U Weekly. Serving The Ohio State University in Columbus Ohio

Going Green in 2009

By Ida Seitter

Of all the New Year's resolutions America should make for 2009, the best may be to go green; once and for all. Although dieting and quitting smoking are also very important for America's well-being, becoming eco-friendly may be the best idea for her long-term health. Being environmentally conscious is really not a new idea, but this may be the first year America is going to be able to make this dream a reality.

As a result of the oil crisis and rising global temperatures, people are becoming more environmentally aware. Because the public is beginning to approve of environmental changes, it is almost certain the government will make conservation a bigger issue; energy as we use it may change dramatically. President-elect Barack Obama has in recent weeks proven that Americans are truly ready for an eco-friendly America by choosing former Nobel Prize winner Steven Chu as his energy secretary, a man well-known for his research in alternative and renewable energy.

According to National Public Radio, Obama also advocates the 'green job revolution', promising to spend $150 billion over the next 10 years to help aid in the development of 'green-collar jobs'. This type of change is not going to be quick; rather it will be a slow process that, over time, will ensure a more energy efficient nation.

As I sit writing this article, I can feel the wind coming in from my poorly insulated campus windows and wonder how much of my money and precious heat is being wasted. This is the main reason why I decided to track down locals that are consciously trying to make a difference in the most elementary of places: the residential home and business. I sat down with Eric Elizondo, principal architect of the environmentally conscious architectural firm EcoStudio, to find out more about what real people are doing to make our homes and buildings more efficient.

My first question when I sat down with him was the basic, "what exactly do you guys do"? He surprised me by explaining that their goal was to make buildings and homes more energy-friendly, not by using crazy sci-fi techniques, but by creating houses made better and smarter. For example, using Structurally Insulated Panels (SIPs- basically two pieces of plywood with a piece of Styrofoam sandwiched in the middle) can help increase the efficiency of your insulation by 50 percent. He advocates the use of as many recycled materials as possible, such as 'non-toxic' furniture dubbed cradle-to-cradle, which can be re-used over and over again.

At this point, he pointed across the street to Chipotle and told me the way their restaurants are designed (and we all know what a Chipotle looks like!) with exposed concrete and floor-to-ceiling windows, they inadvertently created a very efficient building. This is because concrete slabs absorb heat. So as the sun shines into the large windows, it warms the concrete which holds on to heat. The windows allow more natural light in allowing for less of a need for strong (and expensive) lighting.

Elizondo uses all of these techniques in his buildings as well, and insists that it is not only the materials you use, but also the people who build your buildings. If the people who are building your home are unskilled workers, it is more likely that knowledge of how to build a truly energy-efficient building is not as common as one may hope. He does admit that you get what you pay for, not denying the common belief shared by many who criticize the cost of making your home or office 'eco-friendly'. But he strongly believes this is one type of investment that you cannot afford to be too short-sighted, as it pays off not only for the homeowner personally, but also for generations to come.

As EcoStudio begins to release pre-planned 'green' housing designs that clients can purchase via their Web site (www.ecostudio-arch.com), it shows that something is happening. For the first time there is a real market for homes like this. Elizondo said the revolution is happening now and the public is going to make America an environmentally conscious nation.

When asked whether he believed America is behind other nations, as far as 'green' architecture goes, he responds with a somber "yes". The reason: our sense of entitlement sets us behind. He said we need to worry about our future, most importantly our children's future, and maintains we cannot repeat the past.

Homeowners are not the only ones who are beginning to look toward green architects. Our very own Ohio State University and neighboring business areas such as the Gateway are carving their own niches in the environmentally green world. OSU recently opened a new 4-H Center which prides itself for using a geothermal heating and cooling system, plumbing that uses 52 percent less water, recycled materials and a highly reflective roof. Campus has also recently begun a car-sharing program, as well as the rule requiring campus buses to run on biodiesel fuel. The new Ohio Union is also making efforts to go green, by becoming LEED certified (Leadership in Environmental Energy Design, a third party outside the federal government that heads green projects).

While deconstructing the old Ohio Union, Kurtis Foriska of the Office of Student Affairs said, "We worked with Habit for Humanity to recycle as much of the building as we could." They then sold as many materials as they could to the Built it Again Center; the money that was raised there will in turn, come back to OSU to help fund future projects. They also are trying to use as much of the old material in the new building, as they can. The old ballroom floor is being used as the flooring in the new Woody's pub. Maybe the most interesting thing they are doing is to provide a pulper in their new dining facilities, which will turn food and waste into fertilizer, as well as exploring the possibilities of turning their old cooking oil into usable biodiesel fuel.

Neighboring campus watering hole, the Gateway, is a certified Columbus green spot involved in green projects that are progressive and environmentally friendly through four main areas: recycling, going green, creating green spaces and a green street team. Inside their residential and office buildings, they provide every tenant with recycling containers that allow them to take their recyclables to a single-stream recycling compactor that is present in each of the Gateway’s buildings. According to Jerry Johnson, Director of Communication and Marketing at the Gateway, the gateway garage features approximately 100 FREE spaces for bicycle, motorcycle and scooter parking. They are planning to have High MPG spaces specifically for fuel-efficient vehicles on the first floor of the parking garage, all to encourage the use of alternative methods of travel. Most importantly, they have organized their High Street Clean & Green Team that goes out daily to remove trash that has built up on the sidewalks and properties on the east side of High Street between Chittenden and Lane Avenues. The trash collected is then used in their recycling program. The Gateway also has Clean and Green partners. The Ohio State University Undergraduate Student Government and the University Community Business Assocation are not parterns with the Gateway to make the city a little more green.

Ultimately if you can’t afford, like most of us, to go out and build a ‘green’ house or building for yourself, there are many little things you can do that help at least curb your energy use. Maybe the biggest thing most people don’t even thing about is to limit the amount of time your video game systems sit idle. According to the National Resource Defense Council, turning off machines [such as game systems] when idle could save gamers up to $100 a year. They also state the most efficient of all systems is Nintendo’s Wii. Unplugging microwaves, hair straighteners and toasters are also a good way to cut back on wasting energy, because if they are plugged in they are still using energy.

These are easy but affective ways to lower the amount of energy we waste, and it’s free. As we begin our new year, let’s start it off by changing for the better, not to only help ourselves but to help our children, and our children’s children.

Originally Published: January 14, 2009

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