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When choosing countertops for your home remodel, chances are you base your decision on color, pattern, and price. While these aspects are undoubtedly crucial, you might want to add sustainability to your priority list due to the worsening climate crisis. Luckily, many manufacturers have introduced eco-friendly options that look incredible, too.

For a product to be truly sustainable, you must consider its entire life cycle, right from resource extraction and manufacturing to ultimate disposal and recyclability. It’s also important to pay attention to volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions and transport carbon print (locally-sourced materials are better). Green certifications, such as Cradle to Cradle and GREENGUARD, also help you identify whether environmentally responsible manufacturing processes were followed. Based on this, we’ve discovered that countertops carrying high reclaimed content, such as recycled paper composites, FSC-certified salvaged wood, stainless steel, and recycled aluminum, are among the more environmentally friendly countertop choices. We’ve also embraced countertops made of quickly renewable natural sources, like bamboo and cork.

What didn’t make our sustainable list? Materials like granite and quartz, as they deplete natural resources and come with other negative environmental consequences. We’ve also excluded countertops involving resource-intensive production processes. Concrete and sintered stone are such examples, despite their durability. Having established the basics, here are six more earth-friendly countertop material choices for your home and four that you should consider skipping.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, an average American consumes over 700 pounds of paper annually. If not recycled, it’s carted off to a landfill, constituting over 23% of the total municipal solid waste along with paperboard (according to the EPA). Fortunately, manufacturers like PaperStone and Richlite have found a way to press this post-consumer paper waste and old cardboard into countertop slabs.

Moreover, their manufacturing practices lean toward sustainability. For instance, PaperStone uses petroleum-free resins (often industrial waste) to bind the recycled paper. This eliminates  the release of harmful pollutants like VOCs in the manufacturing process. Richlite also utilizes water recycling facilities, and both PaperStone and Richlite boast the use of renewable power sources. Overall, these countertops are far less energy-intensive to manufacture, compared to traditional offerings, such as stone countertops.

Despite being made from paper, they are moderately durable and very stain-resistant. Yet, they’re as easy to cut and install as any wood countertop. You can equip both your kitchens and bathrooms with recycled paper composite countertops. They can withstand the heat of most hot pans, and they boast scratch resistance and are typically non-porous, which means they don’t absorb water readily. Many variations are also anti-bacterial and certified food safe, too. Recycled paper composite countertops also excel in longevity, lasting upwards of 25 years, ensuring you get a fair return on your investment. Plus, you can refurbish them when you get bored with the finish.

Reclaimed or salvaged wood-based countertops are made from recovered wooden materials. When a dilapidated barn, a retired building, or any old structure is dismantled, its wooden parts are separated and sold as salvaged lumber. This can be a sustainable option because it does not require harvesting new wood. Instead, you’re reusing what’s already available in the market. Moreover, reclaimed wood can be sturdier than virgin wood because it’s more likely to come from a mature specimen. Reclaimed wood is aesthetically pleasing, too, with all the previous wear and tear, knotting, and nail marks amplifying its rustic charm.

If you’re not one to shy away from building your own barnwood kitchen countertop for a rustic vibe, speak to local construction contractors for some tips and to find out if they are offloading wood from recent projects. Local sourcing reduces freight emissions and means your project will have a smaller carbon footprint. You can also have professional sellers, such as Elmwood, SN Wood, or Windfall, customize a reclaimed countertop for you. They usually carry a wide range of tree species, including oak, pine, and elm.

However, don’t forget to look into the source of wood before making any purchases. This will help you determine if they’ve been treated with toxic chemicals. In case the reclaimed wood is a relatively new stock, ensure it’s FSC-certified. Follow the same precautions you would with any wood countertop, such as regular sealing for longevity and durability.

Did you know that bamboo is a type of grass? When it’s harvested for further processing and production, it bounces back almost immediately. This quick regeneration makes it environmentally friendly. To illustrate, consider Phyllostachys Edulis or “Moso,” a bamboo species used by Teragren, a leading manufacturer of bamboo-based products. It can grow multiple feet within the day, reaching 80 feet by the time it’s two months old. Although it cannot be harvested immediately, as the young fibers won’t make sturdy countertops, it can be harvested when it’s around 5 ½ to 6 years old.

However, there are concerns about bamboo countertops not being entirely eco-friendly. For starters, bamboo is mostly imported from China, so transporting it across the globe releases large amounts of greenhouse gases. Additionally, some manufacturers seemingly use formaldehyde-based resins to bind bamboo slats. For these reasons, make sure to look for green certifications before investing. Continuing our previous example, Teragren claims that its products remain carbon negative, despite the sea and land transport. Plus, it assures that its resins meet safety standards.

Still, to sidestep these issues entirely, consider purchasing unfinished bamboo countertops and staining them with food-safe materials like HOPE’S 100% Pure Tung Oil or beeswax. Although bacteria-resistant and harder than many woods, keep a few downsides to bamboo countertops in mind before installation. You’ll need hot pads and will have to sand them down regularly, as they aren’t heat- and scratch-resistant.

Since aluminum can be recycled endlessly, about 75% of all the aluminum ever mined and used remains in continuous production even today (via The Aluminum Association). Better yet, recycling the salvaged content is far less energy-intensive than mining it anew. For these reasons, some manufacturers are exploring the case for compressing recycled aluminum into food-safe countertops. Since they’re reusing the base material, and are typically VOC-free, such countertops can be considered environmentally friendly.

Recycled aluminum counters generally contain over 50% recycled material, often closer to 80%. ALKEMI-acrylic is one leading example, although it also recycles copper, acrylic, and solid surface content into the counter along with aluminum. Plus, they source all their raw material (usually an industrial waste product) regionally across the eastern U.S., further lowering their carbon footprint.

