How we see it !
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” Margaret Mead
Sue and I believe that energy is the number one issue before us, and that it is a global issue. Energy affects the cost of every item and service we use. It especially impacts those who are least able to afford it. By the time many people pay their taxes, housing, transportation, health care, and utilities, their income is exhausted if not exceeded. What will support the rest of our economy if each dollar is already spoken for before it is received? What will our children and grandchildren have to look forward to? What will older adults have to look forward to?
We built The House on Third Street to demonstrate that it is possible to build extremely energy efficient and healthy buildings. Our goal is to help accelerate the movement of sustainable and alternative energy information and products into the market place, in order to dramatically reduce fossil consumption and carbon emissions.
We advocate a short term, midterm and long term approach to solving energy issues. For the long term we believe that it is imperative that we develop wind, solar, hydrogen and bio energies as quickly as possible and continue to put them into use wherever possible.
Until alternative energies become more mainstream and economically viable, in the short term we advocate an aggressive national campaign to educate the public about extremely energy efficient building and conservation products and systems. By popularizing products like tankless water heaters, foam insulations, compact florescence bulbs etc. and getting these products into mass use as soon as possible, we can dramatically reduce energy consumption and reduce our utility bills.
These products are the low lying fruit. Compared to alternative energies, these products are available, affordable and offer the average person some immediate relief in reducing their energy cost. They will also immediately begin to reduce carbon emissions and “Global Warming.
As a third component, we advocate popularizing extremely efficient building techniques like ICF (Insulated Concrete Forms) construction. New building techniques and systems can reduce energy cost by 75% to 85%. Applying these techniques to the new schools being built in Ohio alone could annually save billions of dollars in energy costs well into the future. These techniques can also dramatically reduce operating costs for businesses. When conservation-building techniques are combined with alternative energies, these building systems can dramatically reduce the amount of energy alternative energies all called upon to produce.
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