[GSBN] Bales for Haiti

Sat Feb 20 17:51:08 UTC 2010

 I am very appreciative of all the input by this large and diverse community of engaged and caring people. And I want to publicly commend Derek for his patience, attention to detail, the seriousness of his consideration of the whole spectrum of issues to be wrestled with, and the good-natured and articulate way with which he is dealing with all of this, including all of our well-intentioned feedback, information and comments. 

I have known Derek for many years and know he always brings an exceptional amount of care and intelligence, as well as willingness to do the research and work through the harder issues, and when appropriate, change his mind based on new or better information, evidence and/or experience. I think the way he has described the intentions of this first exploratory effort is on target. I think Derek is the right person to help lead this effort and implicitly trust his knowledge, judgment and capabilities. 

I think building a straw bale structure as part of an exploratory process makes complete sense, and know that's the process Derek has in mind. He's never been a strawbale-construction-will-save-the-world-and-works-everywhere missionary. 

I have another thought to add to the range of things to be considering about what may be appropriate in Haiti. And that is straw-clay blocks, like some of the work that the Steens have done in Mexico. This doesn't require bales, uses a smaller amount of clay to produce blocks that are both much lighter and less fragile that adobe or other mostly earthen materials. The method the Steens and their Mexican partners evolved used a basic concrete post and beam structure - which could be easily adapted for seismic safety - with the straw clay blocks for infill. The result is a mix of insulation and lower mass in a safer wall system. They also saw the micro-enterprise potential for these blocks in Mexico. They also experimented with vaults and domes which could be a later evolution of this system if it proved to be appropriate and effective. 

And as always, I am impressed with and interested in the possibilities offered by Paul Olivier related to rice - both for rice hulls and straw and his integrated approach to problems. 

 David

-----Original Message-----
From: Derek Roff <derek at unm.edu>
To: (private, with public archives) Global Straw Building Network <GSBN at greenbuilder.com>
Sent: Sat, Feb 20, 2010 8:07 am
Subject: Re: [GSBN] Bales for Haiti

Thanks to everyone for your suggestions and concerns.  We have been in dozens of hours of discussions, and exchanged hundreds of email messages, discussing options and looking at possibilities.  BWB has been working with the PAKSBAB folks since 2006, and they do incredibly good work.  It might be surprising to some on this list how few things anyone working on any international project gets to simply "decide", and do as would seem best in other situations. 

I share the misgivings that several people have expressed about moisture and straw in Haiti.  On the other hand, the temperature and humidity in the Port au Prince area are both less than summers in Houston, and in many parts of Texas, Louisiana, Missouri, Alabama, Georgia, and Florida.  I don't remember resounding indictments of list members proposing to build with strawbale in some of those locations. We keep strawbale high on the list of options, because of its relative earthquake safety. 

It's tough to figure out how to build in a place that has earthquakes and hurricanes, lacks timber and an earthquake-resistant building tradition.  No material has all the right properties.  Thatched bamboo structures probably come the closest, and they would work if people were willing to live in them, and replace them every few years.  I don't think this approach will have much appeal.  It is an ironic truth that while people are hesitant to accept a new building style, they are often even more hesitant to accept a traditional and appropriate technology, when it seems old-fashioned, vulgar, and is associated with poor people or country folk. 

I haven't read the newest guidelines on building more earthquake-resistant structures out of earthen materials.  I'm sure it contains very important information.  But I have been to several presentations on traditional and modern earthen structures and earthquakes, and I've read many articles.  Up to now, the safety record of earthen structures has been poor when it comes to earthquakes the size of the one in Haiti, and larger.  I've read Nader Khalili's assertions about earthbags and earthquakes, his "testing", and I don't have faith in the combination of earthbags and earthquakes.  Perhaps future testing will prove him right, but for me, building in an earthquake zone with earthbags right now is accepting big unknowns.  I don't see working with that level of uncertainty as doing a service to Haiti. Building more intelligently and safely with other earthen materials requires knowledge that few of us currently possess.  I am eager to learn, but not to put everything on hold while I learn. 

The issue of cultural sensitivity and popular acceptance of a design is always in the front of our minds as members of BWB consider intercultural projects.  But in a situation like the Haiti disaster, contradictions are immediately obvious.  Much of what we think people will accept is unsafe, and what is safe will require some changes in lifestyle, which people might not accept.  It's pretty easy to conclude that there is no good answer, and then to cede the field to those who are less culturally sensitive and less aware of the risks. We choose not to do that.  Kelly's questions are very important, as are David's warnings of the risks of unintended consequences from any actions.  Yet in a disaster situation, I also consider the risks associated with inaction, and with leaving everything up to institutions like the World Bank. 

The hope for the project that started this thread, is to get one strawbale building built before the April rains begin.  That project will teach us a great deal about the viability of strawbale building in Haiti.  There will be more things to learn and adjustments to make in the coming months and years.  Maybe it will work, maybe it will lead to better ideas, maybe it will be a dead end. We are going to give it a try.  To try something without a lot of study first has its problems, as others have mentioned.  Yet learning by doing is often the most efficient way, and is sometimes the only way to answer certain questions.  Thankfully, we are not required to make policy for the entire country's disaster relief program.  We are supporting and collaborating on a few small experiments.  We hope that some of them will lead to useful techniques and information that can be implemented on a broader scale. 

I have studied the hyperbolic acrylic-cement thin-shelled roof designs that David refers to, and I think they offer great potential. They don't fit the aesthetic tradition of anywhere, and face a number of the same cultural sensitivity and acceptance questions that we have been discussing.  Nonetheless, I think they are worthy of consideration and experimentation. 

Best wishes, 
Derelict 

Derek Roff 
Language Learning Center 
Ortega Hall 129, MSC03-2100 
University of New Mexico 
Albuquerque, NM 87131-0001 
505/277-7368, fax 505/277-3885 
Internet: derek at unm.edu 

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