Agenda - Council - 07/27/1982 - Laserfiche WebLink

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I I EARTH-___~S HELTE RE~D B_~U ] L___~D I N__~_~ I If any kind of dwelling can be described as the natural habitat of man, it is undoubtedly earth-sheltered buildings. Earth-sheltered living has a spectacular history dating back millennia to the cave dwellings of man's ancient ancestors. For example, in the Cappadocia region of central Turkey I alone there 41 cities. The of the movie "Star are underground opening segment Wars" showed a real life underground house from southern Tunisia. In the loess belt of central China, an estimated 10 million people live today in earth- I sheltered dwellings. . In some parts of Minnesota, prairie settlers used hillside dugouts and sod I houses as their permanent dwellings. In the late '40s~and early '5Os, it was fairly common practice, particularly in rural areas, for people to live in finished "basements" until they could afford to complete the.above-ground structure. This practice was curtailed in most communities by local I ordinances, because of the unsightly, unfinished appearance of the "basement house." Many Twin Citians, therefore, have both historical and first-hand knowledge of earth-sheltered dwellings. I The Advantages of.Earth-Sheltered Buildings. When Minnesota's prairies were opened up to settlers, prairie sod-houses were built because sod was often the only available building material. The settlers soon learned that such dwellings were naturally warm in winter, cool in summer, i and served as a safe haven from windstorms and tornados. Modern earth- sheltered buildings share these same advantages. Damon's Home Store i. Edima, I I I ! ! In the Twin Cities Region, above-ground buildings must contend with an annual temperature range of around 130 degrees F. and daily temperature swings of up to 50 degrees F. Exposed parts of the building are subject to ultraviolet radiation, rain, wind, snow and airborne chemica'l pollutants. Eight inches of soil and sod, however, can virtually eliminate daily temperature variations and the detrimental effects of ultraviolet radiation, wind and chemical pollutants. The more earth that is added, the greater is the protection against temperature extremes and ravages of the elements. Between 17 and 26 feet underground, annual temperature variations vanish and the earth maintains a constant temperature of around 47 to 52 degrees F. Earth cover reduces heating requirements in three ways: control of air infiltration, added insulation and heat storage. 2