Decades before anyone had uttered the words “LEED Platinum,” a group of people took up the cause of making buildings that were energy-efficient, environmentally responsible, and non-toxic. You may remember them as hippies. Emerging at the intersection of the back-to-the-land movement and the energy crises of the 1970s, these pioneers had their moment in the sun back in the Carter administration. A dedicated few persisted in the field through the following era of cheap energy, prophets without honor in their own country, promoting the cause and refining the techniques of what has only recently come to be called green building. Now that the latter is the hottest brand on earth, how do the founders of the concept view its current status and future prospects? And as the world embraces ideas that they have espoused for so long, do they feel any urge to say, “I told you so”?
“It would be kind of nice to get a big ‘Thanks a lot,’” says longtime green custom builder Turko Semmes. Until climate change and last year’s oil shock pushed green chic into the mainstream, “People called us weirdos and freaks,” he recalls. Today, though, Semmes focuses more on the fact that the tide seems to have turned decisively toward his way of building. A co-founder in 2005 of SLO Green Build, an organization that promotes sustainable building in California’s San Luis Obispo County, Semmes has seen interest in the idea steadily grow. And this year, he says, “it exploded.” Attention from the federal government is helping too. “The green tech money is starting to take, big-time, all across the country,” he says.
Despite the good vibes, Semmes has mixed feelings about the sudden embrace of all things green. Now that sustainability is one of the few bright spots in residential construction, builders are jumping in without fully understanding its principles or best practices, he says. “I see people taking one little niche of it—just installing photovoltaics or putting in denim insulation—and saying that’s green. I wouldn’t say they’re doing the movement harm … but they need to be continually reminded that it’s not just about making money.” To really get it right, he continues, “it has to be a philosophical shift. It’s not just green building; it’s green living.”
For Semmes, the latter includes sharing hard-won knowledge on the subject with his peers in the industry. “Part of me feels good about that,” he says, “and part of me asks, ‘What am I doing? I’m giving this away.’ At the same time, I’m not saying I won’t share my ideas, that I’m not going to let anybody into my sandbox.” Fortunately, Semmes is in a position to be generous. “I’m looking at my competition, and they’ve been hammered, while I’m still doing OK. It’s because of the green business” that that’s the case.
Freeport, Maine, custom builder Peter Taggart credits his prominence in the green building movement with keeping his business aloft in a market-wide downdraft. But he also views the new popularity of his niche with some ambivalence. In manufacturers’ advertising, he notes, “There’s a lot of ‘greenwashing’ and a lot of outrageous claims about performance. I’d like to see a lot more testing.” Consumers are enthusiastic but confused, he says, and can easily end up investing in expensive energy systems before tending to basics like air sealing their houses.
When advising clients, Taggart says, “It’s a battle to say what’s real and what’s marketing hogwash.” But while he admits to some cynicism, he isn’t one to sit and brood. Having built several LEED-certified houses, he lately has become interested in Passivhaus, a stricter, more prescriptive set of building standards. “We actually bought the Passivhaus [Planning Package] software,” he says. “I needed something to get excited about. I found myself asking, ‘What’s next?’” On other fronts, he recently hired a full-time energy auditor, and his next major custom home project will include both his first geothermal HVAC system and panelized walls with an insulation value of R–40. Taggart may have a 20-year head start in green building, but he remains as restless and inquisitive as ever. “I think we just have to keep getting smarter about this stuff,” he says.
Most of Jamie Wolf’s 25 years running Wolfworks, a design/build remodeling company in Avon, Conn., coincided with a long national holiday from high energy prices. “The further we got from the immediacy of that concern, the further it got from [clients’] attention,” he says. But he’s quick to point out that window technology, appliance efficiency, and building practices in general made significant strides during that period. “A bunch of stuff did trickle through,” he says. “People build better now without even knowing why.” Yet today “there are new imperatives,” he adds: “climate change and peak oil, which are on people’s minds less [right now] but will become more” of an issue if prices spike again.
Of the current green renaissance, Wolf says, “It’s the best and worst of times.” While the media focus is encouraging, he says everyone, “unfortunately, is trying to find a green angle for their product or service.” What’s more, “there’s too much emphasis on the surface: bamboo this or recycled that,” he laments. “In order of priority and significance, energy is what it’s all about.” Like Taggart, Wolf is drawn to the clarity and verifiability of the Passivhaus program. “It’s so simple,” he says: “dramatic load reduction and careful analysis of energy balance.” Wolf sees a green building less as a collection of virtuous products and more “as a machine. I like the term ‘high-performance.’ What we really need to do is engineer houses to work as high-performance systems.”
After more than 30 years of consistently focusing on energy efficiency and resource conservation, Martha’s Vineyard, Mass., builder John Abrams has a message for the many recent converts to the green way: “Welcome.” Are there bogus claims and opportunism out there? “I’m sure,” he says. “There are whenever there’s a hot topic.” But Abrams, a frequent speaker at green building seminars, believes public perceptions have crossed a watershed. Americans, jolted by volatile energy prices and economic upheaval, now understand that a fundamental shift is under way. “The next 20 years are going to be different from the last 20 years,” says Abrams, who finds the change invigorating. “When everyone jumps on the bandwagon, it’s a little annoying. But it also means a lot more people are knocking on the door. Instead of having to convince people … here they come.”
After a “cascade of postponements” last fall, Abrams’ South Mountain Co. is rebuilding its project list. Clients are calling the company’s renewable energy division in greater numbers for wind generators, solar water heating, and photovoltaics. “It’s very busy,” he says. “SMC Energy is expanding rapidly.” And the path ahead seems clear. “We’ve got 16,000 buildings on this island, and we have to fix all of them,” he says. “That’s the future of our work, really.”
South Mountain will have plenty of help with the job, of course, as more and more builders get with the program. “What I see is an industry far more ready than it was 20 or 30 years ago,” he says. With more technically competent builders and stronger government incentives, “I think we have a chance to do a much better job at this point.” Along with other grassroots veterans of the movement, Abrams will continue to spread the good, green word. “But we’re not pioneers anymore,” he says. “We’re leaders, and that’s a lot more fun.”
What’s on your mind? The editors of CUSTOM HOME want to hear from you. Send your comments and questions to Bruce D. Snider at bsnider@hanleywood.com.
