Going Green In Elmhurst
One of the things I love about Public Radio is the diverse amount of programming that it delivers on a daily basis. I had the distinct pleasure of catching a segment on yesterday's Chicago Public Radio's show, Worldview, which visited an amazing sustainable home in Elmhurst, Illinois that has me really excited!
Ben and Marcus realized that the wasted water that runs-off of the paved and sodded suburban landscape is not just a precious commodity lost, it's also impacting ecosystems like the Salt Creek in a devastating way. Chicago, like many cities, wastes more than 20 billion gallons of groundwater yearly. Therefore, Ben and Marcus decided to make a change at home to do their part to save water from going down the drain.
As part Chicago Matters: Growing Forward series, Worldview host, Jerome McDonnell visited their Elmhurst home that’s been redesigned to prevent water run-off. Here's how Worldview describes the home:
For many homeowners wanting to make their houses more environmentally friendly, energy efficiency is often the first step. But for Ben Rush and his tenant Marcus de la Fleur, a green home is one that doesn’t waste water. Marcus is a landscape architect. In order to reduce water run-off he and Ben tore up the grass and pavement of their Elmhurst home. Then they replaced them with rain gardens, gravel grass, porous pavement and rooftop gardens!
Just hearing about how much water can be saved and reused in an intelligently efficient way has me totally excited about how to re-envision the landscaping potential for the little red house!
Follow the link and click the "play" button to listen to the full segment for yourself about this amazing project. Then visit Ben and Marcus's website for the home to learn more details on how you can make a difference at your own home. Spring rains are coming, so there's never a better time to start making a difference!
Images copyright Marcus de la Fleur
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