Habitat builds green with Minnesota Green Communities

Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity works closely with MN Green Communities to ensure all of our housing is up-to-date and energy efficient. This helps us not only to save some money for our homeowner families in the long run, but also to help the larger community.

Minnesota Green Communities seeks to ensure that all new affordable housing built in Minnesota is green. Additionally, the initiative aims to green rehab or retrofit 10,000 units of existing affordable housing by 2015. Minnesota Green Communities is a collaboration of the Greater Minnesota Housing Fund, the Family Housing Fund, and Enterprise designed to foster the creation of affordable, healthier and more energy-efficient housing throughout Minnesota.

Economic advantages to green building include: 

• Energy and water savings
• Increased property values
• Decreased infrastructure strain
• Development of local talent pool

Poor indoor environmental quality as a result of insufficient air circulation, poor lighting, mold build up, temperature variances, carpeting and furniture materials, pesticides, toxic adhesives and paints and high concentration of pollutants (typically 10 to 100 times higher than outdoors) contribute widely to respiratory problems, allergies, nausea, headaches and skin rashes. Green building emphasizes ventilation and non-toxic, low emitting materials that create healthier and more comfortable living and working environments.

For more information, please visit this site about Green Building Basics or learn how Habitat Builds Green.