Military may get mushroom buildings

Ecovative Design, a Green Island, N.Y.-based firm that develops structural materials out of organic matter bound with fungal mycelium, has been awarded up to $9.1 million from the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. The funds will support Ecovative’s work with researchers at Columbia University and MIT to develop self-repairing materials that can be used to grow structures in place, such as military bases in the field. The four-year project aims to demonstrate commercial-scale manufacturing.