Dan's Papers - Issue #4 - April 20, 2007

"It's not easy being green," the frog philosopher Kermit once said. A fairly pessimistic view, I feel. This season being green seems far from difficult. In fact, it seems to be all the rage. Thinking green. Building green. Green energy. Green materials. Green activism by green conscious celebrities. Green is in this spring, and what a better time than when the world itself is finally turning green after a long, grey winter?

The Hamptons Home and Garden Show is certainly in on this green trend. This is perhaps best illustrated by the show's inclusion of the Green Cottage. The Green Cottage is one of the highlights of this season's expo and is part of the eco-friendly component that this year's show carries with it. Of course being eco-friendly, in regard to homes and buildings, often entails the use of another word that frequently appears around the word "green," especially in relation to green architecture. That word is sustainability. Sustainability is a term with wide sweeping meaning that is regularly associated with environmentally sound projects. Generally speaking, sustainability can be read as the ability to prolong or to keep a being healthy. Here, the being that needs to be kept healthy and prolonged is the planet. Sustainable architecture, also known as green architecture, is interested in sustaining the environment by minimizing any damage to it, and in sustaining the building itself by powering it with sustainable, or self-renewing energy.

The Green Cottage strives to be an example of such sustainable architecture. It serves not only to applaud green design, but also demonstrates how green construction can be both realistic and of high quality. In fact, the quality of the materials used in the cottage is held at great importance, along with their durability. The idea is that the stronger the materials are, the less tampering will have to be done with them, and as a result, with the surrounding environment as well.

Many of these materials are also recycled or are recyclable. For example, the roofing is made of synthetic slate that has been composed from recycled plastic and rubber. The windows use recycled vinyl for their non-structural parts. Even the pergola, or trestle garden archway for growing vines, is made of reclaimed timbers; a literally "green pergola" covered in greens.

Other components of the Cottage involve efficiency and serve to minimize energy needs. The building shell, for example, is made of Expanded Polystyrene panels, which offer a highly effective insulated thermal barrier from the weather outside. This can cut down on energy for heating, and the cost of it too. There is also a heat-recovery-ventilation system. This supplies the house with fresh air at low energy levels. The cottage also boats a net metering photovoltaic generating system that powers the house electrically speaking.

These various components of the Cottage were installed thanks to the efforts and services of over a dozen contractors, builders and construction and housing suppliers. At the helm was architect, Anthony J. Musso, of Cold Spring Harbor. Rick Freidman, President and Founder of the Hamptons Home and Garden Show, describes the Green Cottage as "the brainchild of Mr. Musso."

The Cottage is presented by the aptly named Building Sustainable Solutions. The team provides the services it takes to go from the design of a green cottage to its front door. This includes the steps from design to construction, the incorporation of renewable products and the use of energy efficient power systems. The team's services span from indoor architecture to outside the building with eco-friendly landscape design, or "green greenery." The group can also green-up existing buildings, from commercial or residential, by renovating them to be more sustainable.

The Hamptons Home and Garden Show has other eco-friendly items and services to show off this season, as will be displayed in their GreenHampton Pavilion. So, jump on the bandwagon and be green this spring. After all, everybody's doing it. And as you get green, make getting a peek at the Green Cottage first on your list; you'll want to check it out before it is auctioned off at the expo.