Here are just some of the recycled features that went into the design and construction of the Waterloo Region Green Home. Recycled crushed glass and recycled aggregate were used underneath the concrete basement floor. There is a laminated wood structural beam in the basement made from thousands of small wood chips. The wall cavities are filled with over nine inches of wet-blown cellulose insulation manufactured from recycled newspapers. The exterior is covered with siding made from pressed scrap wood.
Interior drywall is made from gypsum and old newsprint.
Ceramic tiles in the bathroom and front foyer are 70 percent recycled glass. Structural wood trusses are made from rapid-growth trees and designed to use 35 percent less wood than a conventional building. The roof is covered in tile-shaped steel made from recycled car bodies, instead of asphalt shingles which are highly polluting and can't be recycled. The walkway to the front door is paved with rubber. The basement carpeting is made from recycled plastic pop bottles, and the underpad was once automobile tires.