The New York Times had a lengthy article last week on the greening of Greensburg. Among the impressive signs of progress reported were the buildings that have earned or likely will receive Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design platinum certification. For example, the town’s arts center was designed and built by graduate students of the University of Kansas School of Architecture and is powered by windmills and solar panels and heated and cooled by a geothermal system. It was the first LEED-platinum building in Kansas. The Kiowa County Memorial Hospital, currently under construction, is seeking to become the first LEED platinum critical-access hospital in the country, the article reported. The town also is about to break ground on a wind farm capable of supplying electricity to 4,000 homes. The article noted that such achievements would be impressive anywhere but seem unexpected in Kansas, which “routinely elects to Congress skeptics on matters of energy conservation and environmental regulation.”
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27 Comments
Apparently this information about Greensburg is being hidden by our Wichita main stream press, the Wichita Eagle. How about sending out a crack Eagle reporter team to cover the Greensburg story.
I’m curious who is paying for the “green” buildings? If the proposed wind farm will produce enough electricity for 4,000 homes, does Greensburg actually have 4,000 homes for its population of less than 2,500. Is the Greensburg population buying into all this government “help”?
Are the former Greensburg residents remaining there? How many new people from elsewhere have moved in to participate in building the “new town”?
Reminds me of that saying, “We are the government and we’re here to help you.”
Why LEED buildings are just popping up all over – or not. Supposed cost benefit is over the lifetime of the building, which is actually misleading as engineering limitations make for expensive maintenance and an ever increasing expense.
Greensburg is meeting its ‘green’ goal, but enthusiasm will give way to the ravages of nature and time. Very expensive green technology requires very expensive green maintenance. I’m unsure if Greensburg has planned for this recurring expense or just in awe of its initialization of ‘green-hood.’
It will be interesting to watch over the years to see what happens.
Greensburg has a new school and a hospital, both of which may receive LEED certification. They well use some of the wind-generated power as well as the other businesses in town. Any excess electricity would be sold back into the grid.
And yes, the government did step up to help, FEMA,the State of Kansas, and the USDA, as well as thousands of individuals and scores of business concerns and public interest groups.
The new homes are tornado-proofed and highly efficient.
This is a success story.
“JWink” –
The rebuilding of Greensburg has been readily available to anyone who tunes away from the (cluster)Fox Noise Channel.
It’s on the Planet Green network and is in its 2nd season.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greensburg_%28TV_series%29
Fact is, the May 2007 tornado brought an (ahem) windfall of money. Yeah there were tax dollars; federal disaster relief isn’t all that uncommon. Corporate money, the lion’s share from insurance benefits, is part of the mix. The commitment to green technology attracted grants from corporations and foundations. The contribution of KU’s school of architecture is only the most visible working contribution from academia.
One of the most irritating aspects of WE Blog CONs is how, if Rush didn’t say it or the (cluster)Fox Noise Channel didn’t air it, CONs don’t know how to even look for answers.
And then “Regular” or “Boxlock20″ or “wichhick” or some CON goes all Nostradamus with horrific
fantasiespredictions of what might happen someday.M.H.: In July, I did go over to Greensburg for a look around. Talked to some people.
For example, I asked a Highway Patrolman why the grain elevator stood up to the tornado. As I suspected, he said its cylindrical shape must have saved it.
I stopped by the new Dillons/Kwik Shop combination for sandwich and coffee. The cashier told me they had moved to Greensburg from northern Kansas to participate in the rebuilding process. I guess adventurous people are still around.
In Pratt, I have heard a considerable number of former Greensburgers moved to Pratt, Dodge City, even nearby Haviland to get away from the rebuilding process, get on with their lives and to quickly use their meager house insurance proceeds to replace their destroyed homes.
Don’t have time to watch much television other than the news at 10 PM. Prefer newspapers.
The NYT article linked in the header has some interesting info:
“. . . Those and other energy conservation features mean that it will not need fuel oil boilers to back up its heating and cooling systems, drastically reducing costs.
. . .
Some residents and business owners, particularly in the months after the tornado, expressed concerns that the green plan would increase costs and slow the process of getting construction permits.
