I am having a hard time finding studies for or against the health impact of fiberglass, specifically the little glass fibers in peoples’ lungs. Here is a little conspiracy theory I am thinking up as I write: The big companies that made asbestos told everyone it was safe. Then they all claimed bankruptcy when the …
Green Building is a moral prerogative. It is amoral not to build green because to do so is to destroy the earth and ourselves. We must build green because it is the most ethical thing to do. Why Green Building Closely Connected to Disobedience This is why building green and civil disobedience are so closely …
Green Building and Civil Disobedience in Brooklyn Read More »
We’ve sent off our design to our kitchen cabinet builder, David Lucassen from Nexis 3, for the two kitchens in the Brooklyn Green Show House. In the design we took into consideration how to maximize natural sunlight. This meant positioning cabinets and the fridge on the North side of the kitchen so the sun could …
Looks like USA Today picked up one of the events we are doing at the Eco Brooklyn Green Show House. It is of a green roof course we are doing.
Bees are technically classified as a venomous insect and thus illegal by New York law. Stupid but true. Help legalize beekeeping by signing this petition. Here is some info on Bees, taken from JustFood.org: Question: What do cities like Atlanta, Chicago, Portland, Paris, San Francisco, Seattle, Toronto, and Vancouver have that NYC does not? Answer: …
You are allowed to keep chickens and any sort of hoofed animal in Brooklyn or New York City. Hoofed, as in donkey, goat, sheep….and chickens. Not roosters, but if you want fresh eggs from your back yard or roof top chickens that is totally legal. BUT you are not allowed to legally keep bees. Sure …
Peelaway paint remover is the best I know of. It really does a great job. You need to apply it thick, like so thick you can’t see the wood under it. Let it sit a day or so and then gently scrape it off. Wash with soap and water and the wood is there. Really …
I went to check out the new park at the Ikea store in Red Hook. Really nice. They planted some great local species and it looks great. Really a nice park by the ocean. The above picture isn’t exactly what most people would see if the went to the park. But if you are foraging …
As part of our National Sustainable Building Adviser Course we visited the Queens Botanical Garden. It is amazing. The new building is totally decked out with the best of green building: solar, rainwater, gray water, toilet composting, natural vantialtion. You name it. But their greatest thing for me was their green roof. Really amazing. [salbumphotos=27,160,3,n,y,title …
Brooklyn NY brownstones are not built to carry heavy loads on their roofs. So when you install a green roof you need to build for it and know what the weights are. Here are the numbers from my friend Avra: Extensive – 10-50 lb/squ. ft Semi-intensive 30-90lb/sq. ft. Intensive 80-150 lb/sq. ft. Here are thicknesses …
