There are more than 90 genera of bamboodivided into about 1,200 species. Bamboo iscommonly found in Africa, Asia and Central, SouthAmerica, some parts of Europe and NorthAmerica. India is rich in Bamboo resources with13.96 million Hectares Forest area. Bamboo of 123species in 23 genera is available here (FSI 2011).Bamboos are widely distributed in India, especiallyin semi dry and dry zone along plains and hillytracts, usually up to an altitude of 1000 meters.The wide distribution of bamboo shows theenormous potential it possesses to developbamboo based industries in India. Bambusabamboos and Dendracalamus strictus are the twogenera constitute the highest proportions ofbamboo forest in India. Main species are D. Strictus(45%), B. Bamboos (13%), D. Hamiltonii (7%), B.Tulda (5%) and B. Pallida (4%). D. strictus one ofthe predominant species of bamboo in UttarPradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, and WesternGhats. Dendrocalamus strictus occupies 53percent of total bamboo area in India. D. strictusspecies is available as thick-walled and sometimeswith solid culms.

Development of wood substitute is one ofthe policy interventions enunciated in the NationalForest Policy, 1988 for conservation of nationalforests. Natural renewable fibres are abundantlyavailable in the country and are being substitutedto wood due to the fact that any alternates towood based on non-renewable resources will notbe sustainable. Bamboo is a fast growing plant,quick maturing and is one of the strongestnaturally growing material which can beextensively grown in most of the tropical and sub-tropical regions. More over utilization of bamboowill lead to creation of employment and incomegeneration for the rural poor. What products canbe made from bamboo? Potential investors andclients frequently ask us about the different usesof bamboo. To answer that question, we alwayslike to refer to an Asian saying: ”A man is born ina bamboo cradle and goes away in a bamboocoffin. Everything in between is possible withbamboo!”

INNOVATIVE PRODUCTS FROM BAMBOO - A MATERIAL OF FUTURE

R &D efforts at IPIRTI have given birth to anumber of products like bamboo mat Board(BMB), Bamboo mat Veneer Composite (BMVC),Bamboo Mat Compreg, Bamboo Mat MouldedTray (BMMT), Bamboo Mat Corrugated RoofingSheet (BMCS), Bamboo Wood (BW), BambooFlooring Tiles, High Density shuttering gradepanels, Bamboo Mat Moulded skin Board(BMMSB), Bamboo Mat Ridge Caps (BMRCS) andBamboo Particle Board.

The challenges we face today is to furtherimprove and innovate the uses of bamboo. Sincebamboo is the fastest growing plant on earth anda sustainable building material, it could easilysubstitute all known wood applications withouthaving to cut down entire bamboo groves orplantations. Better yet, bamboo continuouslygrows after harvest without having to re-plantit. Bamboo also converts about 35% more CO2 intooxygen than a regular tree.

The bamboo products we see on the markettoday, are just the tip of the iceberg, we predictthat more and more innovative applications ofbamboo will enter the consumer markets rapidly.Therefore it is an exciting era to live in if you arealso a firm believer of how bamboo can contributeto a greener and cleaner environment. We can’tchange our consumption based economy, but wecan certainly change the resources we use and theway we manufacture our products.

After featuring several bamboo products,hailing them as eco-friendly alternatives forflooring, furniture, salad bowls, dresses, and evenunderwear, I wanted to know what bamboo offersthat allows it to fall under the category of’ green’trends. Why is chopping bamboo any lessdamaging than cutting down trees? Well, the shortanswer is that bamboo grows a lot quicker. Treestake hundreds of years to grow into optimalharvesting size, but bamboo, which is actuallyclassified as a grass, can reach tremendous heightsin the course of a single year. In a one monthperiod, bamboo has been known to grow an entirefoot, and that without the help of chemicalpesticides and fertilizers.

Bamboo has benefits in it living state too(besides feeding Pandas of course.) The rootsystem works to prevent erosion on steepsurfaces, and the plant itself is strong enough toresist intense weather conditions like typhoons.Bamboo has also been recognized for its ability todetoxify water by absorbing heavy metals.

“Bamboo is, like, the hottest eco fibre sincehemp Its swept the granola movement decadesago,” NOW Magazine explains. “The speedy weedis being incarnated into slick bamboo decor,flooring, towels hell, even bamboo bras faster than

you can spell ‘panda.’ But there are some cracksin its green facade.

