The Healthy Home: A Virtual Walk-Through

West Coast Green Residential Green Building Conference & Expo
Sept. 25–27, San Jose, CA
The Healthy Home: A Virtual Walk-Through

Join a conversation between Mary Cordaro, environmental consultant and certified Bau-Biologist, and author Jennifer Roberts, as they take you on a virtual walk-through of Cordaro’s own healthy home. Using video clips, they will show her ongoing “lab,” a 1950s Southern Californian house that she has been renovating over the past 18 years using principles that integrate Bau-Biologie and building science. In the process, they will highlight fundamental strategies for identifying and remediating common home-health problems.

After the talk, Jennifer will be signing copies of her three books, Good Green Homes, Good Green Kitchens and Redux. Find out more on the Events page.

Radon from Granite Countertops?

The New York Times today published an article, “What’s Lurking in Your Countertop?,” about the possibility of radon emissions from granite countertops.

Here’s what I wrote about the issue in Good Green Kitchens:

Radon and Stone

Radon is a colorless, odorless, radioactive gas derived from the natural decay of uranium in soil, rocks, and water. According to the U.S. Surgeon General, radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer in the United States.

Radon is virtually always present at very low levels in outside air; it’s really only considered a health problem if it accumulates at high levels inside buildings. Although it is more prevalent in some regions than others, the U.S. EPA recommends that all homes below the third floor be tested for radon.

Can granite counters or other natural-stone materials used inside buildings emit enough radon to cause concern?

National Geographic’s The Green Guide

I served on the advisory board for National Geographic’s recently published book, Green Guide: The Complete Reference for Consuming Wisely. It’s filled with practical advice about greener living, from healthy eating to green remodeling to eco-friendly travel. Check it out on Amazon.com.

Multifamily Green Building Guidelines

Multifamily Green Building Guidelines

If you design, build, develop or own multifamily residential buildings in California, check out the 2008 edition of the Multifamily Green Building Guidelines. Just released by StopWaste.Org, the Guidelines provide comprehensive technical information about how to build and retrofit multifamily green buildings. The Guidelines were originally released in 2004; this new edition has been thoroughly updated to reflect advances in green building practices and products.

I served as the editor of this 242-page book, the nation’s most comprehensive source of information about multifamily green buildings. You can download an electronic copy for free at www.StopWaste.org  or you can buy a hard copy at www.BuildItGreen.org.

Green Rehab Guide available

If you own or manage multifamily residential buildings, you’ll benefit from the new resource guide, Green Rehabilitation of Multifamily Rental Properties. It’s available to download for free from Bay Area Local Initiative Support Corp. (LISC), or you can buy a hard copy for $20.

I served as the editor of this Green Rehab guide. It’s filled with cost-effective tips and strategies for making multifamily rental buildings more energy efficient and healthy.

Good Riddance to Formaldehyde

California’s Air Resources Board (CARB) adopted regulations in April 2007 that will reduce formaldehyde emissions from particleboard, hardwood plywood and medium density fiberboard (MDF) sold in California. Formaldehyde is routinely used as a binder in these products and many other building materials and furnishings. 

Recommended: Healthy Building Network

This watchdog group for environmental health and justice takes on industry and government over PVC, formaldehyde and other common but potentially toxic building materials. Find out what’s wrong with these materials and how you can make safer choices at healthybuilding.net.

 

The Healthy Kitchen

I’ll let you in on a secret. You can ignore all my advice about green building and still have a good green kitchen. What’s paramount is to use your kitchen to prepare delicious, healthy food and serve it with love.

At its core, the green-building movement is about taking care of ourselves, each other and the environment. When greening the kitchen, where better to start than with what we eat?

Architect: Actual-Size Architecture. Photo: Linda Svendsen for Good Green Kitchens.

There are many paths to eating well, of course. Grow some of your own food, if you have the desire and opportunity. Buy locally grown food at farmers markets or from community-supported agriculture groups.

Choose organically grown food; you’ll safeguard your health and that of farmworkers, and help keep pollutants out of the soil, air and waterways.

Eating lower on the food chain also eases the burden on our bodies and the environment.

As much as I’m an advocate for green building practices, if you can make only one change toward a greener kitchen, my advice is to pay attention to cooking and eating for a healthier body and a healthier planet.

Beyond eating well there are plenty of steps you can take to create a healthier kitchen. Here are a few suggestions: