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Clearing up the confusion

Sustainability

Sustainability Defined

Withstanding the test of time

A structure built with some materials which produce less CO2 than a traditional, or legacy product, or is constructed using dubious, or allegedly sustainable materials, does not make a structure itself sustainable. 

A LEED certification doesn’t make it so either. Tax credits don’t make for sustainability, although they do make getting there more financially possible, even on your own home.

Sustainability is not unlike the solution to the problems associated with the tragedy of the commons. As Jack Welch said:” Change before you have to”.

For in the final analysis, our most basic common link is that we all inhabit this small planet, we all breathe the same air, we all cherish our children’s future, and we are all mortal.

LEED standards: are we missing the mark?

Intent & execution

A building with a LEED certification that uses recycled products but needs reframed on the exterior after only seven years is not truly sustainable. We need to go beyond simply using recycled materials and focus on creating buildings that will last at least to the expected life cycle, or even the statute of repose.  

While the tax credit that comes with a LEED certification can be a valuable incentive for builders, we need to ensure that the focus remains on creating buildings that are truly sustainable, rather than just meeting the minimum requirements for certification.

I also appreciate and respect the different types of owners and business models within the multifamily community of developers and owners. Some business models may not have the same level of commitment or interest in long-term sustainability as others, and that is understandable.

In conclusion, we need to move beyond the trendy and overused term of sustainability and focus on creating truly sustainable buildings that will stand the test of time. LEED certification can be a valuable tool in this effort, but we need to ensure that it is used as a means to an end, not an end in itself.

 

back to basics

Understanding material quality

quality correlates
to material strength

While a completely wood-framed structure may be the cheapest option available today, there is no reason why it cannot be made more durable and sustainable for its lifetime.

By making better choices of materials, products, and systems designed and tested for this climate, and providing oversight to ensure proper installation and integration, we can create wood-framed structures that will stand the test of time.




Insurance & legislation: Helping or hurting?

i firmly believe its only a matter of time before the insurers finally say, enough is enough and stop insuring the structures, or making it so expensive to do so, alternatives become viable, which might not be considered today.

It is also possible that the same industry begins to pull back from insuring contractors who typically build with wood, or again, make the policies so expensive, they are unaffordable.





How Ariston Views the sustainability model

As someone who is passionate about quality buildings and long-term sustainability, I define sustainability a little differently. I look forward to the development of dynamic buildings, and what I call energy dynamic buildings, that can be self-sufficient when they need to be, generating and storing their own power and even reselling what they can't use.

In addition, there are exciting new wind wall turbines, not just propellers on a stick, that can collect wind energy, making them another dynamic component of a truly sustainable project or building.

The future of sustainability

In conclusion, there are exciting new technologies, 3D printed houses, the ability to store CO2 in  a concrete slab, dynamic, and kinetic buildings on the horizon, as well as robots to hang and finish drywall, paint, lay block and brick, and a host of other tasks.
 
But, first, we need to get a grip on building a  square box, no matter what materials, that won’t leak. We seem to have monumental problems performing the simplest of tasks. 
 

“Every construction defect is caused by a process failure; either in design or execution”

Ariston specializes in the investigation, resolution and prevention of construction related defects and ensuing damage. 

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