Championing the
Changemakers

Deep overhangs and standing-seam roofing are among the features of the homes at Cobb Hill Cohousing that will help to ensure a long life. Photo: Alex Wilson. Click on image to enlarge.

Number 6 in my list of the top-10 green building priorities is to ensure that the home is durably built or renovated, and to reuse existing buildings when... Read more

NyloDeck is made from 100% recycled carpet and a water-blown polyurethane binder. Photo: Nyloboard. Click on image to enlarge.

The U.S. throws away a lot of carpet. According to the Product Stewardship Institute, approximately 2.7 million tons (5.4 billion pounds) of carpet enter the waste stream each year in the U.S., roughly 1.2% of all... Read more

Native landscaping was used around the Chesapeake Bay Foundation headquarters to help protect the Bay. Photo: Alex Wilson. Click on image to enlarge.

Number 7 on my list of the top-10 green building priorities is to protect and restore the site.

Of all the environmental problems we're causing as a species--including air pollution,... Read more

Handful of Oregon Shepherd loose-fill insulation at West Coast Green. Photo: Alex Wilson. Click on image to enlarge.

I've been at the West Coast Green conference in San Francisco the past three days and have spend a good portion of that time checking out the trade show. One of the highlights is a loose-fill wool insulation from Oregon... Read more

Click on image to enlarge

Number-eight in my list of the top-10 green building priorities is to use "green" or low-environmental-impact products and materials.

Those who are new to green building may be surprised that material selection isn't right at the top of my priority list. Many people assume that what makes a home green are... Read more

  Download the Air Conditioner Condensate Calculator (Excel file)

Back in 2008 when I wrote a series of articles for Environmental Building News on water, one of those articles, Alternative Water Sources: Supply-Side Solutions for Green Buildings, examined various ways of harvesting water and included an in-depth look at collecting air... Read more

ASI offers interior signs made from renewable and recycled materials and exterior signs with PV lighting. Photo: ASI. Click on image to enlarge

Clear signage can help us find our way, it can inform us, and--in a green building--it can highlight environmental features. That signage can also, itself, make a statement about the environment.... Read more

Number of days per year projected to exceed 100 degrees F based on lower-emission scenario (middle) and high-emission scenario (bottom); recent past shown in upper map. Image: U.S. Global Change Research Program. Click on image to enlarge.

Number 9 in my list of the top-10 green building priorities is to create resilient houses that will... Read more

Photo: RecycleTote.com

Over the next ten weeks, I'm going to lay out my top-ten priorities for green building--starting, in Lettermanesque fashion, with #10 and working up to #1. These priorities are directed primarily toward the design and construction profession, but homeowners having a house built or work done on a house need to be part of... Read more

Figuring out the structure of concrete at the molecular level will go a long way toward greening this ubiquitous building material. Photo: Michael David Rose Photography.

When I began researching concrete for last month’s EBN feature article "Reducing Environmental Impacts of Cement and Concrete," one of my goals was to figure out how toxins... Read more

Hemcrete is poured into forms, tamped, cured, and then both sides stuccoed with lime plaster. Photo: Lime Technology, Ltd. Click on image to enlarge.

Tradical® Hemcrete® is a non-structural, rigid, insulating, composite wall fill comprised (by weight) of about 38% hemp and 62% lime-based binder. The Tradical lime binder is manufactured in the... Read more

I have a new favorite insulation material. Foamglas® building insulation has been made by Pittsburgh Corning for many decades and is widely used in Europe. For the past decade or two, however, it has only been actively marketed in North America for industrial applications. (It's been listed in our GreenSpec Directory as an industrial insulation... Read more

Lake Mead, the nation's largest reservoir, which supplies 90% of Las Vegas's water and millions of other residents, shown at about half capacity in 2007. Ken Dewey photo. Click on image to enlarge.

Last week we examined the amount of energy it takes to transport and treat water--and how we can conserve energy by using less water. This week,... Read more

GraniteCrete was used at Asilomar State Beach for durable, but natural-looking pathways and steps. Photo: GraniteCrete. Click on photo to enlarge.

GraniteCrete is a portland-cement-based aggregate binder used with locally sourced, ground, decomposed granite or other suitable aggregate to produce porous, natural-looking walkways and other low-... Read more

Previously a Burlington Coat Factory, the new community center at 45-51 Park Place, New York, will be a LEED certified space upon completion. Photo: Michael Appleton for The New York Times

The first mosque, in the world according to an article in The Daily Green, attempting LEED certification could be located in Lower Manhattan—in proximity... Read more

Niagara uses innovative "vacuum-assist" hydraulics to provide an effective, yet super-quiet flush in the Stealth toilet, requiring just 0.8 gallons. By using less water, this toilet saves energy. Photo: Niagara Conservation. Click on image to enlarge

It takes a lot of energy to transport and treat water in this country, and it takes a lot of... Read more

There are some significant advantages to urinals when it comes to bathroom maintenance (I won't go into the messy details of splashing that happens when males stand and urinate into a toilet). With ultra-efficient urinals (often called one-pint urinals) and waterless urinals, there are also very significant water savings that are... Read more

Streets in Copenhagen are designed to provide safe access for bicyclists. Photo: Alex Wilson. Click on image to enlarge.

Last week, I touched on some of the strategies coming out of the "hypermiling" movement to boost automobile fuel economy. Here are a few more: 1. Lighten the load. The more weight we haul around in our cars or trucks, the... Read more

The Grundfos advanced, variable-speed, "smart" pumps for hydronic heating systems can reduce pumping energy use by 80%. Photo: Grundfos USA. Click on image to enlarge.

For the past couple years, I've been helping All Soul's Church in West Brattleboro, Vermont, save energy. While developing a plan to improve the performance of the building... Read more

With careful driving techniques it's possible to significantly exceed the EPA mileage rating for any car. Source: U.S. EPA. Click on image to enlarge.

In this column I usually focus on how to save energy in our homes and businesses, but for many of us, getting around is our largest energy consumer--particularly in the summer months when we're... Read more