While browsing online to find attractions in the Taos area, I came upon information about the Earthship Community. It is located west of the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge on Rte 64. Curious about what it was all about, we stopped one afternoon at the Earthship Biotecture Visitor Center.
Founded by Mike Reynolds (architect), Earthship Biotecture, is a company headquartered in Taos, that specializes in designing and building earthships. What is an earthship? Basically, it is an “off-grid, earth-bermed, passive solar home with exterior walls made of old tires rammed with earth."
The Visitor Center is a demonstration “Packaged Earthship with a Double Greenhouse” that is open for tours ($7/senior; $8/adult). Some of the rammed tires can be seen near the entrance.
Exhibits about how the structure was built and the systems that support self-sufficiency can be seen in the area that would be the family living space in a residential structure. They describe core design principles of:
- Passive solar heating and cooling;
- Building with natural and recycled materials;
- Water harvesting and contained sewage treatment;
- Solar and wind power; and,
- Food production.
Non-load bearing walls are constructed of a honeycomb of recycled cans (wired together to form a patented brick design) joined by concrete and then thickly plastered with stucco. Some decorative walls are built with recycled bottles and adobe and/or concrete.
Solar panels are installed on the roof (also south-facing) power the building. The roof is designed to capture rain water (that is filtered and stored in cisterns buried in the earth berms). The roof is, of course, heavily insulated.
Behind the Visitor Center is a large earthship that provides housing for the participants in the Earthship Academy, a four-week program where the theory, design, and construction techniques of Earthship Biotecture are taught. Applications are accepted on line at the link provided below.
Across the road from the visitor center is a café in a revamped RV and the research area.
Behind it is an earthship structure that is used for research, design concepts, and tests to improve upon existing structural and system designs. The vertical windmill has been designed here and is being tested, as are various wall designs.
There are 50+ personal residences (earthships) in this community and trespassing on private roads and property is not permitted. It is a beautiful open space where residences are part of the landscape.
Earthships appear in 50 states and 20 countries, although modifications have been made for different climates. Below are a few in the Taos community.
Earthship Biotecture helped build emergency shelters in post-earthquake Haiti and environmentally fragile islands. Nightly rentals are available in the Taos community if you want to experience the lifestyle. And, existing earthships can be purchased or one can be built to your requirements. The building cost is approximately $225/square foot (although labor costs can be significantly reduced by owners, if desired).
We found this community to be so interesting and aligned with our philosophical thinking about recycling and self-sufficiency. Having said that, we think we are not in a phase of lives where we could embrace the lifestyle (sadly, too old!) Some architects are highly critical of the design concepts and building standards employed by Earthship Biotecture. Nonetheless, I see great value in the design concepts put forth, as well as the opportunity to improve efficiencies of the self-sufficient systems.
For additional information about Earthship Biotecture and earthship communities, go to www.earthshipglobal.com.
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