The idea of compostable houses was a result of a final project in an Environmental Visions class at Elon University. The vision is to shift living from traditional types of houses so many of us have today to a more simplistic beneficial type of housing. These new houses will not only be compostable when they are no longer needed, but will also bio-upgrade the soil around the houses.

This process is nearly identical to a paper mache art project and is already being talked about by an organization in the United Kingdom. An inflated mould is set up on the site and sprayed with a cellulose pulp. When mixed with water it sets to provide a rigid semi-permanent structure. A lightweight sprayed pulp paper will act as insulation and has excellent thermal capabilities. This product is also free of CFCs and VOCs and has excellent acoustic insulation.
Since the building materials are made of paper and water, they can be sourced from almost anywhere. This means that they can almost always be made locally. This completely eliminates the need for shipping new materials from distant locations and using excessive amounts of fossil fuels for transportation.
Also because of the materials the buildings are made from, it would be possible to grow plants on and around the structure creating a living building that regulates temperature even better and provides oxygen and possibly fruits and vegetables for the inhabitants of the

Problema

There are a lot of issues today with the way humans are living, especially in the United States. There are currently millions of vacant houses simply occupying precious land that could be used for more productive things. There is also an issue with infertile soils that need more and more pesticides to support life, especially in growing food. My visionary idea is to have compostable houses. Birds, bees, and beavers have been doing it for thousands of years so taking lessons from them, humans can learn to make livable shelters that once no longer needed, will leave the earth not only with no negative impact but actually in a better, more fertile state. This idea will be able to engage anyone interested in it. The houses can be so customized and build nearly anywhere that the materials are available.

Solución

The solutions that this idea offers are nearly endless. It can provide easy, cheap solutions to help end homelessness because they can be built anywhere, inexpensive, and able to be built quickly by almost anyone. It offers bio-upgrading for the earth under/around the houses after they decompose. They will revolutionize the idea of vacations, the need for travel using excessive amount of CO2 emitting fossil fuels will decrease due to the life style that these houses provide. Humans will be able to travel their whole lives by living in these non-commital, low-impact houses. Communities can be formed in anyway because of the tight knitted nature this style of housing has. The building will be much smaller than an average house in the U.S. today which means less wasted space. The ingredients for the house can be sourced locally from almost anywhere because of their simplicity. Because this type of housing is done at such a personal level, in order to make this vision come into fruition it is necessary to just get the idea into people's minds as well as resources showing people how it can be done.

Mercado

Although I have no specific competitors, this idea does compete with the traditional idea of living in a typical, American house now. The challenge will be to completely change the lifestyles and mindsets of people and encourage them that it is necessary to make radical changes in our lifestyle in order to protect the planet's health. Change is rarely a bad thing and once people open their minds, they will be able to see that this type of living is much more beneficial to everything and everyone around them.