| WalMart looks at urban multilevel design, including housing |
[May. 22nd, 2006|12:30 pm] |
and we know it will be energy efficient ...but now, from Greenclips: ..."As the company tries to penetrate urban areas that have lofty land prices and entrenched antidevelopment movements, it's increasingly building up, not out. Wal-Mart now operates roughly 20 multilevel stores, many of them in buildings vacated by other retailers. Over the next five years, the company plans to open another 50 to 60 on lots one-third the size of its traditional 25-acre swaths. "Historically, if a site didn't fit our size, if it didn't fit our parking ratio -- 1,000 spaces and a 195,000-square-foot supercenter -- we would walk away and chase other opportunities," said Rob Bray, Wal-Mart's senior vice president of real-estate construction and design. "Today, we say, 'How?'" ..and we know how-- they're all up in it about the green = green these days... OK, that pic might be a stretch, it's doubtful that they're going to jump outta the gate wih Emilio Ambasz, but then again, if you saw the pics of what they pushed (sadly, unsuccsessfully) to get into Vancouver BC, it's not that far off... |
|
|
| from the Heartland; a Man's Man goes Green! |
[May. 22nd, 2006|10:23 am] |
The Des Moines Register says: : "Eric Carlson ain't no tree-hugging hippie. He's a tall and strong country boy, a man's man who drives a pickup truck" [insert brokeback man's man joke here] "But that doesn't mean his blood doesn't run a bit green." (ick. Anyway): "Carlson, who owns EC Construction in Des Moines, included as many green building features as he could when he built this new house for himself and his family: a geothermal heating system that draws heat from hundreds of feet underground, bamboo flooring that's made of a more eco-friendly product than wood, and finished concrete in his basement instead of environmentally taxing carpeting." they tell u why too, not only does it save him money (duh) but it's a hot market now (duh) but they site numbers and even examples as far away as Canada... wow. green building is hitting the mainstream. I'd say Nascar dads are gettingit, but apparently that annoys some readers.... |
|
|
| Platinum LEED in Gurgoan, India |
[May. 22nd, 2006|08:39 am] |
the 10th platinum LEED building in the world is the new WiPro Technologies building in Gurgoan. Architect Vidur Bahardwaj had to watch every penny to make sure that they could stay only 6% more expensive than a regular building. With uber funky ways to treat air (incl. heat sensors when theres lots of people and strategically placed air nozzles), loads and loads of reused and recycled materials, and all the things you can imagien from a building that scored 57/69 LEED points. [actualy, more detail in this unofficial report] |
|
|
| and the winner is.... well, we all are! |
[May. 3rd, 2006|04:21 am] |
greenies feeling the love at city hall
Last night was the 2nd Annual Green Toronto Awards. The event was held at city hall, packed to the rafters, and brimming with so much charged energy that you might have thought at some point that that funny building was actually going to take off and fly!
(it does look a little like a flying saucer). Anyway, this was a beautiful event! From the opening invite-only cocktails before the show, to the actual (open to the public) ceremony, green entrepreneurs and activists were rubbing elbows with city officials and the odd nosey eavesdropping blogger...
And I'm not kidding when i say that something was in the air. It was electric! And a big part of the charge was the congregation of business people --Green Business people-- who are visibly succeeding in their own uphill battles getting sustainability to market, and to the hearts of our citizenry. Sara Harmer graced us with her song "Escarpment Blues," and media matron Ann Rhomer brought tears to many eyes, reminding people that it was one year ago to the day that Toronto Green Legend Bob Hunter lost his battle with cancer. Hunter, one of the original founders of Greenpeace brought a human face and heart to ecological consciousness to all Torontonians daily as his role as a breakfast pundit, appearing on TV in his bathrobe every morning discussing daily events, while never giving up on his eco concerns. Bob got a posthumous round of applause, everyone in the house knowing how proud he would have been of us, and the green scene which has grown so wide and healthy! A beautiful night, celebrating both community and business initiatives!
