50 Shades of Green

House nearing end of construction, last minute decisions, counting dollars, finishing details, and getting ready for the final C.O, is stress to the extreme.  Sound familiar?  Multiply that stress by one hundred with the builder having to submit the necessary particulars on a check-off application when the house is being certified “green.”   I recently overheard a builder blurt out in frustration “there’s many shades of green” when an explanation of what the criteria for landscape certification meant and why his choices were unable to be used.  While there are many green certification programs, there is only one type of “green,” and that is following the selected green organizations’ program criteria correctly.  Green certification takes organization, preparation, commitment, and knowledge of what benefits green certification provides both the builder and his client.  If proper steps are taken from beginning to end, green certification doesn’t have to be an arduous ordeal.

Conversations about what is really green and the much easier greenwashing[1] takes place mainly among researchers, green certifiers, and environmental standards organizations such as United States Green Building Council,  National Green Building Program,  EPA’s Water Sense, Sustainable Sites, and their affiliate state organizations like Florida Green Build Council.  In Florida, the University of Florida oversees the Florida Yards and Neighborhoods program, while the St Johns River Water Management District and other districts’ green certification program, FloridaWater Star certifies new and renovated homes on best water-conserving principles.  Home buyers trust the builder to provide correct information on the best products for their lifestyle and the right certification program.  Builders, who don’t believe that green certification is beneficial to their clients, won’t be able to sell it to them. It will either result in greenwashing or a lost opportunity to provide a truly sustainable product.

Green building is not only about the construction process, inside and out, but includes the property; from the first site survey and shovel in the ground, to final grading and landscape and irrigation installation.  For the best results and less stress, certifying the home and the landscape should be decided upon during the budget negotiations and before the construction begins, so that the application process can be completed successfully easier and within budget. Using a green-certified landscape architect or landscape designer from the beginning is a wise decision for the builder and the homeowner. 

Confusion happens when builders and homeowners don’t understand the numerous benefits and selling points of a certified landscape and irrigation; and start cutting their expenses at the cost of high maintenance and expensive water bills.  Green certification means the best management practices and certified products have been used and there will be financial savings, lower maintenance, and a smart responsibility to the environment, in their client’s future. 

Gone are the days (or at least they should be) where the homeowner is not given a choice on an efficient irrigation system that will cost more upfront but will save the homeowner thousands of dollars but are offered a more expensive energy-saving appliance that will save them $120 a year over the lifetime of the product.  With monthly water and irrigation bills of $200 to $500 becoming commonplace nationwide, why wouldn’t a builder give their clients the option of purchasing a water-efficient landscape and irrigation package? Needlessly paying thousands of dollars over a five to ten year period in water bills? Now that is torture to me.

Builders should partner with certified landscape designers and landscape architects who will provide timely advice and information on best management practices and green landscaping. They will be able to explain how to use the eco-friendly principles to benefit the builder and the homeowners. With current statutes like Florida-friendly landscaping, green certification is only a prelude to future smart building practices in Florida. Certified landscaping and irrigation will allow for more sustainable growth, more satisfied clients, and  help the builder to be on the best sellers’ list for years to come.  

See the Vision House 2008's certified green landscape three years later.
Originally published in From The Ground Up, Building Inspirations Magazine, July 2013.

Teresa Watkins, horticulturist, landscape designer, and environmental consultant. Watkinsalso hosts of the award-winning gardening radio show “In Your Backyard” heard on www.My790am.com  every Tuesday at 1:00pm.  You can contact or send questions to Teresa at www.she-consulting.com.

---

[1] A superficial or insincere display of concern for the environment that is shown by an organization.  www.WordReference.com

We Didn't Have That Green Thing

Making its way around the Internet is a story of how wasteful older generations were... What do you think? If you know who the author is, please let me know.

In the line at the store, the cashier told the older woman that she should bring her own grocery bag because plastic bags weren’t good for the environment.

The woman apologized to him and explained, “We didn’t have the green thing back in my day.”

The clerk responded, "That's our problem today. The former generation did not care enough to save our environment."

He was right, that generation didn’t have the green thing in its day.

Back then, they returned their milk bottles, soda bottles and beer bottles to the store. The store sent them back to the plant to be washed and sterilized and refilled, so it could use the same bottles over and over. So they really were recycled.

But they didn’t have the green thing back in that customer's day.

In her day, they walked up stairs, because they didn’t have an escalator in every store and office building.

They walked to the grocery store and didn’t climb into a 300-horsepower machine every time they had to go two blocks.

But she was right. They didn’t have the green thing in her day.

Back then, they washed the baby’s diapers because they didn’t have the throw-away kind. They dried clothes on a line, not in an energy gobbling machine burning up 220 volts – wind and solar power really did dry the clothes. Kids got hand-me-down clothes from their brothers or sisters, not always brand-new clothing.

But that old lady is right, they didn’t have the green thing back in her day.

Back then, they had one TV, or radio, in the house – not a TV in every room. And the TV had a small screen the size of a handkerchief, not a screen the size of the state of Montana .

In the kitchen, they blended and stirred by hand because they didn’t have electric machines to do everything for you. When they packaged a fragile item to send in the mail, they used a wadded up old newspaper to cushion it, not polystyrene or plastic bubble wrap.

Back then, they didn’t fire up an engine and burn gasoline just to cut the lawn. They used a push mower that ran on human power. They exercised by working so they didn’t need to go to a health club to run on treadmills that operate on electricity.

But she’s right, they didn’t have the green thing back then.

They drank from a fountain when they were thirsty instead of using a cup or a plastic bottle every time they had a drink of water. They refilled their writing pens with ink instead of buying a new pen, and they replaced the razor blades in a razor instead of throwing away the whole razor just because the blade got dull.

But they didn’t have the green thing back then.

Back then, people took the streetcar or a bus and kids rode their bikes to school or rode the school bus instead of turning their moms into a 24-hour taxi service.

They had one electrical outlet in a room, not an entire bank of sockets to power a dozen appliances. And they didn’t need a computerized gadget to receive a signal beamed from satellites 2,000 miles out in space in order to find the nearest pizza joint.

But isn't it sad that the current generation laments how wasteful the old folks were just because they didn't have the green thing back then?

I have to add that with older generations, nearly everyone grew their own fruits, vegetables, and meat locally. They fished for their seafood. In the wee hours of the morning, you got up and took care of the farm chores before you went to school or work. When you got home, you had to take care of the farm animals and any chores that needed to be finished. We didn't have much need for mental health therapy or psychiatrists. Digging in the dirt was cathartic enough.

At our house, we've gone back to drying our clothes on the clothesline. Its been amazing how easy it has been to get into a routine of washing and drying on a daily basis.