Workshop synopsis, part 2
From: Eric Hart (harteFree-Net.Mpls-StPaul.MN.US)
Date: Thu, 22 Dec 94 23:39 CST
This is part 2 of a synopsis of workshops held by the Riverside community 
during the spring and summer of 1994.  The Riverside community is working on a 
site
design for their rural site 11 miles north of Menonomie, Wisconsin.  They
own a total of 250 acres but will only develop a tiny fraction of that. 
They are a cohousing/ecological community that wants to incorporate many
ecological design principles into their site design.  Thus over the last
spring and summer we had workshops on alternative/appropriate technologies
which they wanted to consider having in their community.  Eric Hart, the
planning consultant, compiled this information for future use and prepared
the synopsis. The architect for this project is Rick Peterson, who has
worked with appropriate and alternative technologies for 15 years. 
Neither Eric or Rick are members of the community. Most of the group lives
in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metropolitan area currently and will relocate
to the site when their dwelling is complete. 

______________________________________

[Workshop text continued] 

Soil Geology and Wastewater Systems, May 24, 1994:
 
        The soils on the site are generally shallow and poor.  Only one
area has deep enough soils to allow for septic systems and many areas of
the site are not suited for septic systems.  Some of the soil is so
shallow that basements may have to be carved out of bedrock.  Most likely
a septic system could be engineered on most areas of the site.  The lack
of good sites for a septic system could, however, impact the location of
the development if a septic system was used.  The state requires that one
of three systems be used for private sewage disposal:  septic tank and
drain field, holding tank, or a mound system.  A holding tank would be the
easiest route to go.  The amount of land needed for a septic tank and
drain field system would be large but not prohibitive.  The state rules
allow for experimental systems so any alternative systems you propose will
be considered.  Septic tank and field systems were explained and then a
presentation was made on alternative systems.  Greywater systems divert
the water from sinks and other non-infectious water from the wastewater
system and purifies it for use on plants or to recycle through the house. 
This is a generally accepted type of system and could be used with any
wastewater treatment scheme.  Blackwater systems actually treat infectious
waste and produce useful byproducts rather than just separating and
storing or releasing the waste as conventional systems do.  A Biogas pit
has been developed in China that kills all of the harmful bacteria and
breaks down the waste into a useful tea like fertilizer and methane gas. 
Rick Peterson has patented a digester system that consists of a holding
tank, digester, and aeration tank.  The water from the digester can be
used as fertilizer.  This water could be integrated into a series of
greenhouses and hydroponic gardens that connect the units in the
development. 
        A greywater system was agreed upon and the various merits of
conventional vs. alternative systems were debated.  The possibility was
left open that composting toilets could be used in some of the units along
with the community wide wastewater treatment system.  No one opposes a
centralized treatment system although there was not consensus on
exclusively using a centralized system (without composting toilets). 

District Heating Systems, June 21, 1994: 

        This workshop explored the use of heat pumps in a community wide
heating system.  Heat pumps can use the air, earth, or water to draw heat
out of.  Water is the most efficient of these since it stores the largest
amount of heat.  Coils are placed in the ground or on the bottom of a pond
that draw heat from the source.  The heat pump extracts this heat and
places it in the heating system.  A district heating system would consist
of a pond, a heat pump, a holding tank, pumps, and a series of pipes that
would distribute the hot water (for infloor heating) to all of the units. 
A utility conduit would pass through all the units below ground that would
have the heating pipes as well as other utility lines.  The pond would
have recreational and habitat uses as well.  The pond can be covered with
a plastic film which raises the temperature of the pond very high and
allows electricity to be generated from the water using special engines. 
If all of the units in the development are to be tied to the district
heating system, then this has an impact on the density of the development. 
The more spread out the development, the more it will cost to run these
utilities to each unit.  The denser the development, the cheaper the
district utility system will be.  

Community Design Preferences, July 19, 1994:
 
        This workshop explored various ways that the development might be
laid out.  After analyzing and exploring three models; four corners,
circle, and clusters, a compromise design was developed.  This consisted
of a bow type design with the common house in the middle of the bow,
facing south and with a good easterly view.  The pond would be south of
the common house.  A fairly strong consensus was reached by those present
on this design.  This design would most likely be placed on the south side
of the hill east of the existing house.  The common house would be on top
of the hill and the development might infringe upon the forest.  Most
people wanted to avoid taking any trees if the development could be placed
in the open fields on the hill.  No agreement was reached as to where the
commercial area(s) would be in this design.  

Field Trip, July 30, 1994: 

        This field trip was to Roald Gunderson's house and to the Rutters
greenhouse.  Roald has used several alternative construction techniques
including hay bale insulation and natural, unprocessed tree trunks and
branches.  He gave a short demonstration on hay bale construction. 
Basically the hay bales can be used for walls (and insulation) or they can
be used for insulation.  When used as insulation a modified balloon frame
construction is used with hay bales as insulation.  When using hay bales
as weight bearing walls they need to be held together by a large stake. 
Using hay bales as insulation is perfectly acceptable to building
inspectors and is a cheap way to super insulate a house.  Stucco can be
directly applied to the outside of the bales.  On the interior, a vapor
barrier needs to be placed on the hay and then the finish can be applied
over that.  Stucco can be used by utilizing a metal lath which the stucco
is affixed to.  The stucco will not adhere to the vapor barrier.  There is
enthusiasm for using this construction technique among the group.  The
trip to the Rutters greenhouse gave us an idea of how a solar greenhouse
worked and ways it might be incorporated into individuals houses.  The
greenhouse also utilized wind and solar power. 












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