COOL CAREERS GREEN GENERAL CONTRACTOR Y R A R B I L S L L I K S Y R U T N E C T S 1 2 CHAPTER ONE IT’S NOT EASY BEING GREENSBURG On May 4 2007 a tornado swept through Greensburg Kansas destroying 90 percent of the town’s Greensburg residents Greensburg residents Greensburg opportunity to damage as an opportunity to opportunity used the tornado’s used the used improve the town
buildings Roofs were torn from homes Fierce winds ripped trees out of the ground and threw them through walls Bricks and other rubble dotted the streets This tornado is one of the strongest on record It left 1,400 people homeless Greensburg lay in ruin The community decided to rebuild in a new way It would turn Greensburg into a green town There are many reasons to be interested in green build ings According to the United States Green Building Council USGBC buildings use 40 percent of the country’s energy They also use 13 percent of the country’s water Green build ings reduce energy consumption and water use This saves natural resources Greensburg’s citizens wanted their town to become the greenest in America They hired a green architectural firm to design a master plan The townspeople wanted to rebuild quickly but knew it was worth taking time to go green Greensburg hired green contractors to manage the building process The town’s plans called for LEED gold certified buildings LEED which stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design is the USGBC’s set of standards for building quality green homes and public facilities LEED-certified buildings use less energy and less water They are built with sustainable and recycled materials whenever possible
COOL CAREERS GREEN GENERAL CONTRACTOR Y R A R B I L S L L I K S Y R U T N E C T S 1 2 CAREER LIFELIFELIFE CAREER CAREER CAREER CAREER CAREER CAREER CAREER SK SK SKIIIILLSLLSLLS Green contractors need skills that other contractors might not have They take classes They take They in green building methods and learn about new green products The National Green Building Program and the USGBC’s LEED Accredited Professional AP program both offer certification for green builders Green contractors need these certifications to prove that they are they are they build environmentally friendly structures friendly structures friendly environmentally friendly environmentally qualified to Many new Greensburg buildings use wind turbines to provide energy Because Kansas is a windy location plenty of free energy powers the town The people of Greensburg chose a style of home from the 12 model houses built by green contractors The well insulated homes cost less to heat and to cool They are made of recycled wood Lawns are filled with native plants instead of grass These plants are adapted to the environment and require less water than traditional grass Green contractors installed Energy Star rated appliances to help save gas and electricity
Recycled insulation is made from Recycled insulation Recycled jeans or newspapers or newspapers or recycled blue recycled blue recycled
