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Our Sustainability Journey
Stone is one of the most durable materials you can use for any application. When specified and detailed correctly, our products can last for hundreds of years—resulting in some of the lowest embodied energy of any material. Developing and maintaining a sustainable operation is a Coldspring core value that not only affects how we do business, but also shapes our corporate culture.
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Coldspring is among the world’s most environmentally responsible stone producers
Stone is a natural resource. However, depending on how it is quarried, processed, transported and used has a significant bearing on the environmental impact for any particular use. Likewise, our foundry and other non-stone operations also benefit from sustainable practices that maximize the utilization of our resources while minimizing energy use.
Building on a long-standing commitment to establishing and promoting industry-wide best practices that treat the source of our products (the earth) with respect, Coldspring is dedicated to developing and maintaining resource management and processing practices that minimize our impact on the environment.
sustainability e-book
Download Our E-book “Specifying Sustainable Stone: A Guide to Helping Owners Get What They Want”
While natural stone is an inherently sustainable material, the way it is extracted and processed has a direct impact on its overall quality of sustainability. Because practices can vary widely depending on the stone supplier, it’s important to be specific and clear when writing specifications with sustainable stone in mind. Establishing clear and concise project goals with the owner upfront and writing precise specifications can help ensure your goals are met. Learn more in our free E-book.
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TIMELINE
Our Sustainability Journey
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20062006
The Green Building movement created awareness of the need for better materials for high-performing buildings. In response, the stone industry created a sustainability committee to tell the true story of natural stone’s environmental performance. In 2006, we were among the first natural stone companies to begin working on the industry’s first third-party verified sustainability standard.
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20062006
At the same time, we examined our own quarry and fabrication operations to better understand what improvements we could make. We recognized the great opportunity we had to consolidate multiple locations into one corporate headquarters.
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20082008
In our consolidation we designed our new corporate office headquarters which achieved USGBC LEED Gold® certification in 2008.
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20102010
Continuing our sustainability journey, we then hired two nationally recognized leaders in sustainability to perform a sustainability audit of Coldspring’s quarry, fabrication and office operations throughout North America. Part of this process was the formation of an internal sustainability committee to establish a plan with goals to measure and improve various elements of our sustainable footprint.
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20142014
Meanwhile, the stone industry continued to develop the 3rd-party verified standard, which is now known as ANSI/NSC 373 Sustainable Production of Natural Dimension Stone. The standard measures the extent to which natural stone is extracted and produced sustainably. It establishes a set of well-defined environmental, ecological, social responsibility and human health requirements for stone quarries and processors.
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20142014
Through Coldspring’s leadership and involvement, the standard is now recognized by the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED v4 building certification program and the International Living Future Institutes most recent version of the Living Building Challenge. This helps design teams ensure the stone they specify supports their project’s sustainability goals.
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20162016
Coldspring was one of the first companies to achieve ANSI/NSC 373 certification with our primary manufacturing facility and corporate headquarters in Cold Spring MN, and several quarries in the Midwest.
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20182018
Coldspring’s commitment to sustainability continues to steer efforts toward maintaining and achieving ANSI/NSC 373 certification at additional operations.
Our Milbank quarry operations received Gold-level certification in 2018.
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20202020
Two years after achieving Gold Quarrier status, our Milbank quarry exceeds and receives Platinum Quarrier NSC 373 certification.
third-party verified sustainability standard
Sustainable Production of Natural Dimension Stone
The ANSI/NSC 373 Sustainable Production of Natural Dimension Stone Certification ensures architects and owners that stone for their buildings is produced in an economic, environmental and socially responsible manner.
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Proudly Quarried in the U.S.A.
With quarries, plant facilities and sales offices located across the country to stay responsive to our customers and help them buy regionally, this is one company that is truly made in America. We work hard every day to promote and expand sustainable business practices.
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Our Declare™ Label
We have disclosed all components of our dimensional stone (granite and limestone) on the Declare™ product database and these products have been designated Red List Free.
The Materials Red List is a cornerstone of the Living Building Challenge™, the built environment’s most rigorous performance standard. The Red List identifies the “worst in class” materials, chemicals, and elements known to pose serious risks to human health and the greater ecosystem. Any project seeking certification under the Living Building Challenge must be free of Red List chemicals and materials. Declare supports the Living Building Challenge by providing a transparent materials database that project teams can select from to meet this requirement.
As part of the declaration, the team at Coldspring has added the Declare label to their product offering to assist project teams in determining how best to source local products that support regional economies.
Any product is eligible for inclusion regardless of its makeup, and participation is voluntary. A product listing does not constitute an endorsement by the International Living Future Institute. Instead, the information provided is reflective of the integrity of the manufacturer; data on each Declare Label has been literally signed-off by the head of the company.
View Coldspring’s Declare® Labels
STONE UTILIZATION
We recognize, as many do, that natural stone is an environmentally preferable material. Especially when compared to many other products such as concrete or composites, stone is highly durable, requires minimal processing and is locally available in many markets. Yet we understand that we have a responsibility to be the best within our industry – the greenest stone manufacturer in the world.
Earth Measure was conceived and designed to be one of the best environmental products on the market today.
Earth Measure is comprised of remnant stone, redesigned into beautiful, long-lasting flooring patterns inspired by nature’s geometries. Coldspring teamed up with McLennan Design in creating a product that is not only beautiful, but that will also last decades with little to no maintenance.
The product has low embodied energy and is made without chemicals using small pieces that are normally ground up as aggregate or left in piles. The stone dimensions are compatible with standard dimensional wood products enabling countless configurations in combining the two materials.
Coldspring’s LEED Gold® Certified Headquarters
The 22,500-square-foot facility, designed and constructed following the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) rating system, increases productivity and makes for a more efficient and integrated operations. The corporate headquarters houses approximately 150 people and is one of seven buildings on the 435-acre site.