The processing reduces inherent geometricand mechanical variability of the natural materialthat currently limit the application of bambooproducts. As an engineered composite, thematerial demonstrates higher strength incompression and tension than soft woods and gluelaminated timber, with comparable bendingproperties. Currently promoted as a decorativematerial, the engineered bamboo in Prelude is anexample of a potential use beyond aestheticapplications in architecture.

TRADITIONAL USES OF BAMBOO

In Asian countries, bamboo has been usedfor household utilities such as containers,chopsticks, woven mats, fishing poles, cricketboxes, handicrafts, chairs, etc. It has also beenwidely used in building applications, such asflooring, ceiling, walls, windows, doors, fences,housing roofs, trusses, rafters and purlins. It is alsoused in construction as structural materials forbridges, water transportation facilities andskyscraper scaffoldings. There are about 35species now used as raw materials for the pulpand paper industry. Bamboo is used in building

industry since ancient times. Compared to steel,concrete and timber, less mass of bamboo is ableto withstand more loads. Bamboo is one of thestrongest building materials. The tensile strengthof bamboo (28,000 pounds per square inch), ismuch higher than steel (23,000 pounds per squareinch). It is reported that 50 times less energy isrequired to generate 1 m3 per unit stress forbamboo as constructional materials as comparedto steel or concrete. This makes bamboo a suitablealternative to steel in load bearing applications.High flexibility and growth rate, low weight toheight ratio, provides bamboo extensiveopportunities as building material. Hollow designis structurally superior to woody stem of timber.Density of various bamboo species is 700-800 kg/

m3 . This is important factor to be consideredwhile building designs. Bending stress at failure is0.14 times mass per unit volume. High value ofmass per unit volume for bamboo provides itgreater strength of bending failure.

BAMBOO PRODUCTSIt seems like hundreds of products can be

made from bamboo. From household items to theentire house, bamboo products are nothing newto society. Ancient civilizations were using bamboofor building long before they were using othermaterials and this trend has faded slightly over thecenturies, but is now making a comeback in partsof the world, becoming a popular resource.

Market demand of bamboo in various applications (India)

Bamboo item Market size, 2003 Market potential 2015(Rupee Crore) (Rupee Crore)

Shoots 5 300Timber substitution 10,000 30,000Ply board 200 500Ply board for truck, railways 1000 3400Bamboo Mat boards - 3908Bamboo Flooring 100 for export, 1950

100 for DomesticPulp 100 2088Furniture 380 3265Scaffolding - 861Housing - 1163Road - 274Miscellaneous (pencil, matches etc.) 394 600

NUMEROUS PRODUCTS

Bamboo has been made into numerousproducts over the years. From raw products likebamboo charcoal or edible bamboo shoots, tofinished pieces like furniture and instruments,there are many kinds of bamboo products outthere. Whether they are made of raw or treatedbamboo, they all seem to be used with morefrequency now that we are re-discovering the

America, and by extension in the aesthetic ofTiki culture. In China and India, bamboo wasused to hold up simple suspension bridges,either by making cables of split bamboo ortwisting whole culms of sufficiently pliablebamboo together.Various structural shapes may be made bytraining the bamboo to assume them as itgrows. Squared sections of bamboo are createdby compressing the growing stalk within asquare form. Arches may similarly be createdby forcing the bamboo's growth into the desiredform, costing much less than it would to obtainthe same shape with regular wood timber.More traditional forming methods, such as theapplication of heat and pressure, may also beused to curve or flatten the cut stalks.Bamboo can be cut and laminated into sheetsand planks. This process involves cutting stalksinto thin strips, planing them flat, and boilingand drying the strips; they are then glued,pressed, and finished. Long used in China andJapan, entrepreneurs started developing andselling laminated bamboo flooring in the Westduring the mid-1990s; products made frombamboo laminate, including flooring, cabinetry,furniture, and even decorations, are currentlysurging in popularity, transitioning from theboutique market to mainstream providers suchas Home Depot. The bamboo goods industry(which also includes small goods, fabric, etc.) isexpected to be worth $25 billion by 2012. The

versatility of the products. Some bamboo productsinclude: Charcoal, Alcohol, Bed sheets, Blinds,Paint brushes, Bicycles, Cutting boards, Clothing,Fabrics, Flooring,Garden plants, Matting,InstrumentsUNUSUAL PRODUCTS

