President Bush's Texas Ranch Is Off-Grid, Eco-Friendly

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Would the real George W. Bush please stand up? On one hand, we have a President with a terrible environmental record, oil ties, etc. On the other, we have a President with a sustainable home that’s off-grid, features geothermal cooling and heating, passive solar, and a grey water system. Whoa? How do you go from installing such features and benefiting from them but not at all pushing them into the mainstream? Does Bush know something we don’t? Is he prepared while the rest of us are doomed?

Probably not. In fact, I’m going to bet it was not Bush who designated these eco-friendly additions but rather an architect. Such a person probably took note of the landscape and climate and designed a system that could efficiently survive drought and heat; without depending on electricity or fuel. From a security point of view, having a contained system also make sense. You’re not dependent on anyone for resources but yourself. Here’s a great snippet from the article,

“Wastewater from showers, sinks and toilets goes into purifying tanks underground â€” one tank for water from showers and bathroom sinks, which is so-called â€œgray water,â€ and one tank for â€œblack waterâ€ from the kitchen sink and toilets. The purified water is funneled to the cistern with the rainwater. It is used to irrigate flower gardens, newly planted trees and a larger flower and herb garden behind the two-bedroom guesthouse. Water for the house comes from a well. The Bushes installed a geothermal heating and cooling system, which uses about 25% of the electricity that traditional heating and air-conditioning systems consume. Several holes were drilled 300 feet deep, where the temperature is a constant 67 degrees.” Even portions of the home are made from waste materials from a local quarry!

So, while Bush may “walk the walk” at home, he certainly has no agenda to let the rest of us benefit from the same technology. The irony is so great, that I feel the need to link to a certain Will Ferrell video that’s been viewed to death online. Hit the article for more insight into Bush’s green ranch.