It Takes A Village And Some Bails

Less than 1% of all the plastic bags used in America are recycled. Millions, perhaps Billions of tons of plastic bags go into landfills every year. And what about all the paper and old clothing that isn't recycled? That goes into landfills as well. America is quickly burying us in waste paper, plastic, fabric, construction debris and more but it doesn't have to be that way. What if I could show you a way the City of Greensboro could profit from that waste instead of using mine and your tax dollars to haul it away?

What if that waste could be used to build affordable homes for America's poor and homeless?

For well over 100 years some home builders have been building great homes of straw. Not houses like you imagine when you think of the 3 Little Pigs but strong houses that are warm, cozy, inexpensive to build and look like regular houses. And did I mention that some of the world's first straw bail houses are still standing and are in excellent condition? The Red Feather Development Group has been successfully solving the problems of homelessness on Indian Reservations since 1984, why can't Greensboro do the same?

"Pilgrim Holiness church was built by the churchless and penniless congregation in 1928 with rye straw bales donated by a local rancher and church member. The roof spans twenty-eight feet onto its load-bearing walls. Note the treeless terrain." More at The Last Straw

Did I mention straw bail houses withstand earthquakes, hurricanes and tornadoes better than conventional brick homes? Did I mention they're less costly to heat and cool and are among the most energy efficient houses in the world today? Imagine owning a home that is environmentally friendly, cheaper to build, stronger and able to outlast conventional houses with walls almost 2 feet thick to keep out anything you don't want inside including most of the sounds of traffic. Bail houses are among the quietest houses known to man.



A straw house built in Nebraska in 1928 that remains in use today.

Now imagine if that house was made not from straw but from stuff that goes into landfills-- plastics, paper, old clothing, scrap wood, Styrofoam, household plastics and almost anything else you can think of. Even waxed cardboard and old pizza boxes that aren't currently being accepted for recycling could be used in bail construction. Straw is proven to last over 100 years, plastic will last 10,000 years. Imagine villages built of bails of scrap that look like regular houses. Imagine people building their own houses, barns and stores, tending gardens and gathering fresh eggs from their own chickens and running their own businesses. Imagine roof top gardens that put healthy food on the table and oxygen back into the air.

There are thousands of bail houses in the world today in every climate imaginable.

Inside Carolyn Roberts' straw bail house which, by the way, has an earthen floor. While I know of no earthen floor houses in Greensboro I do know of one 3 story historic Greensboro house with rammed earth basement walls located near UNCG. Perhaps there are more.

Imagine that village with its own environmentally friendly factory making affordable vehicles that get 200 miles per gallon of gasoline. Imagine those vehicles being made from recycled materials. Imagine the taxpayers not having to foot the bill and money in the pockets of people who are sleeping outside tonight. As long as we have people walking the Earth we will have trash, why not build something good?

There is nothing complicated about bail construction-- anyone can learn it, any healthy adult can do it. Bails are heavy but they are cheap and easy to make-- farmers have been making bails for well over 100 years. Bailing machines are everywhere and can even be rented. Let 'em turn straw into Ethanol, we can build with trash.

Remember: Just because it has never been done does not mean it can't be done. Prior to 1968 the world thought Americans on the moon was impossible so what's so hard about building a village and bettering the lives of Greensboro's poor and homeless?

And the 200 mile per gallon affordable vehicles-- I drive one most every day.

References: Rural Studio Projects, Auburn University cardboard house.