The issue at hand is how to apply environmental criteria to the building materials we put into buildings, particularly with regard to cast iron.

At present there are no immediate obvious sources of reliable information to fall back on - little information available to the specifier, on how to create a ‘green’ building - ie. one which has the lowest possible damage on the environment.

DOE has funded a ‘Green Building Digest’ (12 issues so far), which is the beginning of a reliable source of reference which can help specifiers make choices between materials based on environmental criteria.

The problem is that most will not bother with such issues till heavy duty legislation comes into force.

Regulations are however changing, particularly in Europe - many toxic chemicals associated with building materials are being substantially reduced.

Looking ahead, finding a green approach to building materials used in construction looks set to become more and more of an issue. It is therefore important for CIDDA to appear proactive in this respect.