by
Bernadell Larson, HCMG |
An
Environmentally Friendly
Home and
Landscape, Part
1
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Sustainable (Green)
Building is a growing
industry and catching on
with homeowners as they
look for ways to
conserve energy and to
recycle waste. In 2008,
the expected share of
the housing market
attributed to green
building is 6%, which is
up from just 2% in 2005.
There have been an
estimated 332,900
sustainable/green homes
built since 2005, and
$296,000 is the average
price of sustainable/
green homes built since
2005. (The source for
these statistics is the
McGraw-Hill Construction
Research & Analytics
survey prepared for the
U. S. Green Building
Council.) |
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The U S Green
Building Council (USGBC)
developed the LEED For
Homes project, which
requires an independent
third party rating
system to ensure
consistent application
of the green building
principles. The rating
system is intended to be
an effective tool for
introducing
green/sustainable
practices to a
significant portion of
the new home building
marketplace. Initially,
LEED for Homes is
targeting the top 25% of
homes which best
practice environmental
features. Once the new
home process is
streamlined, the USGBC
would like to extend the
program to the rest of
the marketplace, and
also home remodeling
projects. |
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There are several
specialized areas of
green home design and
planning that are
required to be certified
as a LEED Home. The
third party doing the
rating collects in-field
data about the LEED Home
and prepares a project
documentation file. The
file includes the
completed LEED for Homes
Checklist, Performance
Test reports, and the
Completed Accountability
Form. All this
information is used to
determine if the home
qualifies for one of the
four LEED ratings
(Certified, Silver, Gold
and Platinum, in that
order). |
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Of the 8 areas of
Accountability
(Innovation and Design
Process, Location,
Sustainable Sites, Water
Efficiency, Indoor
Environmental Quality,
Materials and Resources,
Energy and Atmosphere,
and Awareness and
Education) we will focus
on Sustainable Sites and
Water Efficiency. |
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In the Sustainable Sites
category, there are 5
major areas where points
can be earned and
documented on the
Accountability Form. In
each area there are
requirements that may be
mandatory or optional
measures that, if
followed, will earn
additional points in the
rating process. |
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1. Site Stewardship: The
intent is to design and
construct the building
with minimal impact of
the building lot. The
mandatory measures are
1) Minimize disturbed
areas of site if the
site is greater than 1/3
acre, by developing a
tree and plant
preservation plan, and
leave at least 40% of
the previously
undeveloped lot area
undisturbed; 2) Design
and install erosion
controls during
construction by
stockpiling and
protecting existing
topsoil from erosion for
reuse, stabilize soils
that have been
disturbed, control the
path and velocity of
runoff with silt fencing
or comparable measures,
provide swales to divert
surface water from
hillsides, and protect
on-site storm sewer
inlets with straw bales,
silt fencing, silt
sacks, or rock filters.
The selection of the
location of the home’s
footprint on the
building lot has a large
impact on the natural
drainage flows and may
have adverse effects on
the neighboring land.
The home should be
located to complement,
not interfere with, the
existing site features. |
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2. Landscaping: The
intent is to design and
install landscapes
features that minimize
demand for water and
synthetic chemicals. The
mandatory measures are:
a) a basic landscape
design, which includes
installing drought
tolerant turf in sunny
areas only; b) no turf
in densely shaded areas;
c) areas planted with
turf should not exceed a
slope of 25% (i.e. a 4
to 1 slope) and do not
use invasive or exotic
plant species (as
identified by local
AgriLife office)
Lots less than 1/10 of
an acre are exempt. The
optional measures are:
a) apply mulch that will
improve soil structure
and provide nutrients as
it decomposes; b) limit
turf as noted in LEED-H
documentation. The
amount of recommended
turf depends on the
annual precipitation the
region receives; c)
design plantings to
minimize landscape water
demand as specified in
LEED-H documentation.
Points are awarded based
upon a combination of
percentage of drought
tolerant plants used and
annual precipitation for
the region.
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The remaining three
major areas in the
Sustainable Sites
category are: 3) Shading
of Hardscapes, 4)
Surface Water
Management, and 5)
Non-Toxic Pest Control. |
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Remember, the placement of
the building on the lot
and the landscape plan
is extremely important
in minimizing our
disturbance of nature’s
design. Focusing on
native plants, mulch not
sod, rain harvesting,
and drip irrigation will
help achieve a better
balance for everyone. |
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> Go to Part 2 |
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