If we asked you ‘what is the most sustainable material on Earth?’ What would you say? Maybe bamboo? But how eco-friendly is bamboo actually?
Whether you know a lot about sustainability or are new to the field, it is likely that bamboo will be one of the first materials that comes to mind. Bamboo is often touted as the most sustainable material out there which, as we’ll discover in this article, isn’t always true.
The short answer is: When grown sustainably, bamboo is highly eco-friendly as it is fast-growing, requires minimal water and pesticides, and is biodegradable, making it a sustainable alternative to traditional wood materials. Unfortunately, the reality often looks different though…
Read on to find out the more nuanced details of how bamboo is grown, what it is used for and its ecological and societal impact. Plus we’ll help you understand what you need to watch out for when buying bamboo products to ensure you’re getting something that’s genuinely planet-friendly.
What is Bamboo?
Bamboo is a type of palm that enjoys subtropical climates, particularly in areas of high humidity. Its most famous feature is that it grows rapidly, with certain species climbing to as much as 1 meter per day! It thrives best in places such as Southeast Asia including Vietnam, China, Latin America, Africa and in certain southern regions of the USA. You can even find certain varieties growing in the UK, albeit a lot slower.
There are over 1,000 species of bamboo each with unique properties, but all are hardy and adaptable, and it has hundreds of different uses! It is both delicious and incredibly strong, with cultures in Southeast Asia consuming bamboo shoots as part of their diet for centuries, alongside prizing it as a construction material. Bamboo scaffolding and building frames are common sights in countries where it grows freely. Using grass as a building material may seem dubious, but the tensile strength of bamboo is more than that of steel, 28,000 PSI vs 23,000 PSI respectively! Plus, it can live up to 100 years or more, making it a dependable resource for generations.
It is also used in many other ways that you’ll be familiar with too; from socks and tableware to toothbrushes and toilet paper. Bamboo has been used to make almost everything in recent years, but read on for advice on finding the best bamboo products that do not have negative environmental consequences. When burned, bamboo charcoal has exceptional absorbability, making it useful as a natural deodorant, plus it can also be found in medicine. This versatility and the fact it is a renewable crop that requires very little in the way of maintenance and human labour, make it a favourable and affordable material to work with.
Does all this make bamboo sustainable?
As we’ve seen, bamboo has many exceptional qualities. But does all this make it the ‘wonder plant’ it’s made out to be? Let’s take a closer look…
How Eco-Friendly is Bamboo in Nature?
Firstly, bamboo is a remarkable plant in the sense that it self-regenerates from the root, so as long as you don’t dig it up the plant continues to re-grow and repair itself. Like the mythical hydra from Greek mythology, when you cut one piece, several new shoots grow from the cut. Those new leaves send signals to the roots to generate more energy for growth meaning the more intensively it is managed the more it grows!
The environment benefits from this as the soil is not constantly disturbed as it doesn’t need to be dug up, eliminating the release of carbon (unlike in traditional agriculture), and preventing soil erosion. In tropical and subtropical regions prone to monsoons and heavy rains, this is vital for protecting the integrity of the land and reducing risk of landslides or reduced habitats for wildlife.
Due to the fact bamboo grows so fast and reaches maturity in just 1 – 5 years, it has been shown to sequester more carbon and release 35% more oxygen than trees! As far as climate change fighting plants go, bamboo wins this round. In fact, bamboo palm wood has several economic benfits in lumber production.
It requires no chemical fertilizer and is perfectly happy without much water too, unlike cotton for example, which can be both chemical and water intensive. It is a biodegradable and compostable material, but just like paper, it depends on how it is treated as to whether or not it stays that way.
However, all these positive aspects depend very much on how the bamboo is grown. If rich habitats are cleared to make way for a monoculture, the benefits are significantly reduced. The biodiversity loss and soil depletion that come with monocultures are hard to justify, even with the wonder that is bamboo. With China being one of the only large-scale commercial exporters of bamboo, reaching 48 billion USD of value in 2020 alone and providing jobs to as many as 10 million people, increasing yields without promoting monocultures is a high priority for ecologists.
How Eco-Friendly is Bamboo in Manufacturing?
Thus far the picture appears mostly rosy. So long as the bamboo is not an aggressive monoculture, the growing and harvesting process can all contribute to a healthy and happy environment. However, since bamboo can be turned into many different products and as humans begin to interact with the plant, this is where the picture becomes less clear.
Fabric
Bamboo can be turned into a fabric and used in many different ways. There are three types of fabric currently made from bamboo and some are more sustainable than others depending on the manufacturing process. Bamboo viscose or rayon, lyocell or Tencell, and fine bamboo also known as bamboo linen.
1. Bamboo Viscose or Rayon
Rayon from bamboo is lightweight, durable, soft and highly absorbent, making it one of the most common types of bamboo fabric available. The bamboo cellulose is extracted from the plant, using carbon disulfide (a toxic chemical which can be harmful to workers and lead to air pollution) and is turned into chips. The bamboo chips go through a process called **mechanical pulping,** which involves mixing them ****with water and sodium hydroxide (caustic soda), before being spun at high speeds and eventually turned into thread and woven into fabric.
There are some serious drawbacks to this process and the final product itself.
Caustic soda and other chemicals in this process are incredibly toxic and the waste products are not recycled and therefore enter the waste stream. This process is so damaging in fact, that it is considered a semi-synthetic fibre. And, according to the Federal Trade Commission, the final product contains no actual bamboo. In the USA there are no rayon producers at all due to the toxicity of the chemicals. In other countries such as China and India, workers are subjected to chemicals that can cause serious health issues such as mental degeneration, nerve damage, heart disease, and stroke.
Companies like Patagonia, who have high environmental standards have taken a stand against rayon. They have chosen to never use rayon, or bamboo fabrics made through this process.
2. Lyocel or Tencel
Lyocel or Tencel fabric, as it is better known, follows a similar pattern to viscose, but is more environmentally friendly in several crucial ways. Firstly the cellulose doesn’t change its chemical structure and secondly, the entire manufacturing process operates within a closed loop system. This means that the chemicals are significantly less harsh and are recycled back into the manufacturing process rather than being released into the environment as waste. The entire process uses less water and energy overall, making it a more sustainable option to traditional bamboo viscose.
3. Bamboo Linen
Bamboo linen is arguably more eco-friendly still; natural enzymes are used in place of chemicals and the bamboo is crushed mechanically. This makes the fabric costly since it is so labour intensive, it has a more coarse finish making it less comfortable compared to its counterparts and thus it is not as prevalent in the market.
Organic Bamboo
Buyer beware, bamboo is only certified organic with bamboo linen and mechanically-processed bamboo. Organic claims on bamboo rayon is considered greenwashing as we’ve seen there is nothing left of the organic natural material in the end product. In fact the body responsible for maintaining high standards and certifying organic textiles, GOTS, states:
“For almost all bamboo fibre used in industrial textile production not the natural bamboo is used but it is melted and regenerated in a viscose/rayon process and can therefore not be considered as natural or even organic fibre, even if the bamboo plant was originally certified organic on the field.”
If you purchase bamboo clothing, always look for either lyocel, Tencel or linen as the least damaging options.
How Eco-Friendly is Bamboo Homeware?
Coffee cups, bowls, spoons, plates…there are so many innovative bamboo products flooding the market surely this is a good thing? We know bamboo, when grown organically it can be a great tool to fight climate change. But again, when the bamboo is processed into products the presence of chemicals turns this pro into a huge con.
When making durable products, the bamboo fibres are processed into a powder and then are often combined with melamine-formaldehyde resin. Melamine is a type of plastic and when heated at high temperatures it becomes incredibly hard and virtually indestructible. The end product therefore is not biodegradable, recyclable or compostable; negating many of the original benefits of using bamboo.
Recycling claims made by companies selling bamboo-based coffee cups made with melamine are greenwashing, so steer clear! In fact, research by a German consumer group in 2019 found that 35% of coffee cups they tested released harmful chemicals that exceeded safety standards!
When purchasing bamboo products, ensure that they are either natural and untreated if they are going to come into contact with food, or used as a cleaning product.
What should you look for when buying bamboo?
When you’re buying bamboo fabrics, ensure you opt for Tencel or organic linen. Look for moulded or melamine-free products when purchasing items like cups or food utensils. The less treatment the bamboo receives the better! So if you can find completely natural products like organic bamboo washing up brushes or cutlery, this is the best option. Combine that with ensuring the company you buy from is reputable and has a carbon-offset programme, or at least ships their bamboo by sea (most of it comes from China as we know, so there are air miles to account for) and you’re good to go.
Conclusion
So there we have it!
Bamboo itself, when grown naturally, is a fantastic grass that produces more oxygen than trees, supports soil health, sequesters carbon and can live for over 100 years. It is strong, durable, versatile and fast-growing. When it is combined with low-carbon farming methods and responsible logistics, bamboo can be a material used to replace 100’s of common household plastics and metals that are far more harmful to our world. All of this leads to the fact that, if grown & manufactured responsibly, bamboo is highly eco-friendly and a great alternative to other non-sustainable materials.
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