I took my Ecological Footprint today.  I am using up twice my fair share.  If everyone lived like me, we would need 2.2 planets.

 On the otherhand, I scored a “10″ while the average American score is 24. 

It is shocking.

What else can I do? 

The “worst” area in my score was in Food.  I scored 4.2 there.  Next were Shelter and Goods/Services each coming in at 2.7

The biggest impact I can have now is to buy locally more often (seems challenging in my new town) and cut back on what I consume.

Do me a favor.  Take a moment to take the quiz.  Then blog about it…. and comment here.  What can you do to improve your impact?

Technorati Tags: Green Building

Consumerism.  It has always sort of been a thorn in my side.  As I have posted - I am even considering taking the lead of Consumption Rebellion and swearing off the purchase of anything new for a year. 

It is easy to ignore the cycle of consumerism and feed oursleves emotionally and otherwise with all the pretty things.  But to pause a moment and think about the madening cycle.

Items are produced in a way to allow for a low price.  This means

1. Laborers are paid a minimal wage. 
2. Shortcuts are taken in quality of material and production methods - to produce the low price.
3. The consumer buys it all up.
4. The item breaks in short order.  After all - look how it was made!
5. The item goes to the landfill.
6. The consumer goes back to the store, and buys the same product again.
7. And on, and on.

This cycle can also be known as cradle-to-grave.

Isn’t it time for a new cycle?  A new concept?  How about MBDC’s Cradle to Cradle?

This organization is promoting the concept that when a product is all used up, it can be all used up again - never finding a way to the grave (landfill) - only back to the cradle again.  MBDC certifies products that are cradle-to-cradle.  Next time you need something….. check here first!

Technorati Tags: Green Building, Values

Have you ever heard of such a thing?

I just read about them in Green Building and Remodeling for Dummies.

Then, I found a few companies that are producing these countertops. They look great! I’ve ordered some samples… and I can’t wait to get them.

paper countertops

Technorati Tags: Green Building

The foundation is in for our new “green” home - and it is decision time.  Over the next month we will be in Mexico - so I am scheduling posts about our home building decisions and research.   Today….  Stoves and Fireplaces

Our primary heat source will be radiant floor heat powered by a solar panel.   We believe the solar panel will provide 60 to 70% of our heat (both water and heat for the home).  In addition, we would like to put in a stove.  There are three primary options when it comes to stoves:

•  Wood burning
• Propane or Gas
• Pellet

Wood burning stoves provide a quality of heat that is hard to match…. and gosh darnit… I just like wood burning stoves.  They are messy, and they do produce some greenhouse gases - which is a drawback.

A lot of people like Propane or Gas fireplaces.  They provide the flame and “romance” of a fireplace with a simple push of a button or flick of a switch.  There is no mess and no need to chop wood.  But, I just don’t like them.  They seem like a waste to me.  They are not an efficient heat producer - and so…. what is the point? 

Which brings me to pellet stoves.  I have read that they are the most efficient source of heat, and that they emit a minimal amount of greenhouse gas.  In addition, some of them can now be fed corn rather than pellets.  Worth a look.    However, we asked around and a family member that has a pellet stove said that the price of pellets have gone WAY up, and it has become very costly to heat their home with the pellet stove.

So, I don’t know.  I’m stuck.  But, I am drifting slowly back to a wood stove.

Technorati Tags: Green Building

I am inspired and in awe and - - - what else can I say?

I ran into a blog - Consumption Rebellion.  A challange was issued - to go an entire year without buying anything new.  It is a great site to browse through for anyone that cares about the earth.

I never thought I was a materialistic person.  I’m not really into the latest fashions or filling my kids lives with plastic toys.  But…. nothing new for a year?  I’m not sure how I could do it?  I never realized how much I do buy - and justify….   “I need this for a craft” etc.

So - when we get back from our trip to Mexico - I will embark on the challenge I found at Mamas on the Compact.

Technorati Tags: Green Building

As we have been exploring building materials, we discovered Earthen Plaster as an alternative to paint (and possibly sheetrock?) It is so beautiful - and natural looking. And, it has the benefit of being VOC free. This is one step closer to a healthy home.

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We are at the stage in our construction in which we need to be paying attention to picking material.  While I really wanted to build a straw bale house, we didn’t really have the time to give it the research required.  My hubby promises me that when we build a barn, we can do that one in bale.  So - while we are doing stick built construction, there are still many decisions to make.

Unfortunately, many of the “green” choices are contradictory in nature.  We all have to decide what is the most important to us.

• Should we choose material produces locally - so that energy is not used up shipping across the globe?
• Should we choose material that is harvested or grown in a sustainable way (such as bamboo)?
• Should the material be produces without harmful chemicals?

We have decided to use reclaimed materials for much of our home.  Some of the siding, some of the flooring, and some of the framing (beams) will be constructed with recycled material.  This is available regionally - and it does not require any *new* trees.

One of the materials we have settled on is reclaimed limestone from prarie homesteads:

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The foundation for our new house was done last week.  We are at the point that we need to start making some decisions about our heating and electric systems (should we go solar?)  We have decided that we will use a wood stove as one heat source - so now comes the fun part of deciding what kind - and what we want the hearth to look like. 

 These are a few of the wood stove pictures we have found on the internet.

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About 5 years ago, we purchased some acreage.  We got a pretty good deal on it, but it was not in our home town.  We were not ready to move yet - the J.O.B. was holding us back - but the land seemed like such a good deal we couldn’t pass up on it.  We put the money down, started making payments, and started plotting and dreaming about the perfect house to build.

The house was going to have beautiful vaulted ceilings, a HUGE mud/laundry room, a room for each child, a school room, a solarium, and a loft upstairs for the extra needs…. projects, etc.  We drew on napkins and envelopes until we had it just right.  Once we had finally settled on every detail and felt satisfied that the house was ‘perfect’ the square footage topped 4000.

Building began - along with our anticipation.  We had been waiting SO long for the dream.  It was finally within reach!    The more construction progressed, the more we each began to have a nagging feeling that something was not quite right.   For some reason, the house just did not match the personality and rhythm of our family. 

The ceiling was too tall.  The rooms - too big.  By the time the house was done - it felt more like a lodge or museum - not the cozy cottage we had come to long for.  Thankfully, our plans had changed anyway and projects took us to a different town.  We never did move into that house, but were were given a gift.  We were given the chance to understand the “myths” that lie behind the dream…. and we were given a second chance to get it right.

This is what we thought we valued:

• Big
• Grandiose windows
• A showboat house in which we could “feel” successful.  Though I don’t think we overtly felt this way, there may have been an element of keeping-up-with-the-Jones’s
• A separate “room” for every activity.  One for school, one for crafts, one for plants, one for work, one for cooking and the living room of course.

Since then, this is what we have come to understand:

• We are responsible for caring for the earth and building in a sustainable way
• The learning, crafting, care for plants and cooking IS the living.  We don’t need a separate room for each.  However - we still do need a separate space for work. 
• Along the same lines…. we are all in the same room all the time anyway… so why build all those extra rooms to sit empty?
• We are not the Jones’s - and for that matter - we don’t want to be the Jones’s
• Small fits in with these values
• Quality.  Small design makes available extra resources for top notch construction, material and design.  Nothing beats Quality.
• Cozy fits our family’s culture best.

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