Truth or Trend: Is Bamboo a Sustainable Building

Material?
Bamboo is a natural building material that can be found in the tropical to mild temperate regions.
It has been used from ancient times for its natural strength and flexibility. The renewed interest
during the 1980s in bamboo as a construction material has revitalized bamboo not only as a
cheap material but also as a durable material. Many bamboo-based building materials have also
been developed which is more suitable for the modern construction needs. Bamboo has many
environmental benefits which has made it a favorite green building material. This review
critically studies not only the environmental aspects when bamboo is used as a building material
but also its social and economic aspects, to understand its sustainability impact.

Introduction
Bamboo is a giant grass. It is an important non-timber forest product which has multiple uses for
people. One of the most prominent uses of bamboo is in construction. Bamboo has been used as
a construction material from ancient times, especially by people who live in places where
bamboo grew naturally and abundantly. In ancient times bamboo was used to build houses
because of its natural strength and flexibility. In the modern context the aesthetics of bamboo
also plays a vital role. The interest in bamboo as a building material renewed during the global
shortage of housing materials, especially the timber industry, in 1980s.
Figure 1. Distribution of bamboo worldwide
Figure 2. (a) Arch type traditional bamboo construction in Philippines. (b) Modern plastered
bamboo house in Colombia. (c) Modern bamboo house incorporating bamboo composite
flooring in Indonesia

Figure 3. Traditional Bahareque technique – Indonesia (left) and Santiago de Maria, Colombia
Figure 4. (a) Reinforced concrete joint developed by Simon Velez (b) Bamboo Pavilion by
Celina Llerena. (c) Resort made with Bamboo by Bobby Manosa

Bamboo grows naturally in tropical, sub-tropical and mild temperate regions of Africa, Asia,
America, and Oceania as shown in Figure 1. There are a total of 1575 species of bamboo with
1200 species of wood bamboo. Out of these, only 20–38 species are useful in construction, with
Moso bamboo (Phyllostachys edulis), Guadua (Guadua angustifolia Kunth) and Giant bamboo
(Dendrocalamus asper) being the most important, being the strongest and largest of them all.
Bamboo could be used to make all parts of the house from structural wall sand columns, to
woven roofs to doors and windows. In the olden times, bamboo was used in combination with
other natural construction materials like wood, clay, lime, and grass. Recently, it is used in
combination with cement or adhesives to produce much stronger and aesthetically pleasing
materials that are compatible with modern lifestyle. As bamboo is a natural material, it is
susceptible to natural degradation. If properly treated and industrially processed, components
made from bamboo can have a reasonable life of 30–40 years, though natural durability of
bamboo varies according to species and the types of treatments (Building Materials and
Technology Promotion Council (BMTPC).
Bamboo is strong and lightweight, and can often be used without processing or finishing. Even
though the natural round and hollow form of bamboo poses some problems during construction,
especially for connections, its structural properties and environmental benefits make it a prime-
building material candidate for sustainable construction. Many studies and tests have been
carried out to overcome the issues in construction, which ranges from innovative connection
details to composite materials. Decades of research by bamboo practitioners has confirmed that,
when treated and used properly, bamboo is a sound structural and engineering material, which,
due to its strength, flexibility, and versatility, is a suitable material for use in housing.
Nowadays bamboo is being addressed as a building material that can contribute to sustainable
development. It is uniquely qualified because of its environmental, social, and economic
benefits. In this paper the environmental, social, and economic aspects of bamboo construction
material have been critically reviewed to understand its impact on sustainable construction. A
comprehensive review of available published materials has been carried out. The review focused
on the sustainability aspects of bamboo as building material only, and the findings were grouped
under the environmental, social, and economic aspects of sustainability. Studies which did not
pertain directly to bamboo as a building material were not included in the study. The review
includes journal papers, conference and workshop papers, review papers, theses, books, reports,
informative flyers/booklets, and information available on the internet.

