In Business, Creating Sustainable Enterprises & Communities

BAMBOO ROCKS, SO HAWAII STOCKS

In Business, May-June, 2006, Vol. 28, No. 3, p. 30

ECOSTYLE
Delia Montgomery

SOME ASPECTS of bamboo you're likely to know while others are unsung. Bamboo is an excellent building and furniture material. It continues to be traditionally utilized for decorative purposes in varied forms of art. Bamboo is also used for making utensils, fiber, paper, fuel, and countless small objects. Common hardwoods can take 50 years or more to mature while bamboo, one of the oldest plants on Earth, takes only five to six years.
About a decade ago, bamboo suppliers of finished goods were admittedly surprised to be connected to sustainable building. Most believed all the queries and interests derived for no other reason than offering beautiful products, especially flooring. Eventually the Green Building Council, and similar organizations, helped bring about a shift of consciousness that led to a very important question for the green market. How was the bamboo treated?
I presented this question to a bamboo businessman in Hawaii, Jericho Stringer. Jericho is the owner and manager of Yellow Seed Bamboo in Maui who says that within his company, toxic treatment is “out of the question.” He went on to explain that the reason toxic treatments evolved was because of termite and powder post beetle culprits. Termites are hard to detect and powder post beetles can turn bamboo into nothing more than a mass of fine powder. However, the invasion doesn't happen while the plant is alive. In fact, bamboo shoots are extremely pest resistant.
So what is this nontoxic process, or is it a company secret? No, Jericho shares the basic process with pride. His bamboo is cut by Inca Indians from an upper elevation in Colombia during the new moon before sunrise. The timing is necessary to keep the water and sap down in the ground. The full moon negatively brings the sap up. The branches and leaves remain on the cut bamboo (culms) at first to dry and free capillary water. The sugars rot and turn to vinegar, which deters insects. That's about a two-week process. Then the culms go to the treatment plant for a nontoxic borax soak that kills any insects. Methods, such as drilling holes into each cavity, are done to be sure the interior and exterior poles are impregnated with the solution. The poles are dried in the sun on horizontal racks, monitored to prevent sagging. The soaking and drying entail another two weeks.
With bamboo nurseries expanding everywhere from south to north, I asked why the importation of Guadua Angustifolia bamboo to Hawaii? Jericho explained that the process to grow, harvest and treat bamboo is about ten years. Another six to seven years is required before Maui bamboo nurseries are ready. His collaboration with subsidiary Steel Timber Bamboo in Colombia creates the pathway to time-efficient progress in preparation for an upcoming bamboo industrial revolution. Their strategic alliance provides a way for the people of Maui to build by sustainable means.
Although Jericho believes Hawaii is the “heart of the bamboo world,” he says research and development has a long way to go. Other climates require further study as well. Not every region that bamboo grows is good for producing timber. Then there are antiquated building codes that the International Bamboo Foundation of Maui seeks to change. Investors gain from conferences and enthusiasts like Jericho who frequently lectures to the public with intentions to strengthen the market. It's not a coincidence that bamboo's popularity is growing.
Web site author Diplom-Ingenieur Christoph Tönges of Construction with Bamboo provides harvesting details in several languages with excellent photographs on www.conbam.info. He claims there are approximately 500 different bamboo species with partially hundreds of subspecies, among them 2,500 in tropical South America. In Colombia alone, approximately 25 different giant bamboos are processed for craft and building construction. The fibers of Guadua bamboos are intertwined, which means they are less susceptible to tearing, and therefore most favored for construction.
The American Bamboo Society (ABS) was formed in 1979 to sponsor lectures, conferences, tours and plant sales. Chapters maintain bamboo libraries, distribute publications, and more. ABS helps support Bamboo of the Americas (BOTA) to take action for the future. The World Bamboo Congress (WBC, originally International Bamboo Association) helps develop collaborations in research and development. Networking sources as these promote sustainable agriculture and affect our world.
If you decide to read about bamboo, you'll become familiar with Colombian architect Simón Vélez. In his book, Grow Your Own House, he relays how bamboo is evolving into a key building material worldwide. Most books and web sites make at least one reference to the admired and diverse structures created by Vélez.
Jericho happens to be friends with his mentor and affiliate, Jörge Stamm, who is a German-born master bamboo craftsman and construction designer, famed for developing Guadua bridges. Prepared to stock and supply the demand for booming housing and commercial building developments in Maui, Jericho is in good company.

Delia Montgomery is an environmental design consultant and personal eco shopper for homes, bodies and gardens. Questions or comments are welcome. Visit www.ChicEco.com or e-mail: Info@ChicEco.com.