by Chris Magwood and Peter Mack, 2000. New Society Publishers, Gabriola Island, B.C., Canada.

Paperback, 234 pages, $24.95.

Straw Bale Building makes a substantial contribution to the literature in many ways.

First and foremost, the book is authored (and published) by Canadians with a definite focus... Read more

The first quarter of 2000 was the

warmest first quarter ever recorded in the United States, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The average temperature for this period, 41.7°F (5.4°C), exceeds the previous record (1990) by a full degree Fahrenheit.

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Vol. 8, No. 5) as their first climate-neutral product, and Saunders now offers climate-... Read more

I always read

EBN all the way through, but I look for the best parts and go to them first. After leafing through the whole magazine, I started on the “Structure as Finish” article (

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Vol. 9, No. 3), thinking at first—“not so interesting.” By the time I was into the third... Read more

Natural Home magazine is sponsoring a

“Natural Home of the Year” contest for both new construction and remodeled residences and single rooms. The winning homes will be featured in the magazine’s November/December 2000 issue and will receive additional national press exposure. There is no charge to enter, and... Read more

Flooring, paneling, and other wood products from Green Mountain Woodworks (GMW) in Southwestern... Read more

Initial efforts to repeal portions of the 1992 Energy Policy and Conservation Act that mandate

low-flow toilets and other water-conserving plumbing fixtures have failed. A House subcommittee voted 13-12 on April 12 to keep the water conservation standards. Joining the 11 Democrats on the vote were two Republican lawmakers from quickly... Read more

In December 1998, Hurd MillWORK agreed to a $5.3 million class-action settlement relating to claims about R-value in gas-fill windows that were shipped with breather tubes installed. Andersen Windows devotes a full page in this year’s residential product catalog to “High Altitude Glass Considerations.” The window industry is struggling with the... Read more

Liverpool High School, near Syracuse, New York, has become the first high school to install a fuel cell. The school’s ONSI PC25 fuel cell will be used both as a power source and a teaching tool. Funding was provided, in part, from the state of New York and the U.S. Department of Defense.

Two Wisconsin state agencies, the Department of Consumer Protection and the Department of Health and Family Services, have issued a warning about the use of ozone generators. The February 29 press release singles out Alpine Industries for violating a Federal Trade Commission order and using unsubstantiated health benefits to market ozone... Read more

Although they represent just 1% of U.S. land cover (an area the size of South Carolina), roads and highways directly affect the ecology of nearly 20% of U.S. land. That is the key finding of research by Richard Foreman at the Harvard Graduate School of Design, reported in the February issue of the journal

Conservation Biology. Foreman... Read more

by Tom Bender, 2000. Fire River Press, Manzanita, Oregon. Paperback, 123 oversized pages, $27.

The book is a richly illustrated primer into the spirit of place, and the place of spirit, in buildings. (Bender’s... Read more

Seattle-based Sellen Construction Co. has been honored as 1999 Contractor of the Year by the International Erosion Control Association (IECA). Sellen was lauded for its use of best management practices and state-of-the-art technologies to control erosion and prevent sediment runoff in challenging and sensitive situations. Specific practices... Read more

With the passage last year of a law in Louisiana designed to address the risk of Formosan termites, it looked as if preservative-treated wood was going to be

mandated in all framing lumber used in home building. Senate Bill 373 provides for the formation of a task force to deal with the growing problem of Formosan termites in Louisiana... Read more

The Loudoun County, Virginia Board of Supervisors is serious about stemming sprawl. They have set up a $1 million legal defense fund to protect the county against court challenges by home builders, according to an article in the January 5

Washington Post. Loudoun County is the third fastest growing county in the nation, and it gained... Read more

Version 4.0 of the popular E Build Library CD-ROM is now in production, with copies expected to ship starting in early May. The comprehensive archive features all 57 back issues of

Environmental Building News from the first, in 1992, through 1999. The text is fully searchable using Adobe Acrobat® text search or via hotlinks from the... Read more

A call-for-entries has gone out for the 2000 Aurora Awards competition for residential design and construction (both single- and multifamily) from the Southeast Building Conference. Projects located within the 11 southeastern states are eligible for the Awards, which cover a whopping 75 categories, including water conservation, energy... Read more

Visionwall Technologies, Inc., a leading manufacturer of high-efficiency curtain-wall glazing systems (see University of Victoria Engineering Laboratory case study in

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Vol. 6, No. 7), went into receivership on February 24, 2000. Customers should see little effect from this action, however, as Visionwall Corporation has taken... Read more

Steelcase, the office furniture manufacturer, is set to break ground on a new wood furniture plant in Gaines Township, Michigan. The new facility, designed by William McDonough + Partners, will be the first manufacturing building of its size rated by the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED program. Projected emissions reductions of 70% as... Read more

I was not so convinced by the case for building commissioning as I expected to be when I began reading the article in

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Vol. 9, No. 2.