Should We All be Using Bamboo in the Future?

Ok, so the Bamboo PC was just an eco promotion. The laptop version of the bamboo PC launched last March at a computer fair in Hanover. It featured a laminated bamboo casing which was around a standard laptop, meaning that no less plastic was needed in making it.Even though these bamboo PCs won't save the environment, they did prove how versatile bamboo really is.Bamboo must be the only plant on the planet that is a source of food, works as building materials and woven fabrics. Even one of Edison's original light bulbs had a bamboo filament. Its strength and low price tag makes it a great material for building, particularly in parts of Asia where it's used as scaffolding. The fibres of bamboo poles have high strength both in tension and compression. Its compressive strength is roughly twice that of concrete and bamboo has roughly the same tensile strength to weight ratio as steel. And now there's a bamboo laptop!Bamboo will please anyone whose buying eco-friendly home furnishi
ngs. To begin with, it's an extremely sustatinable material. Some species of bamboo grow at more than a metre every day. The locals that live near this amazing species of bamboo can cut down as much as they want and still have the same sized forest at the end of the year as they had at the beginning. As for the global warming question, because the bamboo is a plant, anything that's been made from it contains a large proportion of atmospheric carbon. Whereas any equivalent product made from plastic actually increases the carbon level in the atmosphere!Another point; due to bamboo being a natural material, it has a number of variations in quality, size and appearance, all of these differences make it difficult to work with as part of a mass production line. What this means is that you can be almost positive that a skilled craftsman has built the bamboo product you buy. If you go to a reputable source you'll also know that the craftsman got a fair wage for his or her work, and
that no one was exploited by western buying power. Finally you'll be sure that the product you buy hasn't accumulated air miles in its journey from craftsman to your home.With eco credentials as strong as these it's amazing that bamboo products can also be very beautiful. Picture a skilfully made bamboo box, lovingly lacquered with 15 layers of natural shellac. Stylish and all natural at the same time. Only the other day, I bought an amazingly crafted bamboo knife block and am now seriously considering investing in some other bamboo kitchen accessories such as fruit bowls. Stylish and ethical. Win. :)

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