But Mr. Estes and others who have added energy-saving designs and equipment report that the higher initial installation costs have been more than offset by significantly lower operating costs. “
Monkeyhawk posted September 27, 2009 at 7:31 am
And then “Regular” or “Boxlock20? or “wichhick” or some CON goes all Nostradamus with horrific fantasies predictions of what might happen someday.
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What will probably happen in the future is rising fossil-fuel costs (”peak oil”, carbon taxes, etc) will give even higher economic advantage to LEED buildings.
In Germany, there are some energy efficiency monies available to build ‘green’ homes. With this aid, Germans are building homes that cost 15% more than conventional homes, but cost nothing to heat in the winter.
The homes are so efficiently designed that the waste heat from appliances and the occupant’s body heat provide all of the warmth needed to keep the home comfortable. Imagine having no winter heating bills.
It can be done. It is being done.
More links. . .
http://www.kansasenergy.org/greensburg.htm
http://www1.eere.energy.gov/buildings/greensburg/technical_assistance.html
“which “routinely elects to Congress skeptics on matters of energy conservation and environmental regulation.”
Uhh, wrong.
“which “routinely elects to Congress folks who know that “Global Warming” is an agenda driven crock of schiitte and don’t wish to financially hamstring the people of the U.S. in the name of a giant lie.”
There, fixed it for you.
Heckler seems to foolishly believe that s/he can change climate science into “an agenda driven crock of schiitte”, and a “giant lie”, just by typing those words on the WE blog.
Wasting energy is not a conservative value.
Lying about climate science seems to be a Republican value.
DavidB
Posted September 27, 2009 at 8:48 am | Permalink
In Germany, there are some energy efficiency monies available to build ‘green’ homes. With this aid, Germans are building homes that cost 15% more than conventional homes, but cost nothing to heat in the winter.
The homes are so efficiently designed that the waste heat from appliances and the occupant’s body heat provide all of the warmth needed to keep the home comfortable. Imagine having no winter heating bills.
It can be done. It is being done.
—————–
German homes are much more expensive than American homes and are designed as shells. No light fixtures, no cabinets, no closets and etc.
German home foundations are typically carved into bedrock – i.e. no slab foundation. This is extremely expensive and requires all sorts of surveys.
Comfort for a German is different than what Americans are used to. Germans typical wander around their homes in sweaters as they keep their temperatures much lower than American homes.
As far as heating an entire home from just appliances, I’d have to see that. Most German appliances are quite small. German homes usually don’t have full size refrigerator/freezers, stove/ovens or dishwashers.
The example you gave are probably from the elite of the elite homes. The average German citizen wouldn’t be able to afford such things.
Kansas FINALLY has something to be proud of. The progressive spirit in Greensburg is a model that should serve as a primer for all future construction in this country.
‘ENERGY EFFICIENCY: Homes go from ’superefficient’ to zero carbon emissions in Europe‘
http://www.eenews.net/public/climatewire/2009/08/10/1
‘No furnace required: Energy-efficient ‘passive houses’ gaining steam‘
http://www.physorg.com/news154199408.html
Regular
Posted September 27, 2009 at 6:49 am | Permalink
Why LEED buildings are just popping up all over – or not. Supposed cost benefit is over the lifetime of the building, which is actually misleading as engineering limitations make for expensive maintenance and an ever increasing expense.
Regular
Posted September 27, 2009 at 2:17 pm | Permalink
German homes are much more expensive than American homes and are designed as shells. No light fixtures, no cabinets, no closets and etc.
German home foundations are typically carved into bedrock – i.e. no slab foundation. This is extremely expensive and requires all sorts of surveys.
Comfort for a German is different than what Americans are used to. Germans typical wander around their homes in sweaters as they keep their temperatures much lower than American homes.
As far as heating an entire home from just appliances, I’d have to see that. Most German appliances are quite small. German homes usually don’t have full size refrigerator/freezers, stove/ovens or dishwashers.
The example you gave are probably from the elite of the elite homes. The average German citizen wouldn’t be able to afford such things.
