The town of La Romana witnesses the opening of the first "green house"
20/12/2010
The town of La Romana, located in the province of Alicante, witnessed the house-warming party for the first “green house”, which is endorsed by the Certificate of “Excellence in Energy Saving and Sustainable Use of Natural Resources”. This certificate is part of the Quality Programme set up by the Building Institute of Valencia (IVE), an official body belonging to the Autonomous Government of Valencia.
The ceremony took place on the 30 April and among those present were the Vicechairwoman of the Diputación de Alicante, M.ª Carmen Jiménez Egea, the Director of the IVE, Luis Esteban Domínguez, the General Manager of Grupo Marjal, Francisco Gómez, and the Mayor of La Romana, Manuel Hernández. The project, named “Green House”, is noteworthy due to its standards of environmental excellence and its sustainable architectural features and design. Besides the high quality of the materials and the technology used in its construction, the house adheres strictly to the green guidelines necessary to protect the environment.
One of the main features of this home is that it has been built by implementing new construction methods, committed to energy saving and water conservation, thus helping the homeowner to reduce power and water consumption by about 50 %. This type of measure results in considerable savings in homeowners’ bills and it also contributes to reducing carbon dioxide emissions.
Moreover, this state-of-the-art “green house” introduces other effective environmentally friendly measures, including the correct siting and orientation of the dwelling, the insulation of walls, ceilings and floors, the use of LEDs and the installation of solar panels, all of which maximise the efficiency of energy consumption. On top of that, the dwelling is equipped with Class A household appliances.
One of the most innovative aspects of this high-quality dwelling is that it features not only a wood pellet-based heating system, which serves to supply hot water for domestic use and ensures optimum power consumption, but also a charging station for electric vehicles. Moreover, as regards water saving measures, one of the techniques implemented consists in reusing grey waters. Besides this, flow limiters are installed and only native plants are grown in garden areas (this last technique is called “xeriscaping” or “xerogardening” and refers to landscaping and gardening in ways that reduce or eliminate the need for supplementary water for irrigation.)
The intrinsic worth of the “green house” not only comes from its architectural features, but also from its special location. It is situated in a small valley, next to a pine grove and is surrounded by vineyards. Nature, therefore, embraces the dwelling, and vice versa. The town of La Romana is taking part in a European project called “Green Towns with Green Practices”, which seeks to promote, plan and apply different technological, ecological and social measures devoted to safeguarding both the environment and the town itself.
