Non Toxic Vision

The gold standard for green under fire

LEED wilts as new gauges better measure energy use and costs. By Theresa Agovino

 

This year, for the first time, owners of 25,000 commercial properties in New York must report their buildings' energy use to the city. The data will be compiled into publicly posted report cards that officials hope will shame energy hogs into making the renovations needed to improve their scores, much the same way that issuing letter grades to restaurants is making owners shape up.

Read the full story on http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20110102/FREE/301029996

Furniture with a past....

 

Uhuru, a company based in Red Hook, Brooklyn - NY. 

Many of the items created, utilize materials that have been reclaimed, recycled, repurposed, reused or otherwise rejected from their original function. Founded in 2004 by Rhode Island School of Design graduates Jason Horvath and Bill Hilgendorf, Uhuru (ooh-HOO-roo) is a furniture design/build company merging avant-garde design with a commitment to environmental sustainability. Indeed, Uhuru has joined a vanguard of influential furniture companies from Milan to Tokyo focused on pushing the boundaries of contemporary sustainable design.

Their amazing furniture may have been a bourbon barrels, the Cyclone rollercoaster in Coney Island (as seen in the picture above) and much more in its former life.

Check out their products: www.uhurudesign.com

Best in Snow

This amazing house is located in Lech, Austria.

All of the timber for the frame and cladding was sourced from sustainably managed forests.

On the roof, solar panels are installed, which are cleared of snow during the winter so that they can function year-round. “The house holds heat very well,” the houses owner says. In the summer, excess heat is mitigated through natural cross-ventilation. The shutters that protect the windows from damage double as sun shades, and some rooms of the house have additional internal blinds.

“Most of the new houses in the region address sustainability,” says Dietrich, the project's architect. “In Marcell’s case it was particularly important because of the climate in Lech, where there are long winters with cold temperatures. The house had to cope with the climate while using as little energy as possible.”

This is a take from an article I found in Dwell Magazine: Best in Snow

Energy-pioneering Austrian town exports its model

I am proud of my countrymen yet again: I found this article, writen by Luc Andre, a few days ago. It shows that with initivative and understanding great goals can be reached:

Guessing, Austria: ..."After 20 years investing in renewable energy, the small Austrian town of Guessing, a model of energy self-sufficiency, is spreading its pioneering technology far and wide.

A town of 4,300 inhabitants near the Hungarian border, Guessing launched into renewable energy in the early 1990s and now produces more than it can consume.

The latest project, opened last week, is a one-megawatt plant capable of producing gas from wood chips..."

Read the entire story

Wind Development in New York

New York's wind energy development has grown exponentially in the last decade.  In 1999, New York had no wind energy generation.  By December 2008, however, 831 megawatts (MW) had been constructed.  Each MW is enough generation to power approximately 500 NYC apartments.*  That means that in 2008 enough wind generated electricity was produced in New York State to power over 300,000 NYC apartments!

New York has 15 wind farms that generate electricity, including the Fenner Wind Farm in Madison County and the Maple Ridge Wind Farm in Lewis County.  Nearly 463 MW are currently under construction.  New York ranks 15th on the list of states with the greatest wind energy potential and 9th on the list of states for wind-powered electricity generation.  Green power programs (like ConEdison Solutions' Green Power Program) increase the demand for new wind energy resources, driving new wind farm development.  Likewise, the introduction of the New York State renewable portfolio standard helps increase demand for new projects by requiring that 25% of the electricity generated within the state come from renewable sources by the year 2013.  Together, green power programs and the renewable portfolio standard will continue to encourage new wind energy projects in New York.  Visit www.AWEA.org for more information on wind energy in New York and the US.

