Page 12 - Demo

12|July 2021
Slippery rock Gazette
Natural Stone Institute Takes Ownership of Natural Stone Sustainability Standard
Ownership of the ANSI/ NSC 373 Sustainable Production of Natural
Stone standard has officially transferred from the Natural Stone Council to the Natural Stone Institute.
First issued in 2014, the Natural Stone Sustainability Standard es- tablishes criteria and methods for tracking, measuring, and improv- ing sustainability in the produc- tion of natural stone. Since its initial development, the Natural Stone Council has maintained the standard and updated it to ensure continued relevance in the green building space.
Duke Pointer, Executive Director of the Natural Stone Council, commented: “The Natural Stone Council (NSC) is proud to hand off the Sustainability Standard for Natural Stone, ANSI/NSC 373, to the Natural Stone Institute. The NSC saw the need over 10 years ago for development of an industry standard and we com- mitted the resources to complete and launch one. The Natural Stone Institute will now take the Natural Stone Sustainability Standard to the next level. We continue to offer our support in that effort.”
Since its initial development, NSF International has served as the program operator and audi- tor for the standard. The Natural Stone Institute has contracted with NSF International to con- tinue supporting the implementa- tion of the standard for the next three years. “The Sustainability Standard for Natural Stone, ANSI/NSC 373, includes well-defined environmental, eco- logical, social responsibility and
human health metrics through a multi-stakeholder, science-based approach,” said Suzan Somo, Environmental Products Business Lead at NSF International. “Our team at NSF International is look- ing forward to working with the Natural Stone Institute to con- tinue supporting the implemen- tation of this stone standard. This standard helps quarry operators and stone fabricators assess their internal practices, drive efficien- cies and attain preferred status in their markets as the building in- dustry continues to value sustain- able products and practices.”
The next step in the transfer process will be to re-engage the joint committee that maintains the standard. This committee in- cludes a cross section of stake- holders including academia, designers and specifiers, building owners, stone producers, and re- lated industry and sustainability experts. They will be responsible for ensuring the standard remains relevant with contemporary prac- tices, technology, governance, and related standards.
The Natural Stone Institute has also been working with a set of industry stakeholders to identify sustainability goals and strategies, including:
Guide quarriers and fabricators through the benefits and process of certifying to the Natural Stone Sustainability Standard.
Expand the relevance of the standard through a companion EPD program.
Position natural stone as a desir- able solution to satisfying green building goals.
Arm the natural stone industry with knowledge and tools needed to tell the sustainability story.
“We’ve been working with
the Natural Stone Council prior to, and during, this transition to identify ways to build rele- vance and awareness for both the Sustainability Standard and the concept of using natural stone to satisfy green building goals. A few key things we hope to ac- complish include: developing in- dustry average EPDs, organizing a CEU blitz to educate the design/ build community, and organizing more extensive guidance for com- panies completing the certifica- tion process,” says Michael Picco (PICCO Engineering), 2021 Natural Stone Institute board president.
To learn more about the Natural Stone Sustainability Standard and join the new sustainability mail- ing list, visit www.naturalstone institute.org/sustainability.
The Natural Stone Institute is a trade association representing ev- ery aspect of the natural stone in- dustry. The current membership exceeds 2,000 members in over 50 nations. The association offers a wide array of technical and train- ing resources, professional devel- opment opportunities, regulatory advocacy, and networking events. Two prominent publications—the Dimension Stone Design Manual and Building Stone Magazine— raise awareness within the nat- ural stone industry and in the design community for best prac- tices and uses of natural stone. Learn more at www.naturalstone institute.org.
NSF International is an inde- pendent, global organization that facilitates the development of standards, and tests and cer- tifies products for the food, wa- ter, health sciences and consumer goods industries to minimize ad- verse health effects and pro- tect the environment. Founded in 1944, NSF International has operations in 180 countries and is committed to protecting hu- man health and safety world- wide. NSF International is a Pan American Health Organization / World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Centre on Food Safety, Water Quality, and Indoor Environment.
ASa fossilized native Knoxvillian whose trou- sers wardrobe consists largely of blue jeans, tan jeans and camo jeans, I have no authority whatso- ever to speak about trendy men’s
clothes.
Otherwise, I’d be wearing the chip off my Visa buying colorful pairs of cutting-edge guy britches: lace dress shorts.
A friend recently sent me a story, from the fashion website allure. com, which included a photo of these pants. “Not recommended for wear in brier patches and poison ivy,” he noted.
Excellent advice, sartorial or otherwise.
Except for the fabric, these Bermudas look like any other men’s shorts you might see at the beach, on the lake, at a picnic or the golf course.
But lace, for Pete’s sake?
Outside of the fact they appear uncomfortable, these things are perfectly hideous—and thanks to my certified geezer status, I know a thing or three about once-chic, yet grotesque, men’s fashion. Do the words “leisure suit” ring a bell? No more need be said.
I telephoned several local stores and quickly discovered men aren’t knocking down the doors for lace dress shorts. In fact, nobody had even heard of them.
“Let me be clear,” I said to a salesclerk at M.S. McClellan & Co. “I’m 73, so this isn’t some- thing I would ever imagine myself wearing.”
“I’m 24, and I wouldn’t wear them either,” he replied.
Frankly, I didn’t expect McClellan and other purveyors of more traditional clothing to be offer- ing lace pants. But I was surprised that stores catering to younger au- diences — including Nothing Too Fancy, Hot Topic, Urban Outfitters and Spencer’s — weren’t swooning over the trend.
“However, if guys start asking for them, I’m sure we’ll be carrying them,” said a clerk at Spencer’s. “Last year, we had men’s one- piece Rompers, and they were very popular.”
(For some reason, I missed that new style too.)
Sam Venable
Department of Irony
While checking the stores, I also inquired about another hip men’s clothing craze that recently crossed my desk: crop tops. You know, those upper-body women’s thin- gies that fit like a sausage casing and show plenty of real estate from chest to navel.
Nope, no demand for them yet in Knoxville, either.
Sounds logical, but not be- cause K-town guys aren’t fash- ion-minded. Just the opposite, in fact. When it comes to putting vast expanses of bushy beer guts on public display, our lads are well ahead of the curve.
Except we don’t call ’em “crop tops.” We call ’em “small T-shirts on XL bellies.”
Available at finer garage sales and flea markets everywhere. They go great with jorts.
Sam Venable is an author, come- dic entertainer, and humor columnist for the Knoxville (TN) News Sentinel. His latest book is “The Joke’s on YOU! (All I Did Was Clean Out My Files).” He may be reached at sam. venable@outlook.com .
These Shorts are Sure to Be Light, Airy and Hairy
“MYdefinition of a free
society is a society where it is safe
to be unpopular.”
– Adlai Stevenson