Bamboo and bamboo-based construction materials

Bamboo has been used as a construction material due to its easy availability, ease of workability
and its strength. Bamboo is stronger as a tensile member and it is recommended for use as
horizontal members less than 3–3.6 m long without middle support; potentially withstanding up
to 3656 kg (about 8060.09 lb.)/cm2 of pressure (358.53 MPa). A study showed that the tensile
strength of bamboo is about 28,000 N/m2(0.028 MPa), which is like steel. The strength of
bamboo however depends on the species, as it depends on the age, diameter, wall thickness,
position of load, radial position from outside to inside and levels of water. As shown in Table 1,
different bamboo species have different mechanical properties.
Table 1. Mechanical properties of different bamboo species.
Bamboo Modulus of Elasticity Tensile strength Compressive
(GPa) (MPa) strength (MPa)
Bambusa 12 7.6 4.1
stenostachya
Guadua angustifolia 12 35 28-38
Bambusa vulgaris 335.23
Dendrocalamus 5.22
asper
Phyllostachys 22,000
Arundinaria alpine 45.3 37
The renewed interest in the past four-five decades has led to change in the forms in which
bamboo is used and the final outlook of the house has changed a lot as well. Figure 2(a–c) show
the progression of bamboo use from traditional to current style.
In traditional construction bamboo can be used as whole culms, split lengthwise, pressed flat or
woven into mats. The bamboo is usually joined by lashing with vines, split bamboo, or rattan,
this makes for a relative weak joint between bamboo poles. Often the joints are built, in
vernacular contexts, throughout with tied ropes or by incisions of the bamboo, simple to realize
but not suitable to send the entire bearing ability of the bamboo elements. In Indonesia, plastered
bamboo houses were developed in early twentieth century which used wooden skeleton and
bamboo woven mat on the outer skin. The woven mat was plastered so that, the wooden frame
could be seen from the interior and the exterior side looked like a brick wall construction.
This is remarkably like the traditional construction system found in some South American
countries. This construction system is called Bahareque. This traditional construction system in
El Salvador and Colombia has lasted centuries without substantial changes. Bahareque consists
of timber vertical elements and horizontal timber, cane, or bamboo elements, with mud in fill and
finished with plaster. Though in some cases like in Ecuador, the warm tropical climate makes it
unnecessary and bamboo houses need little more than the split bamboo walls for privacy and
ventilation. Figure 3 shows the bahareque techniques of Indonesia and Colombia.
When interest in bamboo was renewed, it was used as cheaper substitutes for timber. They were
used for constructing cheaper housing in developing countries. Due to the early interest and
studies, various bamboo-based construction materials were developed like laminated bamboo,
bamboo-reinforced concrete, and others. These composites are very homogeneous in quality and
can be tested and calculated in the manner of timber constructions and they have better strength
and termite-resistant quality than untreated bamboo. Nowadays, these materials are also called
biocomposites, and can be divided into three categories:
1. Conventional Biocomposites: Chipboard and Flakeboard, Plywood and Laminated
boards, Medium Density Fiberboard, Hybrid biocomposites;
2. Advanced Polymer Biocomposites: Thermoplastic- based bamboo composites,
Thermoset-based bamboo biocomposites, Elastomer-based biocomposites;
3. Inorganic-based biocomposites: inorganic binders – gypsum, portland cement and
magnesia cement.
Studies have shown that bamboo, either small diameter or splits, can be used as reinforcement in
concrete. A qualitative study showed that it is possible to use bamboo for modest housing by
using split bamboo as reinforcement by following the design for steel reinforcement concrete.
But the experimental structures built by Prof. H.E. Glenn in the 1950s using small diameter
bamboo and bamboo splits, failed due to the de-bonding effects between bamboo and concrete
mix. However, an experimental study on manufacture of Oriented Strand Board (OSB) using
Indonesian bamboo, Betung (Dendrocalamus asper Schult.) and Andong (Gigantochloa
vermiticillata Willd.), showed that OSB satisfying the physical and mechanical properties set by
Indonesian code can be manufactured due to its good bonding property.
The use of these materials and the advancement in the preservation of bamboo from natural pests
like rot and fungi has given to development of beautiful yet daring architectural marvels for
which innovative joinery/connection have been developed. Many architects and engineers like
Simon Velez, Marcelo Villegas, Jörg Stamm, Celina Llerena, Bobby Manasa and others use
bamboo exclusively in their designs. Figure4 (a-c) show some examples of these designs. More
the bamboo is processed, with a value add-on, it becomes structurally stronger, aesthetically
more pleasing, adds more social benefits, and becomes more costly. The following sections
describe the environmental, social, and economic aspects of bamboo-based construction
materials in more detail.

Environmental aspect
Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) is the leading tool for assessment of impact that products and
services have on the environment. Since there have been only eight LCA- based studies for
bamboo construction material, including the reference article, instead of the LCA impact
categories, this review looks at the following environmental aspects of bamboo-based
construction material.

