Another special tour due to demand

Due to demand I’m offering another special tour of the house with a copy of the new book, Sustainable House, so the lessons learnt here over the last 14 years can be looked at and discussed on site.  It’s at 11 am to 12 noon, Saturday 30 October. For information and bookings: Special tours of Sydney’s Sustainable House – 23, 30 Oct  Read More

Upon being a centrefold . . .

Steady. Pause your beating heart, and breath. Sustainability has today gone centrefold. Ok, so I’m being dramatic, but it is such a B E A Utiful day, I hope there’s a song in every heart that shares it. (Don’t you reckon Earth sometimes can’t resist herself and she puts on days like today when she sings, “Look at me, Look at me . . . “; mmmm ah lurves her then.) Anyway, in the Sydney Morning Herald’s Style liftout section today there is... Read More

When your pump runs dry

No, this is not a song. But it can help to sing when your pump runs dry; who knows, it may bring peace to your otherwise un-abluted flesh and grumpy heart, and distract you from the debris of a shower that won’t work in the morning. Pumps are pretty simple creatures but can put a Buddhist monk back years on the path to simplicity and inner peace. For now, let’s list how to fix one type of pump, the self-priming pump: - to prime the pump’s belly undo the largish... Read More

Bob Carr to launch 2nd Ed Sustainable House book

Some 14 years after the then Premier Bob Carr launched Sydney’s Sustainable House by pulling the knob on a front loading clothes washing machine, Bob will return to the house to launch the second edition of my book, Sustainable House. In the 14 years that’ve passed over 1.5 million litres of sewage has been kept in the tiny back garden, and over 1