One of the most effective ways to build green is to use salvaged materials. The great thing about salvage is it can be small (a piece of furniture, perhaps) or, in the case of this house, huge!
“An entire section of highway” was recycled “in the construction of its core structural center,” according to Dornob.com. More than 600,000 pounds (!!!) of recycled materials were used to create the concrete, metal and glass home that features steel beams and girders.
So where do you get a materials pile of that size? The concrete and steel elements were abandoned after Boston’s “Big Dig” project, otherwise known as the Central Artery/Tunnel Project. The main portion of the project tunneled Interstate 93 under downtown Boston in a massive road construction endeavor that went five years past schedule–and billions of dollars over budget.
This home is an ingenious example of what can happen when you use salvage materials. The concrete and steel would have otherwise been thrown away, but instead, the items live on in a more sustainable, useful environment.
What do you think of salvage on this scale? If you could, would you re-use concrete and steel to build a home?