There are also some very unusual productsmade from bamboo out in the world. Most peoplewould never think these products could be madewith bamboo, but they hold up just as well asmetallic counterparts. These products include:Record player needles, Roofing, Umbrellas,Wedding favors, Sugar (as in sugar cane),Deodorizers, Beer, Beehives

In its natural form, bamboo as a constructionmaterial is traditionally associated with thecultures of South Asia, East Asia, and the SouthPacific, to some extent in Central and South

quality of bamboo laminate varies amongmanufacturers and varies according to thematurity of the plant from which it washarvested (six years being considered theoptimum); the sturdiest products fulfil theirclaims of being up to three times harder thanoak hardwood while others may be softer thanstandard hardwood.Bamboo intended for use in constructionshould be treated to resist insects and rot. Themost common solution for this purpose is amixture of borax and boric acid. Anotherprocess involves boiling cut bamboo to removethe starches that attract insects.Bamboo has been used as reinforcement forconcrete in those areas where it is plentiful,though dispute exists over its effectiveness inthe various studies done on the subject.Bamboo does have the necessary strength tofulfil this function, but untreated bamboo willswell with water absorbed from the concrete,causing it to crack. Several procedures must befollowed to overcome this shortcoming.Several institutes, businesses, and universitiesare researching the use of bamboo as anecological construction material. In the UnitedStates and France, it is possible to get houses

made entirely of bamboo,[which areearthquake- and cyclone-resistant andinternationally certified. Three ISO standards aregiven for bamboo as a construction material.In parts of India, bamboo is used for dryingclothes indoors, both as a rod high up near theceiling to hang clothes on, and as a stick wieldedwith acquired expert skill to hoist, spread, andto take down the clothes when dry. It is alsocommonly used to make ladders, which apartfrom their normal function, are also used forcarrying bodies in funerals. In Maharashtra, thebamboo groves and forests are called Veluvana,the name velu for bamboo is most likely fromSanskrit, while vana means forest.Furthermore, bamboo is also used to createflagpoles for saffron-coloured, Hindu religiousflags, which can be seen fluttering across India,especially in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, as wellas in Guyana and Suriname in South America.

However, with good management practiceslike irrigation and fertilizer application, shootproduction from the individual species could beextended up to 6 months, with the shoot seasonof different species peaking at different timemaximum shoots can be extracted for a longerperiod. At harvesting, a shoot may contain as muchas 90% water. The extractability of each species,as is given below:

No. Name of the Species Edible portion1 Dendrocalamus hamiltonii 45.75%2 Dendrocalamus longispathus 40.00%3 Dendrocalamus brandisii 32.61%4 Dendrocalamus strictus 20.80%5 Bambusa bambos 30.25%6 Bambusa tulda 19.84%

Many minority groups in remote areas thathave water access in Asia use bamboo that is 3-5years old to make rafts. They use 8 to 12 poles, 6-7 m (20 to 24 ft) long, laid together side by side toa width of about 1 m (3.3 ft). Once the poles arelined up together, they cut a hole crosswise throughthe poles at each end and use a small bamboo polepushed through that hole like a screw to hold all

the long bamboo poles together. Floating housesuse whole bamboo stalks tied together in a bigbunch to support the house floating in the water.Bamboo is also used to make eating utensils suchas chopsticks, trays, and tea scoops.

This is only a tiny representation of whatkinds of products can be made with bamboo.There are hundreds of others, all waiting to beaccepted into mainstream society as greatproducts to replace those out there made of lessrenewable resources.

BAMBOO, NOBLE AND USEFULBamboo, one of the "Four Gentlemen"

(bamboo, orchid, plum blossom andchrysanthemum), plays such an important role intraditional Chinese culture that it is even regardedas a behavior model of the gentleman. As bamboohas features such as uprightness, tenacity, andhollow heart, people endow bamboo withintegrity, elegance, and plainness, though it is notphysically strong. Countless poems praisingbamboo written by ancient Chinese poets areactually metaphorically about people whoexhibited these characteristics. According to laws,an ancient poet, Bai Juyi (772-846), thought thatto be a gentleman, a man does not need to bephysically strong, but he must be mentally strong,upright, and perseverant. Just as a bamboo ishollow-hearted, he should open his heart toaccept anything of benefit and never havearrogance or prejudice. Bamboo is not only asymbol of a gentleman, but also plays animportant role in Buddhism, which was introducedinto China in the first century. As canons ofBuddhism forbids cruelty to animals, flesh and eggwere not allowed in the diet. The tender bambooshoot thus became a nutritious alternative.Preparation methods developed over thousandsof years have come to be incorporated into Asiancuisines, especially for monks. A Buddhist monk,Zan Ning, wrote a manual of the bamboo shootcalled offering descriptions and recipes for manykinds of bamboo shoots. Bamboo shoot has alwaysbeen a traditional dish on the Chinese dinnertable, especially in southern China. In ancienttimes, those who could afford a big house with ayard would plant bamboo in their garden.

