frontstepdesign

White roofs as snowcap replacement

Would it be possible to plan to replace the reflectivity of the Earth's polar snowcaps, and other snowy mountaintops, with white roofs on buildings?

1) What was "ideal" area of snow cover, averaged over a year?

Okay, Wikipedia has satellite numbers only from 1979.  Most coverage for the northern hemisphere seems to be 1.35x10(13); while most for the southern hemisphere seems to be around 1.6x10(13).  Square meters.

2) What does that translate to, in terms of building area?  (How many Super Walmarts?)  A Supercenter Walmart, again per Wikipedia, is about 200,000 sf.  1,580,000,000 Supercenters.  One and a half billion.  Okay, maybe that's not feasible, even if they were not at 80d latitude.  But what about other buildings?  Surely, with a world population of 6.5 billion people, we could come up with 1.5 billion x 200,000sf = 300 trillion square feet = 45,941 sf per person.  Do we have that much extra built structure?  Could we?

3) Where should these white roofs be located?  I'd think they'd be more effective at reflecting solar heat at the equator, but I bet this is a complex thing.  Also, not all roofs need be the same slope (really shouldn't be), but just for starters I'll assume they're flat.

I'm not sure I know where to find these answers, but perhaps my friends can help.

New LEED accreditation timeline

I heard last fall that the LEED AP accreditation system was changing, and decided to wait until the new system was in place to get on board, to have maximum corroboration with new expectations.  USGBC has issued the following timeline and description of how the new standards will work:
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MARCH 2009
LEED AP+ Homes Exam - Beta Test (application is now closed)
LEED AP New Construction v2.2 – Registration Deadline
LEED AP Commercial Interiors v2.0 – Registration Deadline

SPRING 2009
LEED Green Associate Exam – Launch (May)
LEED AP+ Operations & Maintenance Exam – Launch (May)
LEED AP+ Building Design & Construction Exam – Beta Test
LEED AP+ Interior Design & Construction Exam - Beta Test
New Candidate Application Available

SUMMER 2009
LEED AP+ Homes Exam - Launch
LEED AP+ Building Design & Construction - Launch
LEED AP+ Interior Design & Construction - Launch
New Credentialing Maintenance Program – Launch

2010
LEED AP+ Neighborhood Development

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Q: What are the three tiers of LEED Credentialing under the new tiered system?
A: Tier I
LEED Green Associate: As the first step in the LEED professional’s career pathway, the Green Associate credential attests to the candidate’s knowledge of good environmental practice and skill, and reflects understanding and support of green design, construction, and operations. There are no specialties within the LEED Green Associate tier.

Tier II
LEED AP+: The LEED AP+ credential signifies an advanced depth of knowledge of green building practices.  LEED AP+s will earn their credentials in one (or more) of the following five specialties:

1. Building Design & Construction (BD&C)
2. Operations & Maintenance (O&M)
3. Interior Design & Construction (ID&C)
4. Homes
5. Neighborhood Development (ND)

Tier III
LEED AP Fellow: Although the application process is currently under development, this tier will distinguish an elite class of leading professionals. Fellows contribute to the standards of practice and body of knowledge for achieving continuous improvement in the green building field.

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I'm job hunting right now, as I've decided that I'd like to pursue larger and more complex projects...I hope that I can find prep material for Tier 1 immediately...but the cost ($250 for non-member, for Associate level, application + exam, $175 for the prep material) is a consideration, until I find an employer.  REVIT training may take precedence.

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Q: What are the costs associated with becoming a LEED AP+?
A: Credential Fees: $100 application fee; $300 USGBC National Member fee per exam appointment or $450 non-member fee per exam appointment; $50 maintenance fee every 2 years. Any additional specialty exam is $150 for USGBC National Members per exam appointment and $250 for non-members per exam appointment, plus the application fee.

Q: What are the Credential Maintenance Requirements for a LEED AP+?
A: Participate in 30 hours of continuing education required every 2 years, with 6 hours obtained from an approved program specific to the LEED Rating System, credit categories, and LEED updates.

The information on Credentialing Maintenance will be available in the first quarter of 2009. The tiered system will be flexible to allow credit for other than taking a class or attending a workshop. Please visit www.gbci.org for more information in the first quarter of 2009.

Making more out of green

Seth Godin, in his post "Getting Sad at Whole Foods" talks about how guilt will only take the environmental rationing movement so far.

Yes, I said 'rationing'.  First, assume that the only way forward is to ration our 'limited' resources.  Therefore, many traditional greenies are into Guilt Evangelism - have less, do less, buy less, make less*, because how dare you, as a citizen of the First World, need 5 times your numerical share of Earth to support you.

I used to buy this idea.  I felt guilty.  However, I, like Seth's imagined customers at Whole Foods, got over it, with time.  Fortunately, when I got over it, I didn't go out and buy a souped-up transportation device.

Instead, I realized that if I bought less, and scheduled myself less, and made changes so that my house consumed less...I would have more money and time.  And more money and time buys freedom.  Like Seth, I think that this is the lesson that has legs, the one that will really sing to people when they wrap their minds around the paradox: do less, have more.  (Anyone who doesn't understand this needs to practice it a little longer - hint: satisfy inner needs with positive friends and good works, not shopping sprees.)

Now, pretend that you've been practicing this first paradox, and it's working, and you're wondering about this 'rationing' business, and doesn't that seem grim?  Right.