If you’re hoping to follow the sleek cabinet trend that’s making kitchens and bathrooms look more modern, recycled aluminum countertops will match the metal aesthetic seamlessly. They can hold up to years of kitchen abuse, including scratches and stains, and can be recycled thereafter.

Another countertop material that can potentially be environmentally friendly is Suberra cork. Most cork is harvested from cork oak trees growing in Portugal. To ensure the trees stay healthy, their government dictates harvesting schedules, insisting on sufficient intervals to allow the trees to regenerate. This keeps the trees productive for many decades. Suberra goes a step ahead and salvages the harvested cork disposed of by the wine industry. This post-industrial cork is then recycled into solid slabs. To combine the cork fibers, they make use of polyurethane binders containing no added urea formaldehyde. However, it remains unclear what their transport footprint is, as it’s unknown where the used cork is salvaged from.

As for their performance, like recycled paper composites, Suberra cork can take substantial heat (about 350 degrees Fahrenheit) and can be safely used to hold hot utensils. The surface is impermeable to water and can be deployed in wet areas. These cork counters are as sturdy as oak counters. However, excessive sun exposure may cause some discoloration.

In a conventional sense, stainless steel’s production consumes significant energy. But what turns the tables here is its recycling capacity. It’s repeatedly recyclable, with nearly 100% of its content fully salvageable by the end of its design life. Moreover, recycling results in over 60% energy savings as compared to producing new steel. 

These countertops also earn brownie points for their high durability. They can outlive most conventional materials, including wood countertops, and make it back to the reprocessing facility if retired early. They also don’t release any harmful chemicals, making them a mind-easing option for homes with children.

To keep things sustainable, be sure to purchase countertops made from regionally produced stainless steel. Due to the shorter transport distances, their carbon emissions will be lower. You may even look for salvaged stainless steel counters. While you may have no doubts about their performance — they’re a chef favorite for good reasons — it’s worth noting that there are some downsides to stainless steel countertops. They show knife scratches, and smudges easily and may need regular cleaning and refreshing to keep things looking shiny.

Here’s what you need to know before you buy concrete countertops: they’re bad news for the environment. While they may appear natural since they’re made from sand and rock — materials present in abundance — the opposite is true. Mining these items adversely affects the environment. The final nail in the coffin is the negative environmental impact of Portland cement, the production of which has a major role in global greenhouse gas emissions. Minimizing the impact of cement production by mixing in fly ash, which is an industrial waste from coal plants, may make concrete countertops unsafe. That’s because fly ash can harbor toxic metals.

But, say you bought a home with concrete countertops and need to replace a portion of them. How do you reduce the environmental impact? To start, focus on manufacturers that use recycled content in their concrete mixes, so less material is ending up in the landfills. N-viroCrete countertops are one such option. They’ve also tweaked their manufacturing processes to lower their water and cement use. Try to source concrete produced locally to reduce transport emissions. You may also look for options where cement has been replaced with recycled ground glass for binding. Evaluate the sealants, too, as they may have toxic formulations.

Sintered stone, the durable countertop material that’s taking over home design, may not be as eco-friendly as the marketing refrain suggests. While it’s made from natural minerals that are readily available in rock formations, this resource extraction has a price. Moreover, these minerals are sintered, which means they’re subjected to high degrees of compression and heat (nearly 2,200 degrees Fahrenheit). The target is to closely mimic the metamorphic changes naturally occurring within geologic formations. As you can imagine, packing eons of growth within a few hours can be energy-intensive.

While leading manufacturers do claim the use of renewable energy and water recycling facilities, not all manufacturers monitor their environmental impact. Moreover, with some companies manufacturing and importing their products into the U.S., you must also account for the freight emissions and the related carbon footprint. Unless milled and recycled, these products are sent off to waste treatment facilities when you get bored of them.

Although granite is widely available in the U.S., these varieties are not considered ornate enough to be cast into countertops. For this reason, manufacturers, instead, import granite from abroad, which is often quarried and processed in their factories. Sadly, such imports require a substantial burning of fossil fuels, which does not bode well for the environment. Even on the production front, granite doesn’t come across as resource-efficient, given the high energy and water use.

If you’d like to incorporate sustainable granite countertops in your home, consider sourcing them from local quarries. Alternatively, you may look for salvaged granite pieces that usually come off demolished buildings. Such recycling will stem further carbon emissions because there is no new resource extraction. The brand “Recycled Granite” is another less-harmful option. However, if you’re still struggling with sourcing reclaimed options, you may consider the regionally mined Virginia Mist Granite.

For all their fame, quartz countertops don’t stand on steady ground in terms of sustainability. The product is made with polymer resins, ultimately combined with natural quartz. So, this isn’t a renewable source, even if it’s available in enormous quantities. This is because you must mine it from deep underground and expend lots of energy. Such resource extraction is hugely disruptive to the local environment, creating sinkholes, contaminating soils, and causing pollution.

That being said, there’s a qualifier: some brands use quartz that’s been discarded by industrial units after quarrying, cutting down on waste disposal. However, the extracted quartz crystals must be refined to make them usable for countertop production, adding to energy use. Let’s also not forget the many instances where quartz countertop workers were exposed to crystalline silica, which proved hazardous for their health. As has been the trend, many brands continue to manufacture and then import them from China, adding to the transport-related carbon footprint. Given this, the only way forward is to focus on brands using reclaimed or recycled quartz stone. For instance, Cambria recycles used quartz slabs into its new offerings.