http://green.yahoo.com/index.php?q=node/1372
ORLEANS (Reuters) – Calling Hurricane Katrina a “man-made disaster,” actor Brad Pitt said on Tuesday he remains committed to helping the city recover from the storm.Nearly two years after the August 29, 2005 hurricane, the “Ocean’s Thirteen” star said he was at times dismayed by the pace of recovery in New Orleans, where he and partner Angelina Jolie own an elegant townhouse in the historic French Quarter.
Pitt was in the Lower Ninth Ward neighborhood to tour an ecologically sustainable single-family home being built by Global Green USA, an environmental group he backs.
The actor praised the house in the Holy Cross area of the ward as a “small victory” for efforts to rebuild the city, but said, “it’s hard to find an overall victory when you see how slowly everything is still moving. And Katrina was a man-made disaster. This house is a man-made solution
Pitt believes this house can do away with power bills. The houses design is a result of a Pitt sponsored green design competition.
The house that Pitt toured, loosely modeled on the distinctive New Orleans “shotgun” style of long, narrow homes, will generate almost all its electricity from 28 roof-mounted solar panels, said Global Green USA president Matt Petersen.
Global Green hopes to use the house, which should be completed this fall, as a prototype for the neighborhood. Built not far from the banks of the Mississippi River and raised by three feet on concrete pilings, it is above sea level.
From the same Bog
http://earth911.org/blog/2007/08/21/brad-pitt-unveils-eco-friendly-house/
New Orleans has already committed to energy efficiency as it continues to rebuild in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. The house Pitt toured was built above sea level, which may be a good idea given that levees have still not been fully repaired in the city. For more Green Building news, visit Earth 911’s Green Building archive.
To see a virtual tour or the house use the link below:
http://holycrossproject.globalgreen.org/flash/virtualhouse.html