Based on the findings from our Plumbing Specification Guide, this AIA course explains how the characteristics of materials used for drinking water, wastewater, and fire-suppression systems impact the health, safety, and sustainability of buildings. eligible for HSW credit. … more
Engineers and architects use plastic pipe for many critical systems – including drain, waste, and vent (DWV), water distribution, fire suppression sprinklers, and other applications – across a wide variety of building types. These systems are installed throughout structures, making it essential to understand how they will perform during fire incidents. This report examines fire safety aspects of plastic piping materials, including one of the most commonly used, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), through a review of relevant research… more
Part 2 of our recap of the presentation & discussions at the BSS conference. We focus on fire safety issues like combustibility, toxic releases, & firestopping. … more
Contractors, engineers, & manufacturers raised great questions after our presentation to the invite-only BSS Conference at Wembley Stadium in London. We focused on two important issues that don’t always get the focus they deserve: sustainability & fire safety… more
While it may be easy to produce, plastic building materials represent the antithesis of circularity and sustainability. Companies engineer these materials to be flexible, lightweight, and cheap to produce. They are in no way designed to be recycled, however. … more
Recent contamination of water systems by jet fuel leaking from the Navy’s Red Hill fuel storage facility in Hawaii illustrates again the importance of safe drinking water and of the piping that delivers it.
Many questions remain about this incident, including one that has been largely ignored to date: How will the Navy and local officials repair or replace pipes impacted by chemicals released into the system… more
The Lie of Plastic Recycling Bloomberg investigative reporter Kit Chellel put two trackers inside pieces of plastic and deposited them in recycling bins at 3 Tesco locations in the UK. The linked… more
Limiting Legionella in Building Water Systems New Techniques to Gauge & Limit Risk Cases of Legionnaires disease (a form of pneumonia) and Pontiac fever (a flu-like illness) continue to increase, according to… more
Plastic Particles Found in Human Blood A Dutch team from Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam has published a study showing plastic particles can enter and circulate in human bloodstreams. The researchers found plastics in… more
Fuel from the Red Hill Naval facility on Oahu, Hawaii, leaked into a water system servicing over 90,000 residents in November 2021. As the situation evolves, Safe Piping Matters is sharing developments along with recommendations based on research studies and lessons learned from previous contamination events… more
Companies cannot continue ignoring the full impacts of the goods they produce, including depletion of unrenewable materials and pollution of the environment. Extended producer responsibility (EPR) considers these previously untracked financial and environmental costs and seeks to establish systems that will pay for them. Plastic has emerged as a prime focus of EPR initiatives. Here’s why…… more
Essentials for Successful Lead Service Line Replacement Legacy lead service lines threaten the drinking water of millions, with crises in cities like Flint, Michigan and Newark, New Jersey, standing as examples of… more
Using Proven Materials for Water Systems Part 1: Health & Toxicity Flint, Michigan may be the first city that comes to mind when you think of the crises that can occur in… more
Building Evolution – A Look at Materials, Part 2: Issues and Alternatives In our previous post, we discussed the risks associated with increased use of plastics for construction and interior furnishings. The adjacent… more
Building Evolution – A Look at Materials, Part 1: Risk Over the past several decades, the materials used to construct and build commercial and multi-unit residential structures have changed significantly. In particular,… more
Piping Systems – Designing for Human Health and Safety Webinar with Architectural Record presented 9/22/2021 by Paul Hagar Summary Millions of piping systems across North America bring clean water to families, schoolchildren,… more
Environmentalists and residents recently forced Formosa Plastics, a plastics supplier described by judges as a “serial offender” against the environment, to suspend the construction of a proposed 2,400 acre petrochemical complex in St. James Parish, Louisiana. … more
Scientists are showing that we are sending tons of tiny plastic particles into our soils each year, potentially affecting crops and our health. … more
The model had shown promise in Flint before officials rebelled. Now Toledo is using it, while incorporating more public input. … more
The study concludes that thermally damaged drinking water pipes can be sources of VOC leaching. … more
