Kermit was right, it ain't easy being green. Building a house for the first time involves making decisions about a million and one different things you've always taken for granted. Trying to "build responsibly" adds a whole new level of complexity on top of everything.
For the last month I've been holding out in the hopes of writing the mother of all blog posts on green construction. But alas, the more research I do the more baffled I become and the less likely the post will ever happen.
Instead, I will leave you with the wisdom of someone far more qualified on the subject. Catherine and Paul Mohr built a new house in Mountain View a few years ago and created a gem of a resource: When Geeks Build Green. Filled with smart research, photos, and local resources, the blog makes the green construction process a lot less daunting. However, before plunging into the murky pond of all things green, I recommend watching Catherine Mohr's TED talk about embodied energy and building a green house. It's amusing, data driven and an enlightening six minutes that will save you a whole lot of grief.
The most energy efficient structures are ones that reduce the amount of materials required for building, have a long life span, are super energy efficient in operation, require minimal maintenance, will withstand almost any manmade or natural disaster with only minimal if any damage, withstand tornado, earthquake, and fire. AND COST NO MORE to build than traditionally built structures. Such structures are insulated thin shell concrete structures like MONOLITHIC DOME structures. - monolithic.com .
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