After Ana

Did anyone catch the story on 60 Minutes last Sunday night? It was all about building sustainably with ‘Earthships‘ as a prime example of how to reuse water and sewage, make electricity an insulate with used and natural materials. These homes are built out of used tires filled with rammed earth and stacked like bricks to form very thick walls, which are later rendered with mud then finally concrete. I’ve also seen them finished with stone, which looks incredible.

When I first came across the Earthship concept (years ago in an architechtural book - one of the thousands I’ve read, absolutely LOVE those books), the main thing that I liked was the simplicity. Using recycled materials and earth excavated from the building site was environmentally conscious, cost effective and low tech. You can even go to workshops to learn in a few weeks how to build one of your own. Recycled glass bottles and cans are used to fill the spaces in walls to reduce the carbon footprint created by the concrete used, creating a honeycomb structure while adding light, pattern and colour to the design.

They also did a story about the new Eco Village in Currumbin Valley, which use rammed earth walls, grey-water recycling, water tanks, natural building materials and have a no air-conditioning policy. The buildings are all positioned to take advantage of solar gain and stay warm in Winter, cool in Summer.

My gripe is that for the average Jo Bloke, we can’t afford to build this way! When I was researching the Earthship, it is mentioned on their website that they cost the same amount to build as a conventional home, but are off the grid with their own power, sewage and water. In the long term this would save a lot of money, but considering that most of the materials are recycled or free where is the cost? Obviously there are a lot of labour costs, but inexperience, lack of understanding and endless council fees are the culprit no doubt! Why aren’t governments subsidising traditional eco-friendly building techniques? Why is there such a great lack of knowledge, where is the education!! As for ‘eco villages’ these are categorised as part of the ‘designer’ sector of the market. You pay through the nose for the privilege of owning a responsible home! Perhaps these homes are targeted towards the guilt-ridded gourmet consumer yuppies or the cashed up baby boomers? Who else can afford it?

Low cost, responsible, simple and traditional forms of housing should be easily accessible to all people. These types of buildings could be used to quickly build strong and safe shelters for disaster relief, impoverished communities and families struggling to pay their bills, held hostage to the rental system. All the while cleaning up potential landfill!

I have always dreamed of living off the land and the ‘grid’, growing my own foods and being completely self reliant. In this current global climate of uncertainty, why not make our homes like pods, no matter if the power goes down, mains get cut off and food becomes scarce. At the moment I live in a standard brick and tile low-set home in suburbia. We have a stifling mortgage and constant utility bills to pay. I’m hoping to soon be able to sell and build our dream eco home, either by utilising traditional building methods, pre-fabrication or retro-fitting an existing home with grey water recycling, water tanks, insulation, food crops and gardens, solar panels and sewage recycling.

I want to start living responsibly, so that I can stand up at the end of the days and say: I respect the earth and it’s future, I nurtured and nourished my children, I learned to tread a little softer on the earth.

About the Author...

I've finally overcome my destructive eating habits by learning to accept myself, applying the WAPF nutritional principles daily. I'm now at a stable, healthy, slim weight, have lots of energy and no more guilt. I've been happily married for 7 years and am a graphic designer. In the near future I'm hoping to start a nutritional course and start practicing as a qualified nutritionist. At the moment it's all self education.