On Being Solar Proactive

Energy is once again in the forefront with issues such as global warming, rising oil prices and general environmental degradation. It seems as though people have are waiting for government to do something but that is not an effective strategy. That said, if you live in New Mexico as we do, you’ll be glad to know that the House passed the Sustainable Building Tax Credit bill last night. Any new construction or renovations begun after January 1, 2007 are eligible.

When you get right down to it, the only real power we have is in the decisions we make on the local level. If you are building a new home or remodeling an older home, by all means do what it takes to make the house as energy efficient as possible. Use design strategies that help heat and cool the house naturally. 99% of new homes and renovations, in my opinion, are 25 years behind the curve. The standards for new homes are pathetically out of date and certainly out of touch for what is needed to roll back our energy use and its problems. The homes we build and remodel now will be with us for decades and the ramifications of their poor energy performance will weigh on us both personally and societally for many years. If you are getting ready to build or renovate by all means make a household PV (photovoltaic) system part of the package. PV systems are coming down in price and the technology is improving rapidly.

The only long term solutions for our energy needs are solar based since all types of renewable energy utilize the sun in some way. The amount of solar energy hitting the earth every day is millions of times more than we are currently using. What is missing is the personal and civic will to take a concrete step in getting us out from under of the fossil fuel cartels and all the problems that comes along with the use of fossil fuels.

When we built our current home three years ago, we went the next step and included a 1.8 kwh PV system. I can’t tell you enough how great it feels watch our electric meter run backwards on a sunny day. That indicates that not only are we supplying all of our electrical needs during the day but we are sending clean solar power back into the grid. Overall, we are averaging around $15 a month for our entire electrical bill and I can assure you that all the devices and fixtures and in our home are typical with any new home. We run our business from home and use office equipment every day as well.

I have always liked the old saying “If it’s going to be it’s up to me”. We must use our individual personal power to take proactive steps and do our individual part to liberate ourselves from the tyranny of the fossil fuel cartels and insure a bright and sunny future for our children.

When Building GREEN, Size Matters!

Over the past few years there has been a lot written on the web and in magazines about green building. Several organizations have developed rating systems establishing benchmarks for the design, construction and operation of green buildings.

The LEED rating system has set standards for commercial design, construction, renovation, interiors, schools and neighborhoods. They are completing a pilot project for in residential construction. The EPA and the DOE run the Energy Star program, rating energy efficient products and practices. Most of the emphasis has been on materials and building processes. These are, of course, very important factors but the issue that is not getting enough attention, in my opinion, is the overall size of the building.

I believe that the single most important factor in the sustainable building movement should be size. Building a 4,000 square foot “green” home for two people is an oxymoron. Much of what I read in the press and the housing magazines falls into this category. So far, the LEED and the Energy Star programs do not take size into account and I believe this to be a gross oversight. Life cycle materials and energy costs are primarily a function of building size, so putting serious thought into the size issue is paramount at the beginning of any building project. Until these accrediting groups take size into account, they are missing the boat and white washing the green issues at stake.

WorldChanging.com
One of my current favorite web sites is WorldChanging.com. I urge you to visit their site and sign up for their weekly updates. World Changing means just what is says and it is comprehensive in scope and fresh in content and style. I feel good every time I visit the site. In addition to the web site they have a great book titled WorldChanging. Get the book if you can, you’ll be glad you did. They have lots of links to great sites as well. There are a number of local chapters of World Changing springing up and current chapters include LA, Minneapolis, Austin, New York, Denver and many others. I’m hoping to see a chapter come to life in our town…..Albuquerque, New Mexico.