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Design, Construction, Resources AND CATHERINE WANEK (www.geocities.com/shenandoahrising)
For people who love the feel of the earth under their hands, who are concerned about the health of their environment, who have chemical sensitivities or are facing a protocol of cleaning up their surroundings because of chronic illness such as cancer, AIDS or M.S. — this book will be your greatest resource. With the knowledge this book imparts, you can literally build a home with the resources under your feet and with your own two hands. As pollution rises in land, air, and water and people have increasing problems with their immune systems, there is a turning of heads in the direction that for centuries was the norm, that of natural building. You will find in this book a carefully collected array of stories, instruction, resource lists and philosophies. Natural Building discusses the toxic effects of current processing of housing materials, the impact of modern buildings upon the environment, and the alternative and much safer methods of building a house to live and breathe in. Editor Michael G. Smith writes an excellent chapter in The Case for Natural Building. He points out that "The manufacture of Portland cement, for example, is responsible for as much as eight percent of greenhouse gas emissions." He states that "It’s impossible to build a house with no environmental impact, but it’s our responsibility to minimize and localize the damage." In the same essay, he also maintains that we grow up being told that we can’t build a house unless we are professional builders. He says to the contrary "But it doesn’t have to be that way. By using local, unprocessed materials like earth and straw, building smaller than the conventional house, and providing much of the labor yourself, you can create a home that is almost unbelievably affordable." The rest of the book follows his lead with all sorts of examples on building with straw bale, cob, adobe, bamboo, and rammed earth. The book discusses the use of energy, including simple, passive solar technology for heating and cooling, radiant heating, natural insulation, and multi-functional designs in permaculture — a system for managing energy. Included in the book are precise instructions for many techniques, such as laying foundations, pouring an earthen floor, and building a sod or thatch roof. Throughout the book are excellent detailed diagrams and photographs so beautiful you want to immediately touch the building, run your hand around the doorway, or step onto a cool earth floor with your bare feet. This collection of essays explains the need for a return to natural building, tells exactly how to do it, and provides examples, stories of inspiration, and useful advice. It also has a vast assortment of lists for resources — everything you need to get started and maybe everything for finishing your natural building project. This is a book for anyone who wants to build his or her own home and who is concerned about the future of our planet as well as the assault on the Earth’s natural resources in the last two hundred years. I highly recommend it for you and for the next generations. |
