[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]

Re: GBlist: Rant: Strawbale





----------
> From: White Crow / RSDC <satterle@us.net>
> I don't get it.  All this discussion about strawbale seems to me to fall
> into the category of *penny wise/pound foolish*.  The pattern of
> development that supports strawbale is at best suburban sprawl and at
worst
> exurban creep.
> 
> How do we make the megurban areas of NY, Paris, Tokyo sustainable, much
> less Cairo, Calcutta, and New Haven or Bridgeport?  How are we going to
> deal with all these people?

I don't understand why you think strawbale and earthships can't work in
cities. The only obsticle I see is building code approival!

> The strawbale/earthship model reminds of the various back-to-the-land
> utopian efforts throughout American history which seem more about turning
> away from technological trauma than about solving problems.  Someone here
> mentioned Thoreau living in the forest; he lived in a glade of trees
> minutes away from his cohoorts.

The strawbale/earthship model is about finding a way to have a house with
less impact. The fact that they are mostly built outside the cities says
more about the personalities of the early users of this technology than
about the technology itself.

> My suggestion is to use part of this forum as a charette for pulling
> together the various modalities and direct efforts to megurban problems
and
> solutions.  It is not an issue of asking for *free* design services.  Its
a
> matter of having a framework onto which to connect up expertise and
ideas.
> 
> A couple of problems:
> 
> -*- At the beginning of the list, I floated out the problem of a small
> darkroom.  No takers.  The problem has, in a very manageable scale,
issues
> of air quality, water quality, chemical disposal, electrical sheilding
and
> tempering, and even the appropriateness of the endeavor.  I offer it
again
> as a problem area to discuss.

I don't know what the hell you're talking about here I'm afriad. What's the
problem with a darkroom? I don't know much about photography but I didn't
think that humidity, electricity, etc., needed to be controlled.

> 
> -*- We will be renting / buying a loft in NYC.  What kind of systems can
be
> brought to bear within a very space-confined envirnoment?  Grey water?
> Lighting systems?  Add-ons to the ubiquitous steam heat system?  Air
> cooling?  Air conditioning?  Waste management?  Insulation?  Window
> systems?  I would be happy to provide a floor plan of a small 700 sf loft
> which we did *not* get.

If you can make permanent changes, and if it's not illegal, which it
probably is in NYC, you could convert it to compost toliet and greywater
reuse.

Personally I think I would be more inclined to go an easier route of energy
efficiency, good insulation, and low-flow water.

> 
> Any takers?
> 
> amos
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> __________________________________________________________________
> This greenbuilding dialogue is sponsored by Oikos (www.oikos.com)
> and Environmental Building News (www.ebuild.com). For instructions
> send e-mail to greenbuilding-request@crest.org.
> __________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
This greenbuilding dialogue is sponsored by Oikos (www.oikos.com)
and Environmental Building News (www.ebuild.com). For instructions
send e-mail to greenbuilding-request@crest.org.
__________________________________________________________________