Columbia Business Times 3/24/16: The Greenest House on Earth

… As I pull into the long gravel drive, a small green and white sign catches my eye: “The Greenest House on Earth.”

“That’s the only thing I do,” Peckham says. “If you don’t want to do something that’s environmentally responsible, go get somebody else. It just doesn’t make sense.”

… “I wanted this to be a state-of-the-art green building,” Peckham says. “Everything I know is in here. Recycled content, water conservation, day lighting, zero energy. So many things are in this house that could be in any house. The people who built this live in Boone County.”

Peckham, owner of Peckham Architecture, used as many local vendors as possible, from Glidewell Construction to Manor Roofing and Restoration. The house, when complete, will be “net zero,” meaning it produces as much energy as it consumes, if not more. … It will be the most energy efficient home in Missouri and certainly in the top two or three in the country, according to Lisa White, certification manager at the Passive House Institute of the United States in Chicago (PHIUS).

… When I meet Peckham in person, he’s conferring with general contractor Rod Glidewell, owner of Glidewell Construction, on the insulation. … Though Glidewell has used sustainable products in his buildings before, this is his first completely “green” project.

“I was certainly glad just to have the opportunity to work with Nick,” Gildewell says. “It doesn’t matter how old you get: if you quit learning, you quit living.”

Click here to read the full story by Brenna McDermott at Columbia Business Times.