While most of us already know that brick is a beautiful, durable material that lasts for a very long time, many of us are amazed by how advanced the brick industry is with respect green building design and sustainability. For example, it takes almost 70% less energy to make brick today than it did in 1970. More than 80% of brick kilns are fired with natural gas, and many facilities use fuels from bio-based materials from other applications, such as methane gas and sawdust. Brick is the first masonry material that can be certified for environmental claims from a third party source. Brick is also made from naturally abundant materials, and is one of the very few materials allowed by the building codes to be reused in new building applications.

The materials linked below are furnished from the Brick Industry Association (BIA), which is the national trade association representing distributors and manufacturers of clay brick and suppliers of related products and services. The association has been the nationally recognized authority on clay brick construction since its founding in 1934, and it represents the industry in all model building code forums and national standards committees. BIA is involved in a broad range of activities and programs that appeal to architects, builders, and consumers, including Technical Notes on Brick Construction, Brick In Architecture, Brick In Home Building, national awards competitions, educational seminars, and other programs. BIA also advocates the industry's regulatory and legislative interests at the federal and state levels and educates municipal and planning officials about the benefits of brick at the local level. Along with the headquarters office that covers the entire country, BIA is comprised of regions that manage programs in the Heartland, Midwest/Northeast, Southeast, and Southwest.

Green Facts and "Figures"

• BIA Fact Sheet: BIA Brick Gallery: Select the "Search only Green or Sustainable Projects" to search for outstanding examples of recent brick projects, which incorporate green building design and sustainability, from all over the country.

• Brick In Architecture, "The 2009 Brick In Architecture Awards Winners," November, 2009. Technical section entitled, "Certifying Brick for Green Building Rating Systems." Discusses third-party certification program for brick offered through the National Brick Research Center and showcases Best in Class Winners of the 2009 Brick In Architecture Awards Competition.

• Brick In Architecture, "Brick for Sustainable & Green Building Design," October, 2007. Technical section entitled, "Sustainability & Green Building Design with Brick Masonry." Talks about how brick can be incorporated into sustainable design practices as well as the environmentally-friendly processes used in brick manufacturing. The piece also highlights examples of sustainable building projects throughout the country.

• The Construction Specifier, "Clad In Green: Brick in an 'environmentally preferable' context," by Charles B. Clark, Jr., PE, AIA, LEED AP, October, 2008.  Advocates the fact that brick meets nearly all of the health and environmental attributes generally associated with sustainable products.

• BIA Brick Brief: "Recycled Content in Green Building Rating Systems - Certification and Credit," September, 2009

• BIA Brick Brief: "Regional Materials in Green Building Rating Systems - Calculating Credit," December, 2009 

• BIA Technical Note 48 on Brick Construction, "Sustainability and Brick," June, 2009 Discusses sustainability and sustainable design and their relationship to brick manufacturing, use and recycling. Sustainable practices in manufacturing are identified, as are ways to utilize brick as part of sustainable design strategies. Ways that brickwork can be used to earn points in the LEED and other green building rating systems are also identified.

• A True Look at "Green" Claims: "The Sustainable Attributes of Exterior Cladding Materials - Precast Concrete vs. Brick." NEW!

• A True Look at "Green" Claims: "The Sustainable Attributes of Exterior Cladding Materials - Metal Panels vs. Brick." NEW!

• A True Look at "Green" Claims: "The Sustainable Attributes of Exterior Cladding Materials - EIFS vs. Brick." NEW!

• Brick Revisited: "Just how GREEN is it?"

• Brick In Home Building, "The Bottom Line on Brick's Role in Sustainability and Green Building Design," April, 2009.  Compares the green attributes of brick against other residential primary claddings including vinyl, fiber cement, manufactured stone and stucco. Discusses, on an in-depth basis, ways in which brick attains ratings points as well as serves an unsurpassed role in projects that incorporate a holistic approach to sustainable design.

• Brick In Home Building, "Using Brick for Green Building Design and Sustainable Residences," December, 2008.  Highlights several examples of brick in sustainable residences, including the National Homebuilder Mainstream GreenHome. Also details information found in Builder Note 5 described below.

• BIA Builder Note 5, "Brick: Green Building Design and Sustainability," June 2009 Details how brick can contribute to the credits of the predominant national residential green building rating systems LEED for Homes and the ANSI 2008 National Green Building Standard published by the National Home Building Association.

• A True Look at "Green" Claims: "The Sustainable Attributes of Exterior Cladding Materials - Vinyl vs. Brick." NEW!

• A True Look at "Green" Claims: "The Sustainable Attributes of Exterior Cladding Materials - Manufactured Stone vs. Brick." NEW!

• A True Look at "Green" Claims: "The Sustainable Attributes of Exterior Cladding Materials - Fiber Cement vs. Brick." NEW!

• A True Look at "Green" Claims: "The Sustainable Attributes of Exterior Cladding Materials - Stucco vs. Brick." NEW!

• Beyond Brick and Mortar - "The Green Issue."