Just because you might not be interested in bamboo or cork, that doesn't mean you have to throw the notion of sustainability out the window. There are engineered hardwood alternatives to be explored before forfeiting to traditional products.
For those unfamiliar with the term, engineered hardwood flooring is manufactured using a core of hardwood or plywood and a top layer of hardwood veneer. The hardwood is glued on top of the sub-surface and is available in almost any hardwood species. The finished product therefore looks like a natural hardwood and carries the characteristics of whatever species you select for the top layer. As a benefit, engineered hardwood has greater stability, particularly against moisture and heat than solid hardwood floors.
Engineered hardwood can be just as environmentally friendly as say bamboo or cork. There are a number of agencies out there that certify forests as sustainable, which means that the forest is not in danger of dying out. For example, the Appalachian Hardwood Manufacturers, Inc. is a 200-member trade association headquartered in High Point, North Carolina. AHMI promotes lumber products from the Appalachian mountain region.
AHMI is part of a growing industry knows as Sustainable Forest Management (SFM). The definition of a sustainable forest as stated by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO):
[...] the stewardship and use of forests and forest lands in a way, and at a rate, that maintains their biodiversity, productivity, regeneration capacity, vitality and their potential to fulfill, now and in the future, relevant ecological, economic and social functions, at local, national, and global levels, and that does not cause damage to other ecosystems.
As one can see, supporting sustainable forest management not only pays off for the environment, but for the surrounding community and economy as well. This is truly a comprehensive approach to resource management and responsibility.
