| This page is an extract from 'Permaculture: A Beginners Guide' by Graham Burnett | |
| Zone '0'- At Home | |
 |
|
|
||
|
||
|
||
- Home should be the place where the heart is, where we can come back to and centre ourselves and are able to feel safe and secure, our own ‘Zone 0’. Whether a house, a cottage, a bedsit or a bender, wherever we live should be constructed and function in ways that are sustainable, energy efficient and ecologically harmonious. ... Choose locally available or renewable materials for construction; Houses which are sturdy, warm and comfortable can be built using wood, rammed earth or straw bales and have a fraction of the environmental impact of fired bricks or concrete. Site or design new buildings so that elements such as air flow, solar energy or water can be utilised as efficiently as possible in order to minimise non renewable energy inputs. ... Not all of us have the resources or opportunity to join an eco-village or build our own home, nor to carry out major retrofitting projects. In fact most of us, especially those who live in towns or cities, don’t get a great deal of choice about where we live at all. But there are still steps that we can all take to make our homes more energy efficient, less wasteful of resources and friendlier, healthier environments to be in. ... Spend some time thinking about the inputs and outputs of your house. For example, make a list of how many electrical appliances you use and how often, how much water you use in a day or the amount of rubbish that goes into your bin each week. Analyse this resource usage; how much is really necessary, how can it be reduced?