OUR GOALS - GREEN BUILDINGS & GREEN LIVING
TGB - TRULY GREEN BUILDINGS:
The energy and carbon footprint of a "truly green building" is essentially ZERO. Plus, water is no more wasted, but rather immediately recycled on the spot to feed surrounding and integrated building vegetation. Water run-off is allowed to percolate and/or captured, stored for vegetation use when possible.
This is not pure theory. It can be done: Some of the current policies of the City of Santa Monica, CA, go in these precise directions.
WHAT IT MEANS: This does not mean, of course, that when it comes to human dwellings or business buildings, no external energy is ever used, or no carbon is ever emitted. This just means that when energy use and emissions are considered over a longer period of time, say a year or more, the sums actually equal or near ZERO. Or perhaps are even positive: More energy is produced than used, more carbon absorbed than emitted.
How is this achieved? By generating energy on the spot (photovoltaic, passive solar, wind or geothermal when possible, new energy, etc) and by using construction methods and/or retrofitting that fully integrate suitable vegetation, that contributes to achieving the overall goals. For example, roofs of old should become a dying specie, systematically replaced by "true green roofs" (TGR).
"Truly Green Buildings" should and in their time will become the goal of public policy. First, supported by fiscal approaches, and ultimately, mandated by law for newly constructed personal dwellings, and to the extent practical, for business buildings.
Helping in making these changes happen is more and more becoming the mark of all people with ecological awareness and social consciousness. Sure, politicians are still lagging, but this is one of the matters where concerned citizenry can truly make its weight felt. After all, marginal shifts in electoral patterns can have very clear impact on those who would not get the message in time. And most likely, will.
TGB - TRULY GREEN BUILDINGS:
The energy and carbon footprint of a "truly green building" is essentially ZERO. Plus, water is no more wasted, but rather immediately recycled on the spot to feed surrounding and integrated building vegetation. Water run-off is allowed to percolate and/or captured, stored for vegetation use when possible.
This is not pure theory. It can be done: Some of the current policies of the City of Santa Monica, CA, go in these precise directions.
WHAT IT MEANS: This does not mean, of course, that when it comes to human dwellings or business buildings, no external energy is ever used, or no carbon is ever emitted. This just means that when energy use and emissions are considered over a longer period of time, say a year or more, the sums actually equal or near ZERO. Or perhaps are even positive: More energy is produced than used, more carbon absorbed than emitted.
How is this achieved? By generating energy on the spot (photovoltaic, passive solar, wind or geothermal when possible, new energy, etc) and by using construction methods and/or retrofitting that fully integrate suitable vegetation, that contributes to achieving the overall goals. For example, roofs of old should become a dying specie, systematically replaced by "true green roofs" (TGR).
"Truly Green Buildings" should and in their time will become the goal of public policy. First, supported by fiscal approaches, and ultimately, mandated by law for newly constructed personal dwellings, and to the extent practical, for business buildings.
Helping in making these changes happen is more and more becoming the mark of all people with ecological awareness and social consciousness. Sure, politicians are still lagging, but this is one of the matters where concerned citizenry can truly make its weight felt. After all, marginal shifts in electoral patterns can have very clear impact on those who would not get the message in time. And most likely, will.
There is no need for us as a society to put up with politicians who don't "get it", or drag their feet in the services of the corporate interests who paid for their elections. This is particularly true in our local communities. "City Hall" is the easiest part to clean up, of the whole mess.
We should also encourage the creation and uses of new building materials and techniques adapted to the goal of green building and green living. For example, there are great promises in the area of cast earth, prefabricated foam concrete panels, and the like. And in general, in using "earth" and local soil components in our buildings, for example as fillings in prefabricated panels. Certainly, "adobe" is not exactly a new discovery, but there are many news ways of doing old things that only modern technologies could afford us.
In any event, in the end, it is clear that our current conceptions of building and living in these buildings, and the techniques we used to that end, should be *totally reinvented* in accordance with the goal of "truly building green", which to a large extent will determine if we can "truly live green".
TGR - TRUE GREEN ROOFS:
If you think of it, roofs are truly what make a dwelling. The roof of a family dwelling, and of a commercial building as well when suitable, as we see it, should carry soil and be planted, as a rule with edible landscaping and food croops. These, at some time in a near future, will as a rule be attended by automated gardening systems.
Whatis important is to always keep in mind the superior qualities of such roofs when it comes to building insulation, and building functionality. And the fantastic difference they could make in our environmental and ecological footprints.
Working on slowly but surely making green roofs a standard, rather than a very rare exception, is our stated goal. As well as studying and promoting the best ways to retrofit existing buildings with green roofs.
TGRs would represent an immense leap forward. They must first become a standard option for new buildings, and then slowly be developed into a mandate for them, as technology and know-how is developed.
TGL - TOTALLY GREEN LIVING:
Totally Green Living should also become our goal.
Besides the question of local energy use and generation, a standard human family dwelling should produce at least 90% the food used there on the spot in an organic and sustainable manner, recycling all organic waste on the spot, and reducing all other waste to marginal levels.
More, using modern technology to start working where we live should and certainly will become a standard. Commuting is clearly an enormous and nowadays mostly useless waste of time, energy and money. Coming with an increasingly inacceptable environmental footprint.
TGT - TRULY GREEN TECHNOLOGY :
To achieve these goals, we should resolutely embrace the use of corresponding advanced technologies. What comes immediately to mind is encouraging the obsolescence of the idea of "commuting to work", when most tasks could more efficiently be addressed from the places where we live.
But there are many more possible developments.
For example, there are great promises in developping localised energy-generation using new energy technologies. Even if, of course, there are huge societal obstacles to such developments, as this could be perceived as a treat for existing energy oligopolies.
At a more practical level, today, the level of cheap computing power we have achieved would permit to create cost-effective household robotized units.
These could to a large extent change the way we interact with our immediate environments. For example, allowing to have many simple and repetitive task necessary when growing plants totally automatised, using what could be called "Garden Robotics".
Considering the enormous amounts of time, energy, water and money wasted on maintaining mostly useless lawns, such approaches hold great promises for the future. And since developping them should actually be profitable business, there is a good chance that we will see such development happen soon.
GREEN BUILDING AND GREEN LIVING IS NOT ONLY POSSIBLE, BUT IT IS A PRACTICAL CHOICE WE CAN ALL MAKE TODAY, TOWARD A MUCH MORE RATIONAL, SUSTAINABLE AND COST-EFFECTIVE WAY OF LIVING.
MAKING THE CORRESPONDING CHOICES NOW WILL COMES WITH SUBSTANTIAL POSITIVE CONSEQUENCES FOR THE QUALITY OF OUR LIVES, OUR ECOLOGICAL FOOTPRINTS, AND OUR LOCAL AND PLANETARY ENVIRONMENT.
Making these choices is what we advocate everyone should consider doing, at both the personal and collective level.
Since everything we do always can only start with ourselves, YOU should consider making these choices, and advocating them with friends and family and in your own community. In your own self-interest, the interest of your own community, and the interest of our host planet as a whole.
We should also encourage the creation and uses of new building materials and techniques adapted to the goal of green building and green living. For example, there are great promises in the area of cast earth, prefabricated foam concrete panels, and the like. And in general, in using "earth" and local soil components in our buildings, for example as fillings in prefabricated panels. Certainly, "adobe" is not exactly a new discovery, but there are many news ways of doing old things that only modern technologies could afford us.
In any event, in the end, it is clear that our current conceptions of building and living in these buildings, and the techniques we used to that end, should be *totally reinvented* in accordance with the goal of "truly building green", which to a large extent will determine if we can "truly live green".
TGR - TRUE GREEN ROOFS:
If you think of it, roofs are truly what make a dwelling. The roof of a family dwelling, and of a commercial building as well when suitable, as we see it, should carry soil and be planted, as a rule with edible landscaping and food croops. These, at some time in a near future, will as a rule be attended by automated gardening systems.
Whatis important is to always keep in mind the superior qualities of such roofs when it comes to building insulation, and building functionality. And the fantastic difference they could make in our environmental and ecological footprints.
Working on slowly but surely making green roofs a standard, rather than a very rare exception, is our stated goal. As well as studying and promoting the best ways to retrofit existing buildings with green roofs.
TGRs would represent an immense leap forward. They must first become a standard option for new buildings, and then slowly be developed into a mandate for them, as technology and know-how is developed.
TGL - TOTALLY GREEN LIVING:
Totally Green Living should also become our goal.
Besides the question of local energy use and generation, a standard human family dwelling should produce at least 90% the food used there on the spot in an organic and sustainable manner, recycling all organic waste on the spot, and reducing all other waste to marginal levels.
More, using modern technology to start working where we live should and certainly will become a standard. Commuting is clearly an enormous and nowadays mostly useless waste of time, energy and money. Coming with an increasingly inacceptable environmental footprint.
TGT - TRULY GREEN TECHNOLOGY :
To achieve these goals, we should resolutely embrace the use of corresponding advanced technologies. What comes immediately to mind is encouraging the obsolescence of the idea of "commuting to work", when most tasks could more efficiently be addressed from the places where we live.
But there are many more possible developments.
For example, there are great promises in developping localised energy-generation using new energy technologies. Even if, of course, there are huge societal obstacles to such developments, as this could be perceived as a treat for existing energy oligopolies.
At a more practical level, today, the level of cheap computing power we have achieved would permit to create cost-effective household robotized units.
These could to a large extent change the way we interact with our immediate environments. For example, allowing to have many simple and repetitive task necessary when growing plants totally automatised, using what could be called "Garden Robotics".
Considering the enormous amounts of time, energy, water and money wasted on maintaining mostly useless lawns, such approaches hold great promises for the future. And since developping them should actually be profitable business, there is a good chance that we will see such development happen soon.
GREEN BUILDING AND GREEN LIVING IS NOT ONLY POSSIBLE, BUT IT IS A PRACTICAL CHOICE WE CAN ALL MAKE TODAY, TOWARD A MUCH MORE RATIONAL, SUSTAINABLE AND COST-EFFECTIVE WAY OF LIVING.
MAKING THE CORRESPONDING CHOICES NOW WILL COMES WITH SUBSTANTIAL POSITIVE CONSEQUENCES FOR THE QUALITY OF OUR LIVES, OUR ECOLOGICAL FOOTPRINTS, AND OUR LOCAL AND PLANETARY ENVIRONMENT.
Making these choices is what we advocate everyone should consider doing, at both the personal and collective level.
Since everything we do always can only start with ourselves, YOU should consider making these choices, and advocating them with friends and family and in your own community. In your own self-interest, the interest of your own community, and the interest of our host planet as a whole.
[VG2-TG-V103] PERMALINK - The permanent link for the present post is: http://victorygardens2.blogspot.com/2009/01/our-goals-green-buildings-green-living.html
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