Green Architecture and Bau-biologie
Brian O Brien-Source Book 2000

Building greenly in Ireland is a unique adventure, the things that drive green builders mad elsewhere, hurricanes and termites do not exist here, yet simple things, humidity and moderate temperatures make building greenly here complicated. Many green construction techniques are applicable here. Most are updated versions of traditional techniques which start by mixing clay and straw together in some kind of frame. strength.

Cob, Wattle and daub and techniques based on the German 'light clay' and 'straw clay' are enjoying renewed popularity all over the world. Rammed earth and PISE (spraying the mix onto a half mold) is also popular abroad and doable here. Of course building with wood, whether milled or 'green' is potentially the most effective green building technique if sourced from a sustainably managed plantation. Straw bale building, using the bales as large building blocks, is now being done in Ireland. While conditions here make it a little less ideal than abroad it is still attractive given that it is renewable, highly insulative, natural and encourages group self-building.

Portland cement is responsible for almost 10% of the carbon problem in the atmosphere so avoiding it by using lime or other binders is advisable. Green building is of course also doable in large urban settings and the environmental benefits of doing it on urban scale are great.

Energy and Resources
In Ireland passive solar design is the basic tried and true approach to modern green building. Careful sizing and orientation of windows and walls to provide high levels of insulation (probably the single most important thing to get right) can save a lot of energy. Solar panels that create heat as hot water or air are already in widespread use in this country. PV solar panels that create electricity (hundreds of meters of which have been installed in the UK)are also very feasible technically but because of pricing structures here take a long time to pay back. Wind, small scale hydro, and biomass systems can also be used.

If renewable energy sources are not being used it is vital to design a system that maximises the efficiency of whatever fuel is being used. Gas is far more sustainable then electricity if the power station and its performance is taken into account. Also of course, and especially in larger scale or commercial buildings, care must be taken to avoid overheating and counter-productive solar gain by shading the building facade using shades, shutters or foliage, especially in summer.

All walls should be designed to act as a 'third skin' preserving our connection to the environment. Breathing walls, whose use is on the increase in Ireland and the UK is really a 'sweating' construction allowing the passage of moisture but not air is compatible with an energy efficient strategy and is very beneficial to our health.

Remember that saving energy saves money, a benefit that will increase as electricity charges rise and carbon fines are introduced to help us meet our Kyoto targets. Also of course, since most energy in use now produces pollution, switching to renewable sources doubly benefits the environment.

Bau-Biologie
The use of healthy and sustainable materials in healthy buildings

Conventional building materials are very problematic, being predominantly made from synthetic compounds(up to 75% of a typical building's make-up)they mean our homes and workplaces are unhealthy and increasingly lethal to the environment. Some (including the dioxins associated with PVC, asbestos etc) are defined as known carcinogens.
These materials are almost all oil based and as such require massive amounts of energy (and create massive amounts of pollution) in construction. The most important choice from an environmental point of view is the question of: how much energy (embodied energy) goes in to the mining, processing, transporting and use of the material. Next we have to consider the durability of the building and what will happen to the material after its reaches the end of its life. While designing to be as durable as possible is the best approach, assuming some flexibility is also advisable. The choices are complicated, steel for instance has a higher embodied energy than concrete but at the end of 80 years its safe to assume it will be reused it (because it is so valuable) without the need to reprocess it, concrete on the other hand will almost certainly be ground up and 'down cycled' to become gravel so that the energy invested in it is lost. The question of transport and how far the material has to be transported is also important.

In terms of health the aim is create spaces where we are exposed to only natural materials as we eat live and sleep. The materials used in a building affect the quality of the air in it. Artificial finishes to walls floors and furniture give rise to asthma, allergies and debilities such as Sick Building Syndrome and Chemical Sensitivity, not surprising since we now spend almost 90% of our time indoors being exposed to them. The formaldehyde that holds most plywood and laminated boards together, and many of the ingredients in conventional paints are volatile and seep out of the walls, furniture and floors over a long time. Using organic or water based finishes, avoiding preservatives and products that use binders and synthetic glues helps. Ensuring generous ventilation even where 'tight' over over 'breathing' construction is favoured is essential also. Another case for concern is the effect of electromagnetic fields. Sensitive people (the old, young and ill, those that spend a large part of their time in the same position) are susceptible to these and a good green building should design these affects out.

A healthy interior environment will combine a 'radiant' heat regime with high levels of negative ions and a healthy palette of colours, textures and aromas. We must be as health conscious for oursel;ves as we are for the environment with our buildings and we must do this by 'thinking like Nature' in all design decisions.