The bark of cork oaks can be stripped every 10 years without damaging the tree (top). After stripping, the large slabs of bark are boiled, and bottle stoppers are punched from them. The leftover bark is ground up and pressed into sheets to make floor tiles (below). Photos courtesy Globus Cork (bottom); © Apcor (top).

 

Cork is the bark of cork oaks grown in the Mediterranean region. Unlike nearly every other tree species, it is not harmed by removal of its bark. A mature tree is stripped about once every 10 years and lives for an average of 16 strippings. The cork oak forests thrive without chemical herbicides, fertilizers, or irrigation and provide habitat for wildlife such as the threatened Bonelli's Eagle and Iberian lynx. After stripping, the large slabs of bark are boiled, and bottle stoppers are punched from them. The leftover material is then ground up, pressed into sheets, and cut into tiles for flooring. This dual-purpose production is critical to the cork industry. According to Wilson, the stopper industry might not be economically viable without the supplementary income from flooring products. And yet, if winemakers continue to seek alternatives to cork stoppers, the revenue from flooring might not be sufficient by itself to maintain the cork industry. "If the industry collapses," Wilson predicts, "whatever the land is converted to-say, housing or farmland-might be less environmentally sustainable than growing cork oak trees."

Wool for carpet and furnishings is a popular alternative to synthetic fabrics; it is prized for its beauty, natural origins, and biodegradability. Depending on the breed, a sheep can be shorn one to four times every two years, posing no harm to the animal. After shearing, the wool is spun into yarn and woven into carpets or other textiles. Much of the wool in the United States is imported from New Zealand, where farmers raise sheep without harmful pesticides, on land ill-suited for other agricultural purposes, so there is no competition with food production. But wool is often treated with chemicals to ward off moth and microbial attack. Some organic wool is grown domestically, removing the environmental burdens of ocean shipping.