Building Green

This is the first article in an 8 part series intended to educate home buyers and builders on the different aspects of building “green”. Be sure to pick up the next issue to read all about Land Use Planning!

New and more affordable energy-saving appliances for the kitchen and bathroom are becoming more easily available

Banish all the images you have in your head of the funky solar houses, Earth Day celebrations and that squat san-serif "e" of the ecology movement of the '70s. Today, green building is a whole new high-tech, high-performance, comprehensive approach to building, renovating and maintaining homes and commercial spaces with a focus every bit as much on saving costs, enhancing comfort and promoting health as on conserving resources and reducing impact on the environment.

As more and more builders and consumers learn about the many benefits of this holistic new philosophy for the built environment, green building is becoming one of the most rapidly growing trends in both new construction and renovation. The number of buildings applying to the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) for green building certification has doubled each year since its implementation in 1999.

Over our next six issues, explore the different elements of green building — land use planning, design and construction strategies, materials selections, costs and benefits — to learn the know-how and resources to take advantage of the green build movement, whether you're beginning a brand new home or just making a few changes around the place you already live or work.

Part II in the series explores land use practices, both from the larger development perspective as well as the individual level. How can municipalities and developers work hand-in-hand to promote growth while minimizing its negative impact and optimizing lifestyle for residents?

Why is preservation of wetlands and open space important? It's about so much more than saving a rare endangered species or placating the “tree-hugger” crowd. We now know the vital role that wetlands play in ensuring clean drinking water. And open space not only provides habitat for wildlife, but also plays an important part in promoting a sense of community and enhancing overall quality of life. Just look at Wake County's extensive Greenway system, filled with joggers, dog walkers, roller bladders and cyclists on any given Saturday. And this trail system provides a vital natural corridor for the kind of migration that is essential to many species of wildlife.

Finding better uses for underutilized land — especially that within metro centers where infrastructure like roads, water and sewer is already in place — not only reduces the environmental impact of development, but also the costs. And the quality-of-life gains are well-documented too; shorter commutes, vibrant urban lifestyles, established schools, the list goes on.

Consider the Options
In Part III you will be introduced to some new ways to think about the bricks and sticks that make up a home or any built structure. Not only can making a commitment to incorporating as much recycled content in your construction materials as possible save a tree from being harvested, it could well cost you less in the end and actually perform better to boot.

 
Why not use a flooring or cabinet material like bamboo that grows in four years instead of 100, especially if it's structurally superior? The Forest Stewardship Council certifies growers who adhere to sustainable forestry practices. Simply making a choice to use this certified lumber can help ensure a stable supply for generations to come.

Selecting materials that are durable also reduces environmental impact, as well as maintenance and repair hassles. Hardiplank siding is not only manufactured from sawdust and cement, but also resists shrinking and expanding and holds paint on average three times longer that wood siding.
Careful attention to standard sizes in building materials when designing new buildings or planning renovations can significantly reduce waste in the construction process and costs.

A Win-Win Proposition
Part IV of the series introduces you to a veritable smorgasbord of options for slashing energy consumption, which translates to environmental conservation, economic savings, a more comfortable indoor environment and even political impact as we reduce our dependence on foreign oil. From appropriately siting a building on a given piece of land, to ensuring a tight building envelope to myriad methods and technical advances in insulation, there are an abundance of strategies for minimizing your energy requirements. Construction techniques and landscaping also play a roll in reducing the energy consumption of a structure.
There are many new options that you may not even be aware of when it comes to alternative sources of energy — from solar panels to windmills to continuous hot water heaters to geo-thermal heating.

Careful choices when it comes to appliances, while they might mean a slightly bigger investment up front, can translate into truly significant savings over the life of the appliance, both of precious natural resources and in your checkbook. Just what does the Energy Star designation mean? We'll explain that, and show you how to make an intelligent cost-benefits analysis of your appliance options. And we'll tell you about some Federal and state programs that can save your wallet even more.
Energy isn't the only resource worth conserving and preserving. Water is a precious finite resource that human beings simply cannot live without. And like energy conservation, there are a whole host of strategies any homeowner can adopt for reducing water consumption. Part V of the Green Building article series will tell you about designing for dual plumbing for utilizing recycled water and gray water systems that recover rainwater and other non-potable water to use in the yard and garden. Recirculating systems for hot water distribution and micro irrigation are just a few of the developing technologies for water conservation.
There are some water-saving “everyday products” that you can easily substitute for the guzzlers you might have in place now, from low-flush toilets (that really work) to low-flow shower heads and rain gauge irrigation controllers.

Most folks in the Triangle are all too familiar with the brown lawns and withered plants of recent droughts. Part VII covers xeriscaping, a concept originally developed in dessert locales for landscaping that requires an absolute minimum of water consumption. It turns out that these strategies of careful plant selection  (especially the use of native plants) water zoning, alternative ground covers, mulching and more, not only greatly reduce water use, but also require lower pesticide levels and far less maintenance than traditional landscaping. And they're sure to hold up under even severe drought conditions.

Green building is not just about creating a built environment that's easy on the earth and on the pocketbook; it's about creating an environment that's healthier too. We all know about air pollution — from factory and power plant emissions and automobile exhaust. But did you know that the air you breathe inside your own home is typically three to five times dirtier than the air outside? The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has stated that indoor air pollution is the nation’s number one environmental health concern. Hazardous chemical vapors are a major contaminant in many houses, and new airtight building practices can exacerbate the accumulation of toxic gasses within the home. Part VI outlines the American Lung Association's recommended three-pronged approach to improving indoor air quality — source reduction, ventilation and purification.

For more than 10 years, the American Lung Association has worked to identify the sources of indoor air pollution and to develop strategies for maintaining a safe clean environment on the home front. We'll walk you through their Health House, which offers a blueprint for both consumers and builders to safeguarding the household breathing zone.

The first line of defense in the ALA Health House is eliminating and reducing as many sources of VOCs as possible. That means first identifying those sources. We'll run down the most common culprits for VOC emissions in the average home and provide a range of alternative products and materials that will be not only easier on your lungs, but also kinder to the environment.

The Cimarron Eco Smart toilet (below), which uses 1.28 gallons per flush (gpf) as opposed to the standard 1.6 gpf.

While eliminating and reducing these sources of indoor air pollution are the first safeguard against hazardous chemical emissions in the home, there is still more you can do to minimize you and your family’s exposure. Proper ventilation, filtration and moisture control are key to maintaining optimum indoor air quality.
High-tech energy return ventilators can actually exchange all of the air in your home several times a day while retaining the energy that it took to heat or cool that air to a comfortable temperature.

There is a wide array of filtration options, including antimicrobial filters for your air intakes and whole house filtration systems to work in conjunction with your heating and air conditioning systems. We'll explain the basics when it comes to MERV ratings and the different pollutant-removing capacities of filter types and media.

Maintaining a proper moisture balance in the indoor environment is also key to optimizing air quality. Too little moisture can irritate the respiratory tract and too much can be a recipe for toxic mold growth.

Balance — that's really what green building is all about; finding the delicate balance between comfort, beauty, cost and environmental impact. And a carefully designed green home, one that achieves that well-thought-out balance, truly is a win-win proposition, one we hope you'll enjoy exploring with us!