Thinking about bamboo? Think again: most flooring made of the eco-friendly material is imported from China – meaning it travels at least 500 miles by truck, over 7,000 miles by container ship and another thousand or so miles by train to make it to the US. This means that even pouring a concrete floor is better for the environment: because even though concrete has 100 times the embodied energy of bamboo, it can be made locally anywhere. So if you’re in the market for bamboo, make sure it hasn’t gone around the world to get to you – almost any local material is a better pick.
