THE PEOPLE, HOMES AND ORGANIZATIONS in this book show that creating a home can mean so much more than moving into a nondescript vinyl box in the suburbs. Across the nation, these people and many, many more are showcasing alternatives to the standard housing model. These people reject the standard model, and they forge a new path toward homeownership.Amazingly, they have all done it with little to no debt, creating affordable, unique homes and reusing waste in the process.
We send millions of pounds of demolition waste to the landfill every year.Our standard model today is the laziest and most wasteful possible model — completely demolishing homes with perfectly reusable, high-quality materials inside and adding them to giant mounds of waste around the world. We must change this model.
In this book, I hoped to explore some of the many options for reusing high-quality building materials. Whether the materials are lovingly collected one at a time in towns all over one county in Alabama or delivered by the truckload to a warehouse in Texas, we know they can be put to good use because good people all over the place are already doing it. Though many organizations are attempting to bring attention to this subject, it will require a change in protocol throughout the construction/deconstruction industry to truly change the status quo.
Many models exist that show how we could institutionalize the dismantling of buildings and the repurposing of the materials inside. The examples in this book are far from exhaustive. Everywhere across the nation, individuals make the choice to deconstruct buildings responsibly, to recycle the supplies within, to gather used items rather than buying new. We all should be doing things their way.
Though all recycling is valuable, recycling housing materials offers more than just waste reduction; it offers the almost incalculable value of providing affordable homes in cities across the nation. Reusing housing materials can positively affect our economy. It can positively affect our communities. It can be a key tool in providing high-quality, healthy and affordable housing to the many families and individuals in need. As countless studies show, more healthy homes and invested homeowners means more community engagement. Less crime. Healthier kids. Improved graduation rates.
The tide is turning toward reuse. Executive Order 13514, signed by President Obama in October 2009, requires that all federal agencies divert at least 50 percent of their non-hazardous solid waste by the end of 2015. We need this law to apply to every structure in the United States. There is much we can do to implement change in this arena. Contact your local government agencies in charge of waste management and ask about their deconstruction reuse efforts. Find out if you can help or get involved, and help spread the word about deconstruction options in your community. Habitat for Humanity ReStores nationwide accept used building materials then resell them. Consider volunteering. Get your local government to care about reuse. Get your state government to care. Or go out and collect some salvage and build your own house. You’ll get a home out of it.