I don't see human ingenuity and knowledge as something we're short on.  (The everyday exercise of same is woefully scarce, but I can only improve myself.)  Got lots of sunlight, with no end in sight.  Nor warm temperatures.  All of which promote investigation of permaculture, which is a study of how we may fit into a designed plant/animal/mineral environment so as to produce what everyone needs, rather than just what we need at the expense of all, including ourselves.  A positive spiral, rather than the current negative one.  See 'Greening the Desert' and 'The Man Who Farms Water'.  I'm learning about how permaculture works in a book called Gaia's Garden: A Guide to Home-Scale Permaculture, by Toby Hemenway and John Todd, and it's changing my outlook at the grocery store and at the design board.

Also: The Geography of Hope, Chris Turner, reviewed on Treehugger

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*I do think that contracting one's expectations is a Good Thing, but for totally selfish reasons - I do a better job, learn faster, am more effective, and am happier and more relaxed when I do less and consume less.  I think that's the #1 reason to reduce lifestyle.

'Retro-Progressive'

Apparently Madison Avenue has decided that this niche I'm in, with a few hundred thousand others, finally deserves a name, so we can all be marketed to.  Despite the fact that we're rather counter-consumerist.

I am a 'retro-progressive'.

I wish the Avenue luck.

Green Realtors

Want to know what property is greener than the Jones'?

Ask a Realtor.

Bicycle Monday

I just rode my bike to work.

Actually, I rode my mother's 1953, 3-speed Winston Churchill.  But it's still a bicycle, and it worked.  I made stops at the bank and the post office.  I kept off the main roads, choosing instead parallel residential roads, except at the two bridges I cross to get farther inland.  The commute took about an hour, stops included.

Yes, I got sweaty - it's 83 degrees with 60% humidity, pretty much normal for here.  I did not wear workout clothes, though.  I wore a short shift that I made last summer to go under my Civil War corset - it's the one with the frilly lace on the bottom and spaghetti straps - which is handkerchief-weight cotton muslin.  It's essentially a frilly pillowcase with shoulder straps, and was light and breezy on the ride.  Rump coverage was solved by a skirt - though not the long green one.  I have two knee-length skirts that are perfect for bike-riding.  When I got to work I changed into a sweater-blouse, and hung up the pillowcase in prep for the ride home.  It's already dry and does not smell.

I prefer to wear non-bike-demon clothes for bike commuting - I think that drivers are kinder, and a skirt waving in the breeze is yet another flag, saying "I'm here!  Please don't make me a greasy smudge!"

I'd like to make this commute at least a weekly occurence - it's an awesome workout, I get lots of Vitamin D without baking in the sun, and it would discount my gas bill.  Not to mention lessen my ecological footprint.

My husband is very supportive of the bicycle commute - he wishes his was possible.  I was musing to him about the difficulties of Schlepping Stuff, which is generally my responsibility, and he pointed out that we could get a trailer for me.  Hmm.  Saddlebags first.

And WHY don't more places have lockups?!  Must complain.

Planned purchases

I've got husbandly goahead for a new appliance!  And I'll just go ahead on my own with the other...

First, it's a solar oven!  I built one as a test from this book, but I didn't do it very carefully, and it only goes up to 200 degrees F.  I want one I can bake in, and either I'll have to do a much more careful job (care I'd rather put into paid or medieval work) or I'll have to support a worthy cause with <$200.  What a choice!

Secondly, it's a really low-flow showerhead.  I better only get one of these to start, as part of the solar shower experiment, since hubby is Very Fond of long hot showers.  Our water here is cheap (I'm not sure why/how that works, and I should find out), so it's not the water cost (though I hope I don't have to say that potable water conservation is always a Good Thing), but I hope I won't have to point out that if we install one on his shower, the gas bill will be lower.  Which he pays.

Owl's Head

I am generally in favor of Duany Plater-Zyberg's work.  This is the firm that designed Seaside's masterplan, as well as lesser known places like Rosemary Beach and Watercolor.

Add Owl's Head to the list.  Here's their site - warning, turn off the music.

The first problem I have with Owl's Head, is that it's got WOODEN SHAKE ROOFS in a fire-controlled Florida savannah.  We have controlled burns as a matter of course.  This is what you get when you hire architects from Atlanta who don't know much about the local issues.  Water rights are becoming more and more important to the Panhandle.  We finished last year 23 inches behind on rainfall. 

Paradoxically, all the wooden shake roofs I know are rotting.  The sun stress plus the occasional deluges = rot.  I'll keep an eye on Owl's Head.

Sustainable baby steps: Community

(These steps are appropriate at the community level  - those of you who like to lobby, ask for these.)

Make space for bicyclists - repaint a traffic lane.  Allow bike buses*.

Build a solar energy plant*.  Or a wind farm*.  Or a wave generator*.

Charge a tax for disposable plastic bags*.

Establish a lighting ordinance to reduce wasted night lighting*.

Encourage multi-use buildings, and phase out strict zoning, so people can walk to work.  Read up on New Urbanism*, and the natural lifecycle of buildings and neighborhoods*.

Allow granny flats* for more affordable housing and those who don't need as much land*.

Sustainable baby steps: Household

(Bigger committments, that might require some money or changing the building.)

Make your roof white*.

Install solar screens*.

Plant trees*.

Upgrade the efficiency* of your air conditioner.