Article from GT Weekly Wednesday, 21 March 2007:
Meet the"‘Green Team"



Regardless of the rhetoric from Crawford, Texas and the U.S. Department of Energy, a hydrocarbon-powered reality is not sustainable over the long game. In the last 18 months, crude oil futures have become increasingly volatile, bounding between $50 and $78 a barrel on the flimsiest scrap of unrest in production. Prominent economists like Matthew Simmons and Colin Campbell are already speculating that we are sliding down the back end of Hubbert’s Peak and that global oil production topped out back in late 2005.

Cognizant of these realities and aware of the fact that two of the top three uses of fossil fuels—electrical production and heating and cooling—can be limited through good design and construction, a number of local architects, consultants, contractors and builders are implementing “green building” guidelines into their projects. Some municipalities, including Santa Cruz, have even added incentives for following green building principals that reduce energy consumption though solar power, good insulation, low-flow fixtures and renewable, natural building materials.

One of the leading local lights in the movement toward sustainable building is Talmadge Construction in Aptos. Even its offices are powered by photovoltaic panels, which owners Jeff and Adele Talmadge estimate will eliminate 600,000 pounds of C02 over the next 30 years. Annual energy production at Talmadge tops out at more than 12,500 kilowatts a year.

But more importantly, Talmadge’s 13 employees are committed to bringing sustainability and ecology into their remodeling work, taking older properties and transforming them into attractive—and innovative—places to live. Reviewing Talmadge’s impressive list of projects reveals a design process endowed with a respect for the natural environment, with rooms and buildings that use nature’s bounties, like sunlight, air and viewscapes to enhance design—and reduce costs. By building around skylights and windows and using solar heating, projects can lower heating and cooling costs. Talmadge’s commitment to renewable resources also directs their choice in cabinetry, flooring and insulation materials, which has the added advantage of making both the earth and the client happy.

When asked what inspired the business to focus so heavily on green building practices, Adele says, “When Jeff and I started with green building it was really just that we believed that we need to start somewhere and we need to do all that we can. We almost always try to encourage our clients to use something green in their project. It doesn’t have to be overt, it could just be a radiant heat system, which is just a good idea that saves money on energy bills. We have a child and we want to leave the best that we can for him.”