I’ve written extensively about energy efficiency and benefits to the environment associated with green building in this blog. Another advantage of building green is its health benefits. I read a recent statistic that I found very interesting and hope you will, too: A survey conducted by the Robert Charles Lesser & Co. found that 42 percent of buyers would be motivated to purchase a green home based on its health benefits. Only 17 percent said they would purchase green for energy savings and 12 percent said they would do so for the environment.
One group that understands how important it is to create healthy homes is the National Center for Healthy Housing (NCHH). It is the only national organization “dedicated exclusively to creating healthy and safe homes for America’s children through practical and proven steps.” NCHH and its partner, Ecohealth™ Homes, are developing a “healthy modular housing” initiative in 5 communities to increase the adoption of the Ecohealth™ building principles throughout the modular home industry. In addition, the initiative will offer healthy housing training for the builders of the homes. These projects will follow NCHH’s 7 principles of healthy housing, which are intended to save lives and money. Healthy homes should be: dry, clean, pest-free, safe, contaminant-free, properly ventilated and well-maintained. The initiative’s goal is to “show that with only a minor increase in expense, green and healthy building principles can be incorporated into modular housing using an integrated design process.” Visit Ecohealth Homes for more information.
Credit: Ecohealth Homes
