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Green Living Guidelines

Environmentally friendly building and remodeling has gone mainstream, but what does living green really mean?

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Energy Star compact fluorescent
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light. They last up to 10 times longer.

Defining Green

Good news for you, Kermit: It's not that hard being green anymore. Products claiming green status seem to be popping up all over, and support for the concept has almost become a given. In fact, the only hard part now is pinning down exactly what it means to be green.

Joyce Mason, vice-president of marketing for California's Pardee Homes, has an answer. The company built its first Energy Star home in 1998 and has built 3,000 energy-efficient houses with environmentally friendly materials since 2001. Here's this residential builder's definition of green:


  • Minimizes the use of nonrenewable energy, water, and other natural resources.
  • Provides a house with a healthy indoor environment built in a community with a healthy outdoor environment.
  • Uses products that reduce harmful effects on the environment.
  • Controls house size.
  • Designs appropriately for the climate zone.
  • Treats a house as a system of interrelated components.

The company matches products with these principles in four categories (more to follow on each):


  • Energy smart
  • Earth smart
  • Health smart
  • Water smart

Continued on page 2:  Energy-Smart Products

 

Related Links

The Better Homes and Gardens' Living Green home tour provides practical examples to help you conserve energy, live healthier, save money, and make a positive impact on the environment.

Browse this collection of classic living room designs to find inspiration for your own space, with proof that any ordinary room can become a traditional retreat.

Click through our eco-friendly collection of fashionable and functional products for the kitchen and bath.

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