( ok. The Winners: ) |
|
|
| the Cmhizzle with the Nzehzzzle..... |
[Apr. 29th, 2006|08:33 pm] |
CMHC's new NZEHH Program for net zero energy homes
Apparently the CMHC just unveiled a Net Zero Energy Healthy Housing (NZEHH) Program! They'll give $50,000 grants for a dozen multi-disciplinary teams to design and build zero-energy demonstration homes (thats not a lot of money), comleted by June 2007. Builders must team up with architects, engineers and even municipal officials to qualify for the grants. The zero-energy program aims to create homes that will have no impact on air, land and water. The homes will have passive heating and cooling, they'll be flooded with natural daylight, will have on-site energy-generating systems, and must preserve water, land, and the natural habitat. I love the CMHC (Canadian Morgetage and Housing Comission, they once gave my team $30K to do an integrated design process for a green development. |
|
|
| the LEEDers in Suzhou |
[Apr. 28th, 2006|06:12 pm] |
Companies willing to do what politicians are too scared to do
Could it be any more obvious that business people have surged miles ahead of politicians when it comes to evolving a green business consciousness (sure there will still be Lee Raymonds, but someone is going to have to sweep up hell, right?). And now let's look at some businesses leading in a HUGE way: Plantronics, the U.S. headset company, is one of those staying ahead of the curve. It just announce that its new $23 million factory, near the eastern city of Suzhou, is the first manufacturing plant in China to receive LEED certification. And Intel is at its heels. It looks like their new plant in Shanghai is going to be a LEED building as well (I guess eventually the USGBC will have a PRCGBC branch, heh heh heh). |
|
|
| "It really is a school for the 21st century. |
[Mar. 31st, 2006|01:51 pm] |
now i wanna go back to school!
but its a primary school so that may be a little awkward... Still surrounded by trees, green roofed, huge media room, daylighting, thermal mass, i'm impressed. And wonder what a kid will turn out like when getting these principals at an elementary level... wow. that makes me giddy to think about....
[source This Is WiltShire] |
|
|
| green inside & out! |
[Mar. 31st, 2006|01:24 pm] |
"Green building" saves 70% energy cost
 
BEIJING, March 30 (Xinhua) The Beijing Sci & Tech Green energy-efficient building has used about 30 percent of the energy of other comparable building and saves 10,000 tons of water each year, its developers reported yesterday. They said the cost savings over the building's 70-year life is enough to build a similar sized building(!)
The building, which belongs to the Ministry of Science and Technology, was awarded "the green building" by the U.S.-based Natural Resources Defense Council on Thursday. Yang Guoxiong, an official who oversees the buildings operation, said that the building has combined various kinds of energy-saving technologies, green technologies and intelligent technologies, while maintaining a comparatively low cost of construction. The architectural design and exterior structure are designed to collecting daylight. Air conditioning, air ventilation, lighting and lift controls are all environmentally friendly, and lead to annual power saving of 900,000 kwh. Pretty hot! |
|
|
| more E-Z stuff ....this time for your roof! |
[Mar. 2nd, 2006|10:50 am] |
fast and easy....ELT's EZGreenRoof
I met these guys a while back, and have been meaning to write about them for some time... ELT GreenRoof systems was the result of looking high and low for an easy to install modular green roof system. I was in love with this one,(but it is not available outside of Nippon):
  
  
..those were made with recycled HDPE plastic and you were able to do a roof in about 4 hours. Oh, it was also self-watering... of course, as you can see, it was sod, which meant that it had to be watered, and also it had to be mowed (a little bit of a problem in some green roof situations). So those drawbacks, as well as it's unavailability, led me to keep searching for an easy to use modular green roof kit.
