Land Granting: a Good Idea in its Day

ALMERIA, SPAIN - APRIL 04: An abandoned real ...
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Just as land can be taken away by a government at any time it deems right, land can also be granted with the same vested power. Throughout history, people have received land grants in return for performing a variety of different services to “the state,” which can be any government that holds authority over a particular area. From as far back as the Roman empire, the granting of land was a privilege bestowed on successful soldiers whose countries wanted to allow them a comfortable retirement. One day you’re marching across Europe slaying barbarians, and the next day you’re planting and harvesting lentils; that does seem a reasonable transition, doesn’t it?

Between the 17th and 19th centuries, the countries of Europe granted land all over the place. At one point in the late 18th century, the newly released convicts in the colony of New South Wales were granted abundant amounts of land. One of the largest land grants in recorded history was made in 1670 by King Charles II of England. Known as Rupert’s Land, this gargantuan parcel surrounding the Hudson Bay was more than one third the size of modern day Canada. Keep in mind that there have been many monarchs throughout history who have ruled over (and had their hands full with) much tinier kingdoms than that. In the United States, the general rule of land granting was that a soldier would receive a grant of land as his sole pension. The idea of a homeless, penniless soldier is tragic, indeed.

In Ireland and the United States at least, the concept generally revolved around ensuring that the person the grant was issued to improved the land, cultivating at least a certain percentage of its area and building their home steads on it. Whether this was for the improvement of a nation or merely to keep the people occupied with peaceful pursuits is open to the debates of historians. But unfortunately, since the populations all over the world have exploded, the 20th century saw the death of most large scale land grants. Don’t you wish someone would give you Canada?

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Environment: The Advantage of the Green Roof

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It seems a common sight: an urban sprawl, formed of concrete and glass, the elegant marble. A building stands before you, trying to challenge the notions of gravity. It’s an impossibly high high-rise and you expect nothing less. It’s rumored, however, that a secret waits above it, hidden along the roof. You think this can’t be true. There will just be the typical stone. But, as you saunter in and claim an elevator for your own, are slowly taken through the many levels and to the top, you realize that stone does not exist. It has instead be replaced to… grass.

And that grass is found on more than one building as you glance about the city. You’re stunned.

You shouldn’t be.

You’re experiencing a green roof. Simply defined, this concept utilizes the natural advantages of the environment within unlikely settings. Vegetation is crated along the top of a structure, with much care given to its root systems and irrigation (layers are created to ensure that there is room for growth). These vegetations may include standard gardens, with food made for consumption, or be tailored instead to simple flowers. The purpose is dictated by the needs of the individuals below.

Such needs are met aptly by a green roof, though. The advantages to this process are staggering:

1. Heat reduction. Buildings attract the sun, with their concrete easily being warmed to high degrees. This forces a constant stream of air conditioning and electricity, which then causes a loss of energy. Green roofs, however, absorb the heat and help to keep a structure cooled.

2. Carbon decrease. The city is formed of carbon, with emissions constantly being released. Green roofs can combat this, however, and offer clean air.

3. Water purification. Plants can naturally reverse the effects of rain-water and its pollutants. Green roofs utilize water, allowing it supply the needed nutrients and removing the metallic elements found within.

The environment isn’t to be kept to the wild. It’s instead to be found in urban centers. And green roofs make that possible.

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Green Building: Environmental Needs

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Money is an impermanent creature, forever receding; the dollars never lasting, the coins all disappearing. Budgets arrive and act as prisons, trapping all days to uncertainties. And so the notion of taking land and shaping it to a green philosophy seems impossible. Energy efficiency is, after all, never content with low costs. It’s instead an experimental concept that demands time, effort and profits; and each of those is enough to make you ignore the environment and its many pleadings.

But green building is not a mere pastime, offered by those with no concerns for fiscal matters. It’s instead a necessity that will provide fewer worries for the future (in both earnings and the environment).

Explained simply: green building is the process of creating facilities that are conscious of the earth and energy. From their conception to their eventual end, they must utilize all available methods of efficiency. Pollutants must be countered; power must be generated without the standard fossil fuels; and all surrounding acres should be used only as they must, without wasting precious trees.

This is not, as you would assume, a simple process. It requires vigorous planning, with all details understood. And such a cycle of hard work can seem too much to consider. But the value of green building is in its eventuality. The impact is discovered in the years that follow:

1. Renewable resources. Modern designs seek to eliminate the reliance of fossil fuels and their emissions. Instead solar energy, wind turbines and more are used to generate power.

2. Sustainable design. The materials and building techniques for these structures are chosen for more than their appearance. They’re instead meant to intrude upon minimal acres, ensuring that the environment is maintained as much as possible.

3. Water reductions. The waste of water is a common problem; but green buildings seek to use every drop with grey-water techniques, rain collection and conservation fixtures, minimizing the amount used for ordinary activities and saving costs.

Green building is expensive. This can’t be denied. But it’s also a necessity that will aid the environment and the future.

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