“Hemp enthusiasts attending a two-day workshop in Lexington began working Friday on what is touted as the first house to be insulated with Kentucky-grown hemp.
General
Worst Places to Live with Minimal Building Codes: Fracking, Oil, Mining Regions
We have a whole series of articles about the best places to live with few or no building codes in the US. The other day I came across a video about oil shale fracking called Shale Cowboys. Then I remembered that the current Administration is pushing for US energy independence using oil shale and coal deposits. These areas would be among some of the worst places to establish a sustainable homestead in my opinion. Once the water table is polluted then the area is basically uninhabitable for the foreseeable future.
100 Mile Home: First Straw/Clay home permitted in Eugene
“A 100 Mile Home is Eugene’s first permitted residence with a natural light straw/clay wall system, and it’s being built at Emerald Village Eugene!
Make a $4 emergency biomass stove from concrete blocks
“In the aftermath of a disaster, purifying drinking water may be a priority. The quickest, safest method could be boiling. This biomass stove only requires four concrete blocks, a tin can with both ends cut out and a gas stove eyelet top. The completed stove is sturdy enough to hold a several-gallon container of water, stew or a heavy cast iron Dutch oven.”
The Simple Humus Toilet
“The “Simple Humus Toilet” is a concept for an easy to install, ‘do it yourself’ composting toilet. It is not meant to threaten the conventional flush toilet culture, rather represents an alternative for anyone who ‘lives close to nature’ and wants to use a simple and low cost toilet system. It is ideal for the garden or empty section, but could also be used in disaster situations such as earthquakes.
Rice Hull Ash Eco Friendly Building Materials
I want to draw attention to the multitude of rice hull ash products on the market and the industry that supplies this eco friendly material. This is a great example of how an abundant waste material can be turned into high value products.