With the health issues, touching lives from all age groups today, it is time to take a closer look at the substances in our living environment.
There are 75,000 chemicals licensed for use by the EPA and approximately 15,000 are sold in volumes greater than 10,000 pounds per year. Yet under the Toxic Substances Act, only 5 are regulated. Every year, 700 new chemicals are introduced into the environment, but less that 1% are tested for their impact on human health. Studies have shown that everyone of us carries more than 100 chemical pollutants, pesticides, and toxic metals in our body.*
While the effect of many of these contaminants is unknown, some cause cancer in animals and are suspected to cause cancer and other health problems in humans. They continue to be used in residential construction because their danger has not been proven beyond a doubt. Your parents didn't have these substances in their houses when they were growing up, but even if you live in the same house, if it has been remodeled, then more than likely, it has them.
This is not a witch-hunt, and it's not a political position, there is valid research and reason to suspect certain chemicals. Some suspected in construction are vinyl chloride in vinyl products, formaldehyde in wood products, and styrene-butadiene latex in carpets. Unless your house or remodel has been built specifically without these products, then assume that you have them.
There are agencies today who have analyzed the evidence and categorized the dangers, and there are alternative products without the suspected substances. They can be eliminated through cautious selection and specification in your building plans. Does it make sense to wait for the EPA to act? This is not a fear tactic, this is common sense.
* Source: Green from the Ground Up, David Johnston & Scott Gibson
Ask us about including healthy products in your project.
We know from the study of environmental biology, that every species has a ecosystem or habitat from which it draws its sustenance. There is a balance required to maintain the habitat as sustainable. There are two basic conditions which render a habitat unsustainable:
1) When a specie's resources are consumed or destroyed faster than they can be replaced.
2) When waste is produced faster than the habitat can assimilate it.
When a species overshoots these points, which are called "tipping point" or "carrying capacity," that species is said to be "endangered." If nothing is done to mitigate that condition, that species is on the road to extinction.
In human population, the concept is spoken of in terms of "ecological footprint." Ecological Footprint Analysis is expressed in terms of acres of biologically productive land and ocean that is needed to sustain the population's needs and wastes. The United States has the worlds largest footprint at 23.7 acres, while a sustainable footprint would be more like 4.6 acres.* The tipping point for the US was when it went over the 4.6 acres. Biologically speaking, the US is "endangered."
* Source: Green Home Primer, Kathleen O'Brien and Kathleen Smith
US energy consumption has been on the rise since the end of WW2 and is escalating exponentially each year at a rate that is not sustainable. The US has 5% of the worlds population and uses 25% of the worlds energy resources. Almost all sources agree that with the rise of consumption and competition in other nations, this will change. How we deal with it now will determine whether that change is endurable or disastrous. The only common sense solution is energy efficiency and conservation. Today, it is possible to build high performance designs for just a slight increase in construction costs.
A hidden value in Green Design is the money factor. Applying green technology to the building process saves money. From Land Use and Site Planning to Energy Efficient Construction Measures, the end result is high sustainability that is affordable up front and will pay for itself manifold in the future.
Field studies by construction firms have proven that up to 1/3 of the cost of framing packages can be saved by using Advanced Framing techniques.*
It is also a fact that "green certified" houses sell faster and for more money.
But most important, as the home owner, this adds up to savings in energy costs. There are many other money saving facts, too numerous to mention here. For more information follow this link: Why Sustainable House Plans
Ask us about how to feature cost-effective green design in your project.