, energy-efficient store built through the Department of Energy’s Commercial Building Partnership, a program dedicated to accelerating energy-saving technologies into standard designs for commercial buildings.  

The new Home Depot store, slated for Rocklin, Calif., will require up to 50% less energy than standard commercial buildings, according to a press release on the project. Funding will come through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Completion is expected in mid-2012.

The Green Building Certification Institute (GBCI) launched the LEED Fellow, a new program to recognize contributions to the green building community.

“LEED Fellows will constitute an elite class of the world’s most distinguished green building professionals,” said Beth Holst, VP credentialing, GBCI. “Candidates are nominated by their peers, and the selection will be based on their body of work and the way it has contributed to advancing the field of green building.”

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced that more than 2,500 products are now authorized under its Design for the Environment (DfE) Safer Product labeling program. These products, which can carry the agency’s DfE label, do not contain known chemicals of potential concern, like carcinogens or reproductive or developmental toxicants. Even minor product components, like dyes and fragrances, are screened for safety. The EPA is also announcing that it soon will require manufacturers with products that bear the DfE logo to disclose their ingredients to consumers.