And the ELT EZGreen is it! Not only is it modular and easy to use (making installation cost a lot less), but they also use succulent plants instead of grass, this means no mowing and no need for watering! Could it be more um, EZ? And the guys at ELT are super nice, very personable and able to help you with every issues you have from early FAQs to getting a job completed on your roof! They even have a link with a list of State by State Province by Province green-roof funding sources. So if you are looking for the most bang for your buck, simple installation and happy helpful people to hold your hand while greening your home, ELT is the place for you! |
|
|
| 1st LEED Certified Jail |
[Feb. 26th, 2006|06:52 pm] |
Roanoke's Western Virginia Regional
Jail is the world's first green jail!
San Quentin, what good do you think you do?
Do you think I'll be different when you're through?
You bent my heart and mind and you may my soul,
And your stone walls turn my blood a little cold....
~Johnny Cash
( do not pass go, do not collect $200... ) |
|
|
| be green, and be hassle-free |
[Feb. 24th, 2006|04:30 pm] |
Santa Cruz -always ahead of the curve- hatch a great scheme
...Sometimes there are other incentives aside from tax credits and rebates. And the City of Santa Cruz',Green Building Working Group (GBWG) has enacted just one more way to encourage green behavior. Sharon Sarris, Monterey Bay co-chair of the US Green Building Council, says that as of 2007, the city of Santa Cruz will require all residents filing for construction permits to complete a checklist of green building items like water, efficiency, and insulated pipes, and that only those with a minimum number of points will receive a permit, while those scoring higher will have their permit process expedited.
So it's your choice, apparently, design/build intelligently and save loads of energy, waste-water and money, or be stubborn, and uh, stand in line.... |
|
|
| "1st" web-based eco "TV station" |
[Feb. 23rd, 2006|06:25 pm] |
Canada's EkosTV now on the air!
....well I always shy away from saying something is the "first" and just because they say they are, means nothing to me. But really I could care less if its the first or not. What I care about is what do they do? And in this case EkosTV does it, and does it well! So say hello to British Columbia's EkosTV. I am super enjoying it.... They produce a TV show, have multiblogs, and even an online forum. And of course with a name like that and a plug on my LJ, you know what the theme is, right? It's educational, entertaining, and inspiring.... ((they do want you to subscribe ($75/yr gets you hires versions of the show))) but that's not bad....
Exec Producer Rick Searle, Patricia Sims, Prarie Blake and others are busy creating radical easy to swallow TV to help you get your eco-literacy 101. Looking at episode one there's a mix of great and so-so, but even the so-so is pretty good. The great in Episode 1 includes an awesome Eco-Condo, and a series of climate change PSAs done by kids... Searle's personal vblog moment (sitting in a tree) is endearing and unedited, so really honest, but not quite as riveting as the other pieces... still its a pretty amazing show to even exist and wether you want to become a memeber or not, it's totally worth it to check out episode one of EkosTV (oh and hey, no doom and/or gloom!!) |
|
|
| a little bit country, a little bit rock and roll.... all green! |
[Feb. 20th, 2006|12:41 pm] |
Green Building's hidden benefits: the healthy happy worker!
I was just reading this nice article from the Salt Lake Tribune called "Green Works Better" (hey, I like 'em all-- besides while most people I know from Salt Lake are ex saltlakers, or as they say, Latter Day Ain'ts, it still is a reaaaly clean place.. right?)
Anyway, They were talking about the 498 LEED certified offices and buildings there are now, (and the 3,000 that are about to get certified), and of course I mention it not because they had all the good starts about how fast a green buildingcan pat for itself and all that--rather they had a great take on it. How much more one gets out of a green building by the fact that the employees are happier and even healthier in a healthy house. Great! Lots of facts and figures ...and annecdotes. Here's a nice ironic slice for you:
At the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's new lab in Sandy, scientists analyze air-quality samples and materials from workplaces around the country. Before moving in two years ago, the employees worked in an old warehouse where only a few management offices had windows. "Everybody lived on anti-depressants because we were in a cave," says Lynn Kenison, a senior chemist at the OSHA Technical Center." |
|
|
![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small}
scalarparty's journal