Renewability:
Bamboo as a sustainable construction material arises from the fact that bamboo, when harvested
in a sustainable manner, can have a more positive impact on the environment than other building
materials. Sustainable harvesting can be achieved by keeping a regular population of current live
stems by cutting selectively the 20% of mature stems since they will be replaced annually by an
equivalent emergence of young shoots. Different harvesting cycles can be recommended,
depending on the predicted logistical costs of transportation and harvesting, technical
implications on potential harvestable bamboo, impact of bamboo harvesting on soil erosion and
water conservation and the intended use of bamboo stems, like in India, where a four-year
cutting cycle is recommended (ibid). Unlike other timber, bamboo can be harvested after 3–4
years after planting and yearly after that. In fact, harvesting of bamboo yearly keeps the clump or
the bamboo forest healthy. When bamboo is harvested, the root system is unharmed and is ready
to produce more shoots, which allows for a sustainable harvest of bamboo. Bamboo has an
extremely fast growth rate, so it has been regarded as suitable for afforestation. But issue like
loss species variety has been noted (as undisturbed bamboo growth creates a thick canopy
allowing little growth underneath) and low growth rates of bamboo have been noted in sites
where there is lack of nutrient. However, one study noted that, wherever bamboo is planted for
reforestation and soil protection, it can be inter-planted with other crops (Ministry of Forestry
and Mines 2011) because a lot of leaves fall onto the surface supplying fresh nutrients
permanently for the whole vegetation system. Bamboo can be planted in areas that have been
previously ravaged by deforestation or in flood plains. Although some bamboos can adapt to
varying environments, most need warm and humid conditions (mean annual temperatures of at
least 15–20°C and annual precipitation of at least 1000–1500 mm (about 4.92 ft)), there are still
several species of bamboo that are drought-tolerant and grow in semi-arid regions (Ministry of
Forestry and Mines 2011).
Carbon sequestration:
By growing, bamboo takes in carbon dioxide and it in turn gets stored when used in the building.
Although, bamboo lasts only 2–3 years in its natural form, chemical treatments to protect it from
natural pests and the use of proper design elements to protect it from effects of climate can make
bamboo last up to 30–40 years. Thus, when bamboo is used in a building, carbon is stored and
not released into the atmosphere until the end of the life of the building. The carbon storage and
sequestration rates for bamboo is 30–121 Mg per ha and6–13 Mg per ha per year, respectively. A
study in China showed that bamboo (Phyllostachy pubescens) keeps carbon longer than Chinese
fir.
Embodied energy:
Bamboo can be used as solid wood substitute materials, especially in manufacture, design, and
construction usage, decreasing the pressure on forest resources. It can also reduce the current
trend of construction industry’s use of high energy consuming building materials. Whereas the
fabrication of bricks and cement consumes massive quantities of energy and emits accordingly
substantial amounts of carbon dioxide, the act of bamboo cultivation (which is sometimes called
the act of growing architecture) is one of the best ways to reduce the green-house effect. Table 2
shows the energy requirement to produce various construction materials Building Materials and
Technology Promotion Council (BMTPC). Bamboo has the lowest energy requirement for
production. The increased use of bamboo in construction can supply a 70% reduction of
plantation timber used. A study in China expected that by 2015, bamboo will supplement the
timber supply by 2 million m3 per annum. A study of a bamboo-structure residential building
prototype showed that compared to typical brick-concrete building, the bamboo-structure
building needs less energy and emits less carbon.
Table 2. Energy requirement for production of construction materials.
Building material Density (kg/m3) Energy for production
(MJ/kg)
Concrete 2400 0.8
Steel 7800 30
Wood 600 1
Bamboo 600 0.5

Environmental pollution:
Bamboo is environmentally friendly because it comes from a rapidly renewable resource. The
increase in bamboo use can help to reduce deforestation, encourage new and existing cultivators
to grow more bamboo, use wasteland, unused land, and river banks, which will result in better
soil conservation and mitigation of flood disasters. This will not only improve the environment
as bamboo has a negative impact on greenhouse effect, as it lowers the atmospheric and soil
carbon content but this could also generate significant employment opportunities and thus
promote the socio-economic status of the local people.
The life expectancy of untreated bamboo has been found to be 2–3 years. This is because the
untreated bamboo is susceptible to rot fungi and invasion by wood-eating insects; it can also
harbor disease carrying insects. Bamboo can be treated in two main ways: non-chemical and
chemical treatment. Traditionally, water immersion or smoking is used as non-chemical
treatment methods. Other non-chemical treatment methods are painting with diesel, engine oil,
Phenol Formaldehyde (PF) resin. In chemical treatment, treatment chemicals are penetrated the
bamboo either through injection or diffusion methods. The treatment chemicals can be creosote
oil, chromated copper arsenate (CCA), chromate-copper-boron (CCB), acid copper chromate
(ACC), boron and boric acid mixture. The use of preservatives for bamboo and the handling of
treated products poses potential risks to humans, animals, and the environment. Strict regulations
on use of chemicals, dissemination of dangers about usage and disposal; and precaution during
usage and disposal are needed to minimize this hazard.

