This is just my opinion, but... I will agree that some of the arguments behind why Bamboo Flooring is eco-friendly may be valid. Okay, so we all get that bamboo is really a grass and not a tree - and yes we know it doesn't die when it is cut down and harvested. And, therefore it just keeps growing and growing, providing an endless bounty for us all to use and enjoy guilt free. I am here to tell you there are better alternatives. Going from cut down stalks of bamboo half way across the world to flooring in your family rec room is a long and complicated process.
I will agree that wood is the best flooring material bar none in terms of appearance, durability, and bang for the buck. The Greenest answer is wood, but not bamboo fabricated into looking like wood.
Why not bamboo?
Bamboo is generally comes from a long ways away somewhere around the globe. Great, it gets cut down and grows right back, but how much fuel is burned on the two or three week super tanker boat ride the bamboo takes from its source to a port in California? How about the journey from CA to your house? As often is the case with any product manufactured or sourced from across the ocean, the largest percentage of cost to produce the product is actually the cost to ship it from its origin to the final customer. That can apply to flooring, tv's, food, or whatever... Super tankers run on fossil fuels and chug out a lot of pollution on a trip across the Pacific.
Bamboo needs a lot more than a saw to become flooring. Bamboo flooring is a highly engineered products that requires a lot of energy to process and make into flooring. That process also includes a lot of chemicals, many of which can be toxic and contain VOC's. Bamboo has to be laminated to stick together to become flooring - remember it is really just a grass and not a solid piece of wood.
And you know what? It doesn't look very good. For my money it doesn't look any better than most laminate and is LESS durable. Aside from the eco-cred of appearing to be green, bamboo flooring doesn't meet the minimum standards of sustainability in my book.
So what to do? the answer is easy - reclaimed wood flooring. From a "green" perspective reclaimed wood flooring is better in everyway. Reclaimed wood can come from old barns or factories or houses that have been torn down. There are a variety of species, providing countless colors, textures, and patterns. White Oak, Red Oak, American Chestnut, Heart Pine, Douglas Fir are just a few... So why do I say reclaimed is better?
Its local - most reclaimed wood [http://www.articleslash.net/Home-Improvement/Flooring/577615__Why-Bamboo-Flooring-is-Not-Eco-Friendly.html] comes from sources on the east coast. So even if you are on the west cost it is still closer than the bamboo.
To "manufacture" it, all you need is a sawmill to cut it to the size and shape you want. No complicated, engineered process of chemicals. The options for no VOC finishes are also endless.
If you disagree with my take - I would love to hear from you...