IMPORTANT SPECIES AVAILABLE IN ORISSAOccurs in natural forestDendrocalamus strictus - Salia baunsaBambusa bamboos-Kanta baunsa, Daba baunsaCultivated by villagersBambusa vulgaris - SundarkaniBambusa nutans - Badia baunsaOccurs in natural forest & village landsGigantochloa rostrata - Bolangi / Pani BaunsaThyrostachus oliveri - Nala BaunsaBambusa tulda - Taleda baunsaSchizostachyum pergracile- DangiOccurs as very few individualsDendracalamus giganteous - Daba baunsaBambusa striata, Bambusa waminThyrostachys regia

THE FUTURE PROSPECTIVEBamboo is one of the most abundant and

renewable resources available in Odisha coveringnearly 30% of the total forest area of the state.Presently the use of bamboo form forests for itsmajor industrial use i.e. paper manufacturing, isdecreasing. This has adversely affected thelivelihood opportunities of rural communities andforest fringe dwellers, who were previouslyengaged in extraction of forest bamboo. Howeverbamboo has the potential for generation of gainfulemployment through various bamboo-basedindustries which can be developed on thetechnological advancements made in India andother countries. It offers tremendous employmentand income generation opportunities to thecommunity for the invaluable role they can playcovering harvesting and regeneration, treatmentand other value addition options linked to variousindustrial products.

With a growing need for the developmentof sustainable materials, engineered bamboocombines the benefits of a natural fibre compositewith the advantages of a laminated material.Highly renewable, large diameter bamboo usedfor structural applications is harvested every 3-5years. Once harvested, the raw material can beprocessed into strips, which are then laminatedinto a board.

This newsletter is also available in electronicform at our website:

www.orienvis.nic.in and www.cesorissa.org

ENVIS EDITORIAL TEAMProf. Dr. Ashutosh Debata,Director-cum-CoordinatorPravat Mohan Dash, Programme OfficerPrashanta Ku. Nayak, Information Officer

For Subscription & Query; Please Contact to :Centre for Environmental StudiesForest & Environment Department, Government of OdishaN-1/247, IRC Village, Nayapalli, Bhubaneswar-751015, e-mail: ori@envis.nic.in, URL - www.orienvis.nic.in

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Acknowledment: We are thankful to Gyanaranjan Sahoo, Scientist (Forestry), KVK, Angul for providingrelevant information for this newsletter.

Shri Shashi Bhusan Behera, Hon'ble Finance Minister, Odisha; Prof. Dr.Ashutosh Debata, Director, CES and other Officials during awareness

program on Swachhta & Plastic Waste Management on 06.11.2017

Shri Debidutta Biswal, IFS, Member Secretary, OSPCB; Prof. Dr. AshutoshDebata, Director, CES and other Officials during awareness programme on

Pollution & Plastic free Swachha Baliyatra on 07.11.2017

Shri Pravat Kumar Tripathy, Hon'ble MLA, Banki; Prof. Dr. Ashutosh Debata,Director, CES and other Officials during awareness program on Environment

Education, Awareness and Plastic Waste Management on 25.11.2017

State level written quiz competition on the eve of National EnergyConservation Day on 13.12.2017 at Regional Museum of Natural History,

Bhubaneswar

Shri Prafulla Kumar Mallick, Hon'ble Energy Minister, Odisha; Sri HemantSharma, IAS, Secretary, Energy Dept.; Prof. Dr. Ashutosh Debata, Director,CES and other Officials during observation of National Energy Conservation

Day on 14.12.2017 at Bhubaneswar

Prof. Dr. Ashutosh Debata, Director, CES addressing during trainingprogram on 06.12.2017 for Eco-club teachers-in-charge of Bhadrak district

in collaboration with the DIMC-NGC, Bhadrak.