European Energy Conservation and American Green Building Design
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by: hugatree
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Word Count: 504
Every day, it seems like citizens and governments all over the world are becoming increasingly aware of the need to conserve. And even though the United States is doing more every day to conserve energy, Americans are still a step behind in the energy conservation movement. Many countries, especially European countries, have been the frontrunners in conserving energy and using green home building for decades.
European Energy Consciousness
Europe is at the forefront of the green movement, including green home design... and with good reason. Because on the continent, gasoline, natural gases, and energy costs significantly more than it does in America, and it has been that way for many years. And of course this makes Europe more aware of energy and power usage than the U.S.. This is seen in European culture in a lot of ways.
A big thing that separates Europe from the U.S. in energy conservation is a massive network of railroads and other forms of public transport. In addition to mass transit in essentially every major European city, the continent also boasts a well utilized long distance passenger rail service. And even though there are plenty of individually owned vehicles in European countries, most cities in Europe boast a higher percentage of mass transit users (and bicycle riders) than the United States.
Europeans also build their homes with energy conservation in mind. In Europe (especially in larger cities), they use green home building in a very practical, widespread, and simplistic way. Most city dwellers live in apartments with far less square footage than American homes. In addition, most European houses, apartments, and businesses use simple green home building ideas to keep their spaces cool in summer instead of the air conditioning so common in the U.S. They use simple ideas, such as rolling black out screens, roll out terrace shades, double paned windows, etc., to cool or heat their homes.
Green Home Building in America
Essentially, Europeans have been remembering to turn the lights out when they leave a room for years. In the U.S., people are just getting used to not seeing energy as something that will always be inexpensive and easily available, and are slowly developing a better instinct for conservation. This changing mindset is evidenced by the increasing popularity of green home building.
Green home building and design uses concepts, such as smaller home size, basic insulation, and position to the sun to conserve energy, as well as alternative energy technology (such as solar power) to provide power to homes. More long term, in depth ideas are also used in green home building in America, such as using renewable materials and environmentally friendly building processes. The United States may be behind Europe when it comes to energy conservation, but green home building looks like a much needed step in the right direction. Similar References Submit rss -- Green home construction --
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