Symbiotic relationships mean
creative partnerships. The earth is to
be seen neither as an ecosystem to be preserved unchanged, nor as a quarry to
be exploited for selfish and short-range economic reasons, but as a garden to be
cultivated for the development of its own potentialities of the human
adventure. The goal of this relationship
is not the maintenance of the status quo, but the emergence of new phenomena
and new values.
-Rene Dubos (1901-1982)
It
is easy to defend a simple position such as “all development is good” or “all
development is bad”, by simply ignoring anything said by the opposition. The above quote from the man considered by
some to be the father of the modern environmental movement, stands on the
middle ground, the most difficult to defend, but also the most realistic one
and the one most likely to produce
meaningful progress.
Likewise
the Green Building movement is a movement that stands between two
extremes. Contemporary growth and
building practices are not environmentally sustainable, but there are human
needs to be met and these take priority.
One of the goals of green building practice is to reduce the negative
environmental impact of growth.
Several
aspects of our environment are affected by the manner in which we choose to
build. The form of our cities affects
the amount of air pollution generated by automobiles as well as the amount of
personal time lost forever in commuting to and from work. Material from building demolition takes much
space in our landfills. The energy
efficiency of our buildings affects consumption of non-renewable fossil fuels
and creates air pollution in the process.
Runoff from parking lots and roads contributes to non-point source
pollution of our rivers as does runoff of the fertilizers and pesticides
required by inappropriately designed landscapes. VOC’s from the materials we build with enter
the indoor air of our buildings and contribute to respiratory problems for
people inside. The list goes on, but the
point is that
Green
building is a new trend, with a lot of confusing information assailing us from
all sides. To make sense out of all the
information we need to back up and understand exactly what we are trying to
achieve. Within a better defined
context, Green decisions are easier to make, and creative solutions may
occur. Thus the first few articles in
this series will attempt to provide a framework within which Green decisions
can be made.
Everyone
is familiar with the recycling symbol – the three arrows in a triangular
cycle. The three points of the triangle
refer to the practices reduce (the amount we use), re-use (where possible), and
finally recycle. The next article in
this series will take a more in depth look at how those principles can be
applied to building practice.
As
with any complex endeavor, Green Building can be approached on many levels, and
taken as far as the building team wants to go.
Some Green building practices merely require a change in our behavior
and involve no added cost. Some
practices actually can result in a net savings if approached properly. And of course, many Green options are more costly and
the choice to pay the difference then becomes a moral and ethical one that
resides with the party paying for the work.