19th Nov 2021

Is Cork Spray Eco Friendly?

When it comes to emerging technologies and products, we are all moving towards more sustainable and eco friendly materials that not only help resolve some of the most pressing challenges we face but also protect our environment through minimizing their overall environmental impact.

From the deadly carbon emissions associated in the complete Life Cycle of a product or a material (i.e. cradle to grave), to the social and economical impacts of using a material are at the core of sustainability strategies for all major forward looking clients and designers of our built environment.

Construction industry is one of the most unregulated industries in the world responsible for 40% of carbon emissions. In the construction industry the lighter versions of sustainability is mainly focused on the buildings and its use of energy and water. However the US Green Building

Council says that the embedded carbon footprint is the larger picture we need to be aware of when specifying any material or products to be used in building construction.

Canada is now moving towards Cross Laminated Timber frames even for buildings as tall as 20 floors. They say timber is preferred over any other material only for the reason that it is a renewable resource and that it promotes planting more trees that sequester carbon and store it in the ground and the tree itself. There is no other material that can replicate this effect on environment except trees. They purify our air, remove carbon dioxide, and produce more oxygen.

Cork Spray is an environmentally friendly product for a number of reasons. To start with, it is a plant based product, hence natural and renewable. Being a plant based product, it in fact promotes planting trees. No tree is ever cut down, which means the trees keep growing and do their job of purifying the atmospheric air.

The Cork Oak trees are sustainably managed, harvested every nine years without felling or harming the tree. Cork is one of nature’s most extraordinary inventions.

A natural plant tissue, cork is biodegradable, and its exceptional ability to retain CO2 makes it a champion of sustainability, a powerful ally against climate change.

The harvesting of cork tree barks emits oxygen which is in addition to the oxygen produced by the tree in the process of photosynthesis.

The overall manufacturing process of Cork spray from growing cork trees, to extraction of plant based resins, and organic polymers involves very little carbon emissions.

Cork forests preserve the biodiversity and help in the survival of many indigenous animal species that are in danger of extinction.

Another important role they play is in sequestering CO2, regulating the hydrological cycle, and retaining environmental and social desertification. The forests offer a cultural landscapes. Human actions from use of resources like the cork, the fruits for animal feed, the pastures and agricultural crops result in the such cultural systems.

The harvesting of Cork tree barks is a highly controlled process and does not required any tree to be cut down. The Cork industry makes the existence of the cork forest more important and feasible through careful maintenance or the trees in order to keep the raw material available in abundance. Portugal itself can supply all the required cork to meet the market demand for 100 years to come.

Cork Oak forests also make a wide range of agricultural, forestry, forest grazing, hunting and economic
activities viable. Over 100,000 people directly or indirectly depend on the Cork Forest economy.

Excellent thermal properties and weak combustion makes cork more fire-resistant than other trees. Slow combustion
means its naturally fire retardant and form a barrier against forest fires. Even after combustion Cork does not produce and smoke or toxic gases.

Cork forests are compared at par with the Amazon forests, the African Savana and Borneo. It is the natural habitat for more than 120 plant species and over 180 animal species.

Cork forests are said to sequester and retain up to a whopping 14 million tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. A huge contribution for reducing greenhouse gas emissions which are the main cause of global warming and climate change. This does not stop here, when the barks are harvested from the trees, the stripped cork oak tree absorbs 5x more CO2 during its natural regeneration.