[Cob] building small - (was: long response to some of Jill's

[yew]

"Everhart, Gabe" wrote:

>Then why do so many cobbers live on 
>like 5 acres of land out in the 
>woods (besides code issues)?  Doesn't 
>that just increase sprawl, and 
>require them to drive that much more, 
>increasing overall polution?

Well, from a personal (and certainly selfish) standpoint, the idea of living in 
a city makes me break out in hives.  Been there, done that...and have no urge 
to go back.

Of course, there are plenty of *good* things to be said for buying those 5 
wooded acres, too.  Around here, land stewardship is a big one.  We recently 
purchased 20 acres on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington State.  Unlike most 
of our neighbors, who think nothing of razing all the trees on their acreage 
and replanting with a monoculture of alders, we're interested in bringing our 
land back to its natural state.  We're working on removing non-native, invasive 
plants and replanting with natives (including understory plants, not just 
trees).  We avoid cutting trees for monetary profit.

The problems you speak of can be mitigated by a number of factors; for 
instance, living in an intentional community (something we're working toward).  
Cars can be shared and resources can be consolidated so that commutes are 
minimized (also, cars can be run on biodeisel or waste vegetable oil to limit 
the greenhouse gasses emitted).  The land itself can provide much of the food 
the community needs, so constant trips to the store are unnecessary.  An 
established community can also create its own sources of income, which can 
eliminate a daily commute.

Check out www.dancingrabbit.org for just a few of the possibilities.

Brina