Comments on: The Greenest Building…

By: Green Building

Green Building — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 22:21:23 +0000

Love the article. I agree with you 100%. Plus vintage materials are in now.

By: Jennifer

Jennifer — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 15:09:55 +0000

For a project, a friend and I were assigned to design an eco-friendly house. Our house needs to be as green as possible! So far, we have a solar paneled roof, we grow all of our own fruit and vegetables and we use LED light-bulbs and use lots of biodegradable things. Our house is in the tropics, and suspended above ground so that wind can power many things, also, the house faces east to west so that AC isn’t needed because all air goes straight through the house. Please email me for some suggestions ASAP!!!
Thanks

By: erica

erica — Tue, 05 May 2009 12:53:40 +0000

I agree 100% our communities are worth having a more green environment. I am a student at Curie Metropolitan High School in Chicago IL. I am currently working with this program called FOREFRONT and it is bascally a program where people acknowledge your leadership skills and use the to make the world a better place. In our program we have groups that focus on real life issues but states the reality at a different viewpoint, I am in the green group where we focus mainly or going green, recycling reusing, and reducing.

By: Max

Max — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 17:19:57 +0000

A few IMHO’s here. Sprawl as it currently exists is a problem; however, rural sprawl is likely the only viable solution. We just have to approach it with a new paradigm. A return to a more agrarian society is inevitable. Think rural live/work/grow network hubs connected by green transport.

By: Max

Max — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 17:10:51 +0000

While articles like this are useful in advancing sustainable building, they deflect responsibility away from industry. Industry by far and away is the largest user of water, energy (building/production/transport), and producer of pollutants/downstream waste. Yes, we should be looking for solutions; but industry should be leading the way.

By: Morris

Morris — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 22:10:27 +0000

I wonder if the same/similar principles apply to cars….the greenest car is one that is already manufactured, as in buy a used car not a new one?

By: Joan

Joan — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 17:12:35 +0000

Great article, Jennifer, and excellent data to back up your findings about the significant impact to our environment and landfills with the demolition of existing buildings. In many cases, maybe a combination of some leasehold improvements to the exterior structure, upgrades to the heating/air conditioning system, and lighting could result in substantial savings to the environment and a more efficient use of energy, instead of demolishing a building and rebuilding it according to LEED standards. It may even cost less to make thse ugrades… wouldn’t that be a positive in this economic cilmate!

“Demolishing a 50,000 square foot building
and “The Brookings Institution estimates

By: RecycleBill

RecycleBill — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 15:07:04 +0000

I agree. And I wonder if there shouldn’t be a retro LEEDS process for those of us who greened our existing homes long before the LEEDS program was founded. Take my house for example: upgraded siding, more insulation than most LEEDS projects call for, storm doors and windows, solar hot water, some solar lighting, rainwater containment for the gardens, greywater for the bathrooms, Energystar everywhere you look, 96% efficient heating and cooling and less than $50.oo a month in utility bills for a 1200 square foot home.

By: Wendy Hughes-Jelen

Wendy Hughes-Jelen — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 20:24:24 +0000

I couldn’t agree more. Approaching the dilemma of greening a building from a residential stand point, though – not everyone has the money needed to turn their current home into a green home. I traded my 1929 farmhouse on a quarter acre in Seattle for a Built Green 3 star certified townhome in a Built Green Certified Community a mile away. Sold my property for what it cost for the new place, and was able to control my expenses. I personally just did not have a deep enough wallet to do the work necessary to upgrade the older home into something more efficient.

Thank you for pointing out that it is greener to RECYCLE or SEEK VINTAGE than to buy new.