Social aspect
Bamboo by being used as a construction material can have good impact on society. By
developing a bamboo-based construction industry, it cannot only preserve traditional skills but
also create new income opportunity and ensure a much stronger social cohesion.
Traditional skills of construction and income generation opportunities:
The socio-economic aspects of bamboo are significant because of the commodity's role as a
major non-wood forest product; many people depend on this commodity as a source of income.
The promotion of bamboo reduces deforestation, a key cause of poverty and urban migration. By
developing housing based on locally available building material, the skills of local people can be
increased, which in turn will support them in income generation and prevent them migrating
elsewhere, thus improving the social fabric. Since only basic carpentry, masonry tools and skills
are necessary for the construction of bamboo houses, it can be easily taught to people with basic
or no skill in the community. So, programs focused on promoting bamboo as a construction
material combined with its plantation, harvesting and processing should be implemented,
especially in places where bamboo has been naturally available. Although it is easier to calculate
and pinpoint the environmental/ecological and economic aspects of sustainability of bamboo as a
construction material, the social aspect is derived from these two, instead of being an entity.
Resilience to disaster:
Bamboo as a building material has a positive social impact on the people affected by disasters as
it can be used to speedily build houses that are disaster resistant and support livelihoods to
recover from those disasters. Bamboo can help not only to reduce greenhouse effect by reducing
carbon dioxide in the environment but it has roots that spread underground in all directions,
turning land solid and preventing landslides that can be caused by heavy rain and earthquakes.
Bamboo has been regarded as a building material with which to construct earthquake-resistant
buildings. An ideal structure for effective seismic resistance needs to be strong yet not very
heavy, because the earthquake force imparted to a structure is a product of its mass and the
imparted acceleration; therefore bamboo, which has a higher density but is lighter than timber
because of its hollow nature is an ideal material as it will impart smaller earthquake force due to
its smaller mass. In El Salvador, the bahareque construction system has been identified as a
building system which is seismically resistant to a remarkable degree as compared to adobe and
the concrete block construction systems. An experimental study in Colombia, where two types of
bahareque wall panels, one made of bamboo and one made of bamboo and wood, were tested for
seismic performance, showed that panels with diagonal bracing showed better strength and
stiffness, but in most cases the connections break before the walls fail. The study showed that
there was no significant difference between the properties of all-bamboo panels and wood-
bamboo composite panels. Another study done on the bahareque system of Colombia, showed
that the popularity received by the construction system as an earthquake-resistant building was
diminished due to the devastation caused by fire but by combining with materials like cement for
plaster and improving the design, this system was added to the Colombian Code of Earthquake-
Resistant Constructions. A study on building construction systems in four different countries of
South America, namely, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, and Costa Rica, using bamboo as building
material showed that its flexibility and lower weight combined to obtain a seismically resistant
architecture.
Social cohesion opportunities:
Natural disasters affect people with low-economical resources bringing about a psychosocial
depression that leads to abandoning of agricultural activities, which forces them to move to
urban centers. This is one of the biggest causes of increase of urban poor population. A study
suggested planting of bamboo in the pluvial deposits caused by the sedimentation of flooding can
be used to create income and thus rescue the dignity of people in areas devastated by El Niño. A
study done in the mountainous area of Cuba showed that Bambusa vulgaris is amazingly
effective in control of soil erosion, which has the potential to prevent disasters from occurring in
the first place. A study on housing implementation in India after a major flood showed that
bamboo houses had a wider acceptance from local communities because bamboo houses allowed
for better living conditions as they are better suited to the local climatic features of warm-humid
areas. Thus, bamboo can play a significant role in bringing normality to life after disasters.

Economical aspects
The economical aspect of bamboo-based materials studied so far consist of the cost of the
material and the income opportunities it creates. They are elaborated below.
Cost of material:
Bamboo is often adopted as a cheaper construction material alternative. Although this might be
true in cases where bamboo is available locally, the transportation costs could significantly
increase construction cost and its sustainability in places where bamboo is not grown. This is true
in the case of European markets. However, in China, the bamboo industry has become a
backbone industry in economic development and poverty alleviation of rural areas, and a new
growth point of economy in remote mountainous areas of southern China. Also, due to bamboo’s
new uses in industrialized countries in Europe and America, the cost of bamboo is increasing
because the demand for bamboo is growing due to the increasing cost of other wood and actual
tendency towards sustainability that bamboo can bring to the housing industry. Bamboo can be
processed into modern products that may successfully compete with wood products in price and
performance but this will still be a niche market for the more affluent population.
An experimental study on using bamboo to create shelters with Tensegrity dome showed that
bamboo can be used to create simple buildings, that are easy to assemble and lightweight which
results in economy of material and labor cost. Similarly, a housing project in Nepal constructed
prefabricated wood and bamboo houses that proved to be earthquake resistant, durable, and more
economical than other options like brick and concrete.
The concept of sustainable products and development of bamboo biocomposites can be
considered a wise balance between the demands of society's increasing demand for products, the
preservation of forest health and diversity of material resources and benefits. The major issue is
that the commercialization of most highly valued bamboo products has been found to cause
major impacts on sustainability of raw material production. When demand for bamboo increases,
rapid and uncontrolled harvesting can lead to serious depletion of bamboo and deforestation. A
study conducted in the northeastern Yunnan province of China showed that one of the major
reasons for decline of bamboo forest was extensive logging of mature bamboo and ravaging of
shoots. Also, the addition of transportation from the country of manufacture to the country of use
adds hugely to the embodied energy and cost, undermining the sustainable benefit of bamboo.
Financial gain opportunities:
The economic benefits of bamboo housing arise, not only from the low cost of bamboo as a
material but also from the fact that it is a means of income for people who work in the bamboo
industry, be it construction of houses or making engineered bamboo construction materials.
These jobs include conventional agricultural jobs common in developing regions as well as
higher-skilled jobs needed to process the bamboo raw material into value-added products, such
as furniture, housing, composites, etc. However, the benefits have not always reached the poor;
many researchers did not consider that the users in their studies were poor people living in rural
areas of tropical countries where bamboo grows, where steel bars for concrete are scarce or
unavailable. In many places, like in Philippines where demand exceeds the supply, over-
harvesting and premature harvesting are major problems, and this will lead to degeneration of the
bamboo forest.

Conclusion
For a long time, bamboo has been “poor man’s timber,” so it became the choice of material for
most low-cost or cost-effective housing. Using bamboo in construction or housing projects
where bamboo is abundantly found has become a source of income for people who were already
familiar with bamboo. By involving people in sustainable bamboo cultivation, it becomes
another source of income for people who are still dependent on agriculture. The manufacturing
of bamboo products for construction is another avenue for income. Bamboo can thus strengthen
the self-reliance of local communities. Traditional construction technology was handed down
from generation to generation, so it became a part of the socio-cultural structure of the people.
Reviving such technology, further developing the technology, and transferring it to the people
who are already familiar with use of bamboo can strengthen the society. Bamboo can be used for
speedy construction of houses, either permanent or temporary, in disaster-stricken areas like
post-earthquake area. It can also be used for prevention of soil erosion that will prevent disasters
like landslides and flooding. By considering the beneficiaries of each step from planting and
harvesting of bamboo, to its processing in industries and finally in construction, the income
generation opportunities for each socio-economic strata of society can be included in any
development project of bamboo.
For a sustainable economic and social development, ecological sustainability is a basic
requirement. It is not the consumption of material resources per se, but much the resulting
pollutant emissions that are currently regarded as an obstacle to sustainable development. The
studies carried out so far have proven that the use of bamboo in construction indeed will promote
sustainable construction because bamboo has many environmental benefits that can entice people
to use it to improve their socio-economic standing. Although, ways to economically help the
locals who are directly in contact with growing and harvesting of bamboo should be integrated
into any construction business.
Overall, bamboo has the potential to be a sustainable building material but more studies are still
needed, especially dedicated to the social aspect of bamboo in the building context. During this
study, it was seen that bamboo is synonymous with sustainability, but the explanation for such
was not easily discernible. Additionally, the seismic property of bamboo housing has been well
studied both theoretically and but studies of bamboo as a building skin are completely lacking.
More studies are needed to better understand the socio-economic aspects of bamboo-based
construction materials. Another aspect of further study can focus on the built environment of
bamboo buildings and the effect on living comfort of bamboo-based construction material.