===============================================
Got anything to back up your claim LEED buildings cost more than standard buildings in maintenance over the long run? I mean, other than your troll-monkey remarks? Something from a reputable source?
Other than the fact you may or may not have been in Germany, that was long ago, and times change. Since bedrock changes in depth, depending on where you are in Germany, with some being over twenty feet deep, are we then to assume, under your post, houses sunk in bedrock in Germany are up to twenty or more feet underground? Got some reputable source to back that up? Or is that just another “generalization” courtesy of the troll-monkey.
BTW, where’s that proof of your yesterday’s statement? The day’s young and I can wait.
Sounds like you got some research to do Walker. Do blame me for your laziness.
I never gave a depth of bedrock or how bedrock reacts in Germany at specified depths. There are a lot of mountaineous regions in Germany and some lowland areas. I’m not the type of person to be so inclined that states ‘one size fits all.’
“Comfort for a German is different than what Americans are used to. ”
American attitudes are changing. Conspicuous consumption and waste are falling out of fashion. Even becoming something looked down on.
As if they EVER should have been IN fashion.
Of course, there will be those who will whine and drag their feet. But they too will be dragged into a more environmentally friendly lifestyle.
JMWalker,
Regular is not the type of person to use and/or have credible sources.
It is expensive to build green. I watched the whole series on the rebuilding of Greensburg that Moneyhawk gave a link to. Insurance and government assist only pays for what is expected in normal building practices. They had to raise a lot of money from private donations to even build the arts center. I believe the 1,000 sq ft building cost more than 250k to build by unpaid graduate students. That doesn’t mean that it shouldn’t be done. Once these technologies become more and more in demand, the cost per unit goes down because manufacturing costs go down. Everything starts out as experimental. Light bulbs used to be astronomically expensive before everyone had them.
Greensburg is taking a leap into the future despite the stagnant imagination of many of our citizens and government representatives.
Energy efficient houses and buildings are comfortable.
‘Going green has advantages, planner says‘
http://www.kiowacountysignal.com/homepage/x1908590914
” As for the increased upfront costs of building to LEED levels, Hardy unveiled what he called “the very latest information,” which showed an up tick of only .66 percent in construction costs at the certified level. For silver, gold and platinum levels, the additional expense was listed at levels of 1.9, 2.2 and 6.8 percent respectively.
“Of course,” he said, “some Platinum projects come in at no increased construction costs, while others are as high as 10 to 15 percent. It depends on the efficiency of your design/building team.
“But the longer you’re going to hold your buildings the farther you want to go up the sustainability ladder. And I see no reason for the City to not be putting up buildings meant to last 100 years.” “
#
Regular
Posted September 27, 2009 at 4:03 pm | Permalink
Sounds like you got some research to do Walker. Do blame me for your laziness.
I never gave a depth of bedrock or how bedrock reacts in Germany at specified depths. There are a lot of mountaineous regions in Germany and some lowland areas. I’m not the type of person to be so inclined that states ‘one size fits all.’
———————————————–
You made the assertion. I’m not doing your work for you. You also made the claim:
Why LEED buildings are just popping up all over – or not. Supposed cost benefit is over the lifetime of the building, which is actually misleading as engineering limitations make for expensive maintenance and an ever increasing expense.
Greensburg is meeting its ‘green’ goal, but enthusiasm will give way to the ravages of nature and time. Very expensive green technology requires very expensive green maintenance. I’m unsure if Greensburg has planned for this recurring expense or just in awe of its initialization of ‘green-hood.’
Got anything to back that up? You figure the people of Greensburg are too stupid to figure in maintenance, which you claim is going to be more expensive than regular housing, even though you supply no proof whatsoever? Why are you against anything that helps us wean off foreign oil? Why are you against anything that helps reduce pollution? Why do you hate this country?
BTW, where’s that proof of your yesterday’s statement? The day’s young and I can wait.
Regular is not the type of person to use and/or have credible sources.
Unfortunately the state is spending $35 million to move the highway away from Greensburg and elevating it. This has resulted in businesses abandoning their plans to build. No business = no town.