Posts Tagged ‘Case Study’

Pouring (over) Concrete
by Robert Fortunato on April 3rd, 2011 No Comments »

Lucas’ words were ringing in my ears as the second cement truck finished unloading.  When asked what materials his Danish eco village tries to avoid, the number one item is poured concrete because of it’s high embodied energy and the fact that you can’t really recycle it.   Discarded concrete just
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Speaking of Green
by Robert Fortunato on March 21st, 2011 No Comments »

Robert was honored to speak about the GIH at the “Green Building: Legal and Regulatory Realities” conference.  It was held at the  Annenberg Community Beach House, an unbelievable public facility right on the water in Santa Monica.
The conference had an outstanding faculty.  A couple of the standout speakers were
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The GIH Won’t be Winning the $100K, But You Certainly Could!
by Robert Fortunato on March 15th, 2011 No Comments »

We didn’t feel it was fair if we entered LA County’s Home Energy Makeover Contest, but you still have 15 days to submit your entry at:  https://energyupgradeca.org/county/los_angeles/makeover_contest

Partnering with YouthBuild
by Robert Fortunato on March 14th, 2011 3 Comments »

YouthBuild is a youth and community development program that simultaneously addresses core issues facing low-income communities: housing, education, employment, crime prevention, and leadership development. In YouthBuild programs, low-income young people ages 16-24 work toward their GEDs or high school diplomas, learn job skills and serve their communities by building affordable
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Permit Issued!
by Robert Fortunato on February 24th, 2011 No Comments »

The advice and support of all the incredible people in Hermosa Beach’s Planning and Public Work’s Departments makes the impossible possible.

Robert Asked to Speak about the GIH at Upcoming Conference. Discounted Admission Available Here.
by Robert Fortunato on February 15th, 2011 No Comments »

The conference, Green Building: Legal and Regulatory Realities is on March 18, 2011 in Santa Monica, CA.  A discount of $100 off your regular tuition rate is available when you register by phone using the code “FAC101” to 206-463-4400 or 800-574-4852.
Read more about the conference here:  http://www.theseminargroup.net/brochures/11.GRNCA%20Brochure%20ni.pdf

GIH Small Wind Turbines Supported by Hermosa Beach City Council
by Robert Fortunato on February 9th, 2011 1 Comment »

Last night the Hermosa Beach City Council voted to support a reduction of the conditional use permit fee so the Green Idea House could test the viability of residential rooftop wind generation systems and report back to the city.
Obviously, we do not have the “Saudi Arabia of wind” like western
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The Art of Deconstruction
by Robert Fortunato on February 9th, 2011 2 Comments »

As the end of their useful life, most buildings in our area get demolished with a bulldozer and get scraped into a dumpster.  We certainly understand the logic.  It is currently cheaper and easier to do it that way.
Reuse and recycling is hard work.  Almost every architect and contractor we
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Getting the Lead (and asbestos) Out
by Robert Fortunato on February 9th, 2011 No Comments »

In their day, lead and asbestos were seen as miracles.  They worked very well for their intended purpose, were inexpensive and easy to manufacture.  Only later were they found to be dangerous.  What materials will be the lead and asbestos of the future?
Prior to starting demolition, we had the house
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Passing (on) Gas
by Robert Fortunato on February 9th, 2011 No Comments »

Everyone knows that burning natural gas is less harmful than other fossil fuels, but the process of shale gas drilling is certainly not natural and certainly not less harmful.  Watch this 60 minutes piece to understand how the push to extract it from the ground is contaminating drinking water and
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