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Sustainability in its simplest terms is the ability to maintain and even promote growth of our collective assets while building and growing our businesses, our enterprises and ultimately ourselves. Sustainability has less to do with working harder and more efficiently, but rather more to do with being aware of and conscious of the ramifications of our endeavors. We all know that our decisions and our actions eventually ripple across the pond; it is inevitable.
The home building business (like many other industries) has historically been more concerned with producing a product and less concerned with the overall process. Unfortunately, the results of this "end-product" mindset is seen in the fact that most homes built anywhere across the country today, if "retrofitted" with energy saving measures, can still yield a 25% savings in utilities. How can this really be possible? It is certainly hard to believe.
It is possible because when we concentrate only on the shortest distance to an end product, we miss a host of vital nutrients founds in the soil of a more holistic process. Of course, this process sometimes involves greater investment including time, effort and finances, however, not always.
Home building offers lots of opportunities to create better, healthier, more energy efficient and less environmentally taxing buildings with a wide range of first-cost investments. Sustainability, again, is about being aware. As builders, we need to be aware of how rain travels from the ridge of our home to the footing drain. Does the water flow as planned? Do the various materials interact as designed? We need to be aware that saving our top soil is a simple yet often over looked effort. We need to be aware that dual flush toilets and compact florescent lights work great and they cut their respective usages by more than half. We need to be aware of the fact that by selecting carpet and carpet pads from companies that use recycled products, we choose to offset 50% of the energy that would normally be required to produce the same carpet and pad. Many items are easy to choose and virtually cost nothing, others require more investment.
Be a part of a solution and choose Bridgewater Innovative Builders for your next project.
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