Many of us are familiar with the phrase "support local business."  Now, ConEdison Solutions is happy to help you find local green-powered businesses!  The list below highlights a few local businesses that have chosen to join the ConEdison Solutions Green Power Program:

Chelsea Piers                100% Wind Powered         www.chelseapiers.com
The City Bakery             100% Wind Powered         www.thecitybakery.com

Barcade                        100% Wind Powered         www.barcadebrooklyn.com
Green Apple Cleaners    100% Wind Powered         www.greenapplecleaners.com

Eco-buildings in Austria

 

Vorarlberg, which is Austria's westernmost provice close to the Swiss border is also the capital of green architecture. 80 % of all newly built apartment buildings meet the criteria for ecological housing. The region encourages low energy consumption, the use of renewable energy sources as well as ecological, environmentally friendly building products. Today there are more than 90,000 m2 of thermal solar collectors and 76,000 m2 of photovoltaic systems and more than 20 % of heating energy is derived from biomass. The architect Oskar Leo Kaufmann's prefab housing project, was selected to participate in the MOMA exhibition last summer.

Change your holiday lights

I just received a very nice email from Bruce Stewart, editor of Coverleaf Blog

He would like to add to my christmas entry: "The latest issue of Midwest Living has a short feature on “greening up” your holiday lights this year, and they’re not talking about the color of the light bulbs. The crucial piece of advice is to trade in your incandescent holiday lights for LED-based light sets. An average user will save $19 per year on energy costs by making the swap. But the more interesting statistic to me was that if just 20% of homes in the U.S. switched to using LED-based holiday lights, that would save enough energy to power 100,000 homes for an entire year!"

To read the entire story go to: Coverleaf Blog

Why Certified Furniture?

How can furniture choices save the world?
SFC (Sustainable Furniture Council) is a great certification to ensure the furniture you are buying fulfills certain standards. Thus helping to eliminate unrecycable content and materials from unsustainable sources. Why is this important? It matters where you buy your furniture. By buying furniture made out of reclaimed materials, replanted forests you contribute to a healthier planet. Do the math and you will soon realize that it is even more economical to buy well crafted and designed products, than shop at discount mass-market places like IKEA or Crate&Barrel etc. Products designed by those companies are cheap made and thrown out after a few years. Laminated products (an IKEA staple) include toxic materials that are harmful for you and your children. Toxic gases in those products are being released years after being purchased. It is just not save to surround yourself with the plastic furniture even if it looks cute.
Think twice about the product choices you make and check out www.sustainablefurniturecouncil.org

Kimberton Village Green in Pennsylvania

The first development by a company called Earth Rising Homes: Kimberton Village Green, is a 31 unit condo building located in a quiet village outside of Philadelphia. It is expected to be LEED certified at the Platinum level upon it's completion next year. Reflecting the demand for green housing, even in this economy, more than half the units are already spoken for, by word of mouth.

In addition to its unique approach to energy, the development will employ environmentally-friendly approaches to handling storm water run-off, landscaping and lighting. Parking is located underground, maximizing green space, and the building is built around a green courtyard featuring native landscaping. The project will also make wide use of non-toxic building materials, reducing the fumes that typically off-gas from conventional building materials. I'm sure you know that off-gassing can be a hidden health hazard in new homes, particularly for people suffering from asthma, allergies, or chemical or environmental sensitivities.

The development will also incorporate a host of features that will allow people to further reduce their impact on the planet – and their energy bills. Smart home technology will let residents see how they're using energy in their homes, and ports for plug-in hybrid cars will be available in the garage.  The development itself is located a block from shopping, restaurants, a yoga studio, the post office and a park, so residents won't even have to get in their cars much of the time.
I'd be happy to tell you more if you're interested.
More more detailed information for this building project go to www.earthrisinginc.com

Garden stuff

Sometimes living in NYC has it's downfall, e.g. very few people have a garden. Even tough I live in a neighborhood where there are plenty of it - still I don't have one. So I really don't know why I was sent the ARBICO organics 2008 catalog, but it made me think about my childhood in Austria. Flipping through the catalog just shows you the amazing things you can do with nature. Order ladybugs to get rid of aphids on your plants, or how abut praying mantas to get rid of pest insects etc. Honestly the catalog itself is so incredibly educational. So what I'll do I'll bring the catalog up to my mother-in-law: www.arbico-organics.com