Cob: Re: cob walkways- use lime

[Don Stephens]

Hi, Charmaine!

On Mon, 1 Nov 1999, you wrote: 

> .......don't know about cob alone, especially if subjected to rain, but
> DO know that lime and clay/ together will make a very hard stabilized
> earth walkway that will last...

Or floors?  

> .....Also lime/eart/soil combination has been used in Australia as
> foundation pad for entire houeses, roads and streets, so it  can
> support weight...

What is meant by "earth" and "soil"?  <<G>> These are very unspecific
terms - I'm used to dealing with catagories like "clay", "silt", "sand",
"humus", etc., or mixes of these.

( ...I have a multi page report on what they did...

Is there a way to access it?  I have a client couple building a
demonstration ecohome to be open free to the public monthly or so and they
will be wanting to show options for driveway, paths and floors.  Their
weather-exposed answers so far have largely depended on some cement added
to their 30/70 clay/sand onsite soil in about 1 to 4 or 5 mixes, but
they'd be thrilled to show you could also forgo this energy-hogging,
greenhouse-gas-producing product.

On the other hand, what eco-drawbacks are there to lime?  What escapes
into the air during its mining, processing and hydrating? (and would one
get even better results with hot lime?) Is it as energy-intensive as
cement?  Where is it produced for use in various regions of the US, with
how much transport energy consumption, typically?  And what harm, if any,
is caused when it's used in on-earth applications like paths?  Does bad
stuff leach down to harm plant roots and water tables?  Perhaps this has
already been discussed on the lists, while I was off-line and up to my
ears in design projects and overlooked it. If so, sorry, but perhaps a
reitteration would be beneficial anyway, or reply off-list, if you wish. 
Thanx....Don

P.S. enjoyed your site pages on Cobwood - good stuff.  How does one learn
more about differences between Agstone and Cobwood?