eNewsletter July/August 2008
Ecospecifier and Four Walls and A Roof(FWR) launch the Build Green Education and Training Resource
In June, Ecospecifier and Four Walls and A Roof released the 'Build Green' Program. Build Green is designed to provide flexible, in-house and/or facilitated building materials, lifecycle analysis, and sustainable building practices education and training.
Build Green builds on the vast amount of information and research that has been compiled over the years by the team at Ecospecifier. The Program builds on Ecospecifier's successful seminar series presented over the last two years. Build Green is the first in a long line of services/products that will be released by ES/FWR over the coming months. Please contact us for more information on the Build Green Program and/or your Education and Training requirements.
James Brockhurst, The Good Guys leading the way in sustainable business initiatives
James Brockhurst, The Good Guys has been leading the way over the past 5 years in the development of more sustainable business practicies. Located in Capalaba, Brisbane, the Team at The Good Guys have been working hard to implement innovative energy, water, and resource effiicient business practices and public education. Thus far, they have been very successful, having been, for example, recognised twice in the last three years as Finalists in the EPA's Sustainable Industries Awards.
Earlier in 2008, The Good Guys decided that they wanted to take the next step towards a more sustainable business and wider community. Plans were put into action for a refit of the store and the development of a staff training program in more sustainable business practicies. In June, Four Walls and A Roof officially came on board as The Good Guys 'Sustainability Coach' (Thanks for the title James!).
We are assisting James and his Team to develop a business-wide model for sustainable practices and operations that stretchs across their and their stakeholders businesses, including impacts upon their supply chain, waste, energy, water, community, and staff. Our intial goals are to develop Australia's first Electrical Retailers Sustainability Manual and Training Guide and to utilise the refit store environment to drive both in-house and community change towards a more sustainable future. We have already held meetings with suppliers of The Good Guys products (e.g. Sony, Sunbeam, HP, etc.) to outline our innitatives and gain early support from these key stakeholders.
We are pretty excited to be working with such a forward thinking business Team. Please, contact us with any questions about this project.
eHabitat architecturally designed, modular housing now available in QLD/NSW
We can't really say enough about the exciting launch of ehabitat architecually designed, modular housing in Queensland and New South Wales!
ehabitat housing has been around for three years and has many projects completed and on the go in Tasmania and Victoria. In a newly formed strategic partnership, FWR are bringing ehabitat to the northern states of Australia and already have a few exciting projects ready to go.
In early-June, Mike Duggan toured across Tasmania visiting the headquarters for ehabitat, building sites, completed projects, and meeting with builders. Kim and Giles Newstead, the Directors of ehabitat, were wonderful hosts and Mike received both a very good look at the inner workings of the ehabitat building system and tour of the local countryside from Launceston down to Hobart. Keep your ears and eyes peeled for big things from FWR and ehabitat in the coming 6 months.
To find out more about ehabitat, please visit our Eco-Friendly Homes resource page. Or contact us.
Green ICT launched in Australia
June saw the launch of an innovative new initiative in the information and computing technology industry. GreenICT was the brianchild of Homepage Development owner Sue Lund. GreenICT was born via Homepage Development's participation in FWR's Ecofacts Program and will extend Sue and her Team's committment to more sustainable business practicies and industry change.
To find out more about GreenICT, please visit the GreenICT website.
Fox Gully RestorationProject releases annual report
Fox Gully is located in the Toohey Forest, Mt. Gravatt, Brisbane. Fox Gully is one of the key wildlife corridors through residential areas on the southern slope of Mt.Gravatt and was identified in 2005 for restoration efforts to cope with the damage occuring at the top end of the gully catchment area.
In June the Fox Gully Bushcare Group released their Restoration Report. The Bushcare Group is associated with the Mt.Gravatt Environment Group and is supported by Brisbane City Council.
Four Walls and A Roof are involved in the restoration project and are providing support through the provision of volunteer time 'in the bush' helping to bring balance back to the natural environment found throughout this beautiful pocket of the Toohey Forest. If you would like to be involved in the restoration efforts, please contact us to find out more.
AMCER ‘Pressed Earth Bricks' feature
For many years building has incorporated the use of earth. Only in modern times (the last 100 years) have we reduced the widespread use of earth in our palette of building materials. However, recently with a push towards reducing our carbon footprint and more sustainable building practices we are rediscovering the brilliant product that earth really is.
Building with earth doesn't mean you have to live in a clay house or a mud shack, unless of course you want too. I've spent the night in a mud hut in a winter weathered Southern Ontario (Canada) and kept toasty warm. Buildings that comprise the use of earth can boast that they have low embodied energy, high thermal mass, excellent sound reduction and some humidity control properties. They also offer significant energy savings in climates subject to wide temperature fluctuations. Plus, earth is practical to use and cost effective...you can find it pretty well anywhere, although some types of earth are better for building with then others.
AMCER earth bricks are made from blended and screened local soils pressed at optimum moisture content and pressure to achieve a consistent, strong and durable product. The bricks are 385 mm long by 85 mm high (400 x 100 clayed with 15mm mortar joints), 250 mm wide which is the wall thickness. The reduced height compared to the traditional brick (Eltham style) keeps the dry weight down to around 15kgs and require 25 bricks to square metre of wall. The consistency in the size of the bricks makes it possible to use the thinner (15 mm) mortar joints which require less mortar mix and a greater height can be reached in a day with less shrinkage or subsidence. All this equals up to less material used and used in an efficient manner in order to promote 'low-waste' building practices.
AMCER EARTH BUILDING TECHNOLOGY is an Australian Business based in Melbourne and is involved in the following aspects of earth building: Production and supply of Pressed Earth Bricks, Supply of Earth Building accessories, Manufacture and supply of Earth Building related machinery, Research and Development , Earth Building workshops, training and consultation , and Earth Building Design.
Please visit the AMCER Earth Building Website for more information.
Canadian Tire ‘Solar' Story…check you warranty before you buy!
We couldn't help but share a story we heard recently. With so much in the news at the moment about the hazards of greenwash and the false claims of many supposed 'green' products and services this story really resonated with the FWR Team.
When Mike Duggan was in Canada visiting family and friends, he had the opportunity to catch up with a schoolmate, Brian,that owns an electrical contracting company. After the customary 'catch up' and a frosty beverage or two, Brian started to chat about his interest in adding solar electricity and hot water as a major part of his business. Brian's company is located in small-town, rural Southern Ontario (Canada) and the market isn't exactly 'eco-savvy' or flush with cash.
It seems that Brian had recently seen more interest in solar being brought up by his clients and he recently completed a job that came from a pretty unfortunate and mind-blowing occurrence. To make a long story short, Brian's client purchased a 50watt transportable solar power system from Canadian Tire (think Bunnings, but selling snowblowers and shovels). This system was purchased to use as a power source for the client's mobile home. After about 8 months use, Brian's client had some problems with the system and decided to disconnect it and have maintenance completed on it. When he tried to take the system off of the roof of his mobile home it crumbled in his hands and practically 'went to dust'.
Brian's client brought the remains of the system back to Canadian Tire and after some discussion and a review of the warranty, which was 2 years, Canadian Tire refused to provide a refund, maintenance, or new system (not that Brian's client wanted another self-destructing system). Now here's the kicker...stated in small print in the warranty were words to the effect that 'the warranty for the solar system was null and void if used outdoors'. Let me recap the most important four words in the warranty (remembering this was a solar PV System)...'void if used outdoors'.
The motto of the story? You guessed it, check your warranty. Greenwashing takes many forms and this is an example of both bad business in general and the greenwashing that occurs when business just wants to cash in on a new trend. Keep your eyes peeled for the cons out there, unfortunately they exist in all industries including those that are supposed to be driven by some aspects of a social and environmental conscious.
Greenfest Update
Greenfest is fast approaching (October 10 -12)! Greenfest was recently featured on channel 7 highlighting the official media release of the event. Lord Mayor of Brisbane, Campbell Newman opened the event and guests and on-lookers were treated to some great live music and their first tastes of 'a place for fresh energy' that will be on display at Greenfest. Check out the Channel 7 coverage of the event here.
Greenfest Exhibitor bookings are still open, however, only for a limited time. Get in quick to be a part of it all. FWR are strategic partners in the development and implementation of Greenfest. Throughout the weekend we will be hosting speaking events, product/service display sessions, and presenting a talk on Green Business at the Speakers Event. We are already looking forward to an awesome three days in October. Make sure to drop in and join us us for what promises to be a stellar event.
See the Greenfest website for more information.
