Asheville's Eco Communities: Hickory Nut Forest. Now, I said that there are a number of very worthy 
eco-communities in and around Asheville. So you may wonder why I'm taking you to Hickory Nut Forestfirst...Here are 7 red-hot and GREEN reasons:
•1. Hickory Nut Forest Eco-developers protect the land. Covenants on the lots ensure that homes will blend naturally into the forest. The most special places are for all to enjoy: the cascading streams, tumbling waterfalls, sheer cliffs, and distant vistas.
•2. Nature Connections.With over six miles of hiking trails, people can enjoy the adjoining 800 acres in Little Bearwallow Mountain Preserve and Florence Nature Preserve. Just down the gorge are another 3500 acres of waterfalls and cliff at Chimney Rock State Park.
•3. Renewable energy.The goal at this Asheville area eco-community is to eliminate the need for fossil fuels and generate energy from a variety of renewable energy sources: solar, wind, hydro and geothermal. Solar thermal panels will collect energy from sunlight to make heat for radiant floors and hot water. Wind turbines, micro-hydro turbines, and photovoltaic panels will make electricity. Geothermal heat pumps will tap the earth's stable temperature.
•4. Hickory Nut Forest is designed to be a net-zero energy community, where more renewable energy is created than we use.
•5. ONLY green-built homes.Green principles insure healthy, energy efficient and friendly to the environment construction. Including: sustainable building materials, non-toxic paints, super-insulated walls, daylighting to conserve energy, local recycled materials, permaculture/water recycling, solar heating, thermal mass, radiant flooring, and geothermal heating and cooling. All of the homes will be certified as HealthyBuiltHomes, HERS rated and EnergyStar.
•6. Organic gardens and an organic farm with a CSA. An organic apple orchard is located nearby.
•7. Community gathering center.Located at the site of an historic gristmill, Laughing Waters will be our first green, solar, zero-energy dwelling and a model for future homes in the community. It is designed to serve as an education, training and research center for demonstrating eco-friendly building and sustainable living.
We plan to make it available for various community events and social gatherings, as well as for quiet, restful retreats.
All this, and, as you will notice from the graphic, Hickory Nut Forest is surrounded on three sides by forever wild conservation partners' land!
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(*)/'(*) ...WE are IN a sustainable world. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
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