According to the United Nations World Commission on Environment and Development, the premiere organization dedicated to environmental problem resolution, ‘sustainable development' is that which "meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs".
In spite of ignorance over what constitutes sustainable development and how to engineer it, or fear of how expensive it might be compared to traditional methods, a number of builders have made that leap of faith, believing that the end (resource conservation) justifies the means. One is Ed Ghandour, whose 16-year journey has led to the building of a resort complex called Monterey Bay Shores.
In his prolonged conquest, Ghandour had to fight local building inspectors and outdated plumbing code regulators to incorporate his ‘gray water' system (recycled water left over from bathing, dishes and laundry) into the resort. Ghandour's persistence, and faith in his concept, has led to a minor revolution in California's building codes, making it easier for the next green developer.
Ghandour has even added rainwater capture and stormwater management to the resort's plan, which is of paramount interest to other builders now that California is facing severe drought. In fact, Ghandour has managed to reduce potable water consumption by 50 percent (on paper) compared to similarly sized resorts, earning him a full 5 LEED points for water efficiency.
Most people think the word resort is an oxymoron when placed alongside sustainable, but it doesn't have to be that way. As Ghandour points out, his eco-resort - opening late in 2010 and consisting of 105 rooms, 63 hotel/condo units, and 85 residential units - is in full compliance with the California Coastal Act - a restrictive shoreline building mandate established in 1976 that has caused more than one Golden State developer to gnash his teeth.
Rather than bringing in bulldozers and leveling the land, for example, Ghandour plans to use biomimicry to shape the flow of buildings to match natural dune formations. Additional setback from the shoreline also insures a wider buffer zone between natural coastal processes and human impact, and the restoration of almost 30 acres of former coastal plain will allow for the preservation of sensitive species like the Monterey Spineflower, the Smith Blue Butterfly, and the Snowy Plover. In addition, living roofs will provide another five acres of habitat, earning the resort 11 LEED points for sustainability.
The use of daylighting (i.e., skylights and natural lighting), and natural ventilation - as well as evaporative cooling - add more points, and renewable energy from solar, wind and geothermal make the resort likely to meet the Architecture 2030 Challenge, which mandates a reduction of 60 percent in fossil fuel use by 2010.
Surprisingly, Ghandour estimates the extra cost of his building methods as a mere 15 percent greater than if he were building using traditional methods. Other builders are finding similar comparisons, some studies indicating a difference of a mere 1-2 percent. Better construction perhaps costs a little more upfront, but saves enormously in terms of resources and energy costs over time. Any marginal upfront costs are recouped over time through resource conservation.
The trend toward sustainability is even stronger in Europe. In Amersfoort, the Netherlands - where the proposed addition of more than 20,000 new homes by 2014 is expected to rest so lightly on the earth that energy use will actually be less than the EU's 2020 mandated cut of 20 percent - cars may become a thing of the past as walking paths knit together future communities.
Or take Hammarby Sjostad, near Stockholm, Sweden, which is designed to accommodate 25,000 more residents by 2015, though car usage is expected to decline by 10 percent because units are built up, not out, and reclaim the land from a former industrial brownfield site.
And then there's Adamstown, outside Dublin, where Joe O'Reilly's 400 ‘houses of tomorrow' used eco-friendly building and energy-use techniques and didn't cost much more than conventional houses.
Many builders are so tied to "traditional", antiquated building techniques, and so ignorant of green methods, that any paradigm shift to sustainability will require massive re-education at all levels-- from plumbers and electricians, to building inspectors and construction engineers.
Nonetheless, we must do so. Rising populations and dwindling resources demand that we reduce our ecological footprint everywhere, in every venue, and quickly. The world as a whole currently supports 115 people per square mile. Deduct land needed to grow crops, and land that won't support habitation (like deserts and glaciers), and the density rises. Add another 2.6 billion people over the next 45 years, and we will be living in each other's pockets with barely enough food or fuel to go around.
Related Reading:
Defining the Green House: Some Basic Traits to Know
Eco Neighborhoods: Where Community Meets Sustainability
