Is vinyl green?

Green building is a huge trend, one that manufacturers of vinyl building products have been watching closely. Today they got some important good news, when the Technical and Scientific Advisory Committee of the U.S. Green Building Council today issued its final report on the technical and scientific basis for a PVC-related credit within the LEED Green Building Rating System. Basically, the committee reaffirmed its earlier draft report, which said PVC should not be the subject of a negative credit. This doesn't end the debate -- the next step is continued review, this time involving USGBC's own board of directors. But the fact that the committee decided not to give PVC a black eye is a big win for the vinyl industry. A negative credit for vinyl probably would mean some designers would steer clear of the material. A news release from the USGBC quotes Malcolm Lewis, the committee chairman, saying that "a simple yes or no" on PVC was not adequate, and "a more nuanced answer which points the way to dealing with some larger issues was essential.” The Arlington, Va.-based Vinyl Institute issued a news release quoting Tim Burns, its president. "This is the right decision," Burns said. "The report of the committee was correct in stating that there are no simple 'yes' or 'no' answers to assessing the desirability of different building materials."