Bamboo has many benefits on top of regular wood or steel. Why would you choose it instead of other materials? For instance, it regenerates faster than any other plant on earth and is one of the strongest building materials. Bamboo products are durable and have many other features that help conserve our environment clean and healthy. There are two particular benefits of products made of bamboo that make them a better investment, they are strong and ecologically sound.

Bamboo is the strongest growing plant in our world. With more than 1500 species, this plant can regenerate by itself in almost any weather conditions. It has more compression than concrete, making it a solid and hard material. This means you can have more pressure on an inch of bamboo than on an inch of steel. The tensile strength to weight ratio is superior to mild steel, about 26,000 psi/sq in. for bamboo vs. 22,000 psi/sq in. of mild steel. Bamboo survived the Hiroshima atomic blast closer to ground zero than any other living thing and provided the first re-greening in Hiroshima after the blast in 1945 (Why bamboo). Bamboo's exceptional strength and durability have helped many industries develop better and stronger products. Furniture and products made of bamboo can last longer compared to those made of wood or other materials. In addition to strength, bamboo has an important role in our environment. This lead us to the next and very important benefit.

A recent NASA report shows that on the arctic zone, we already lost 60% of ozone layer (Why bamboo). This layer is getting thinner day by day and we need to take action now. The solution: green products. We must start thinking before buying. The alarming situation is here, affecting us now. Oxygen levels are starting to reduce in some areas where there is an absence of vegetation. Bamboo sequesters carbon dioxide from air and produces more oxygen than equivalent standing trees. This particular characteristic contributes in big volume to our air quality because bamboo grows almost everywhere in the world. There are many other features and benefits that bamboo plant provides versus trees and metals. It is only with our commitment of searching and consuming green products that we’ll improve the conditions of the planet in which we live.

Citations

"Whybamboo." Weblog post. Environmental Bamboo Foundation, Bali. ENVIRONMENTAL BAMBOO FOUNDATION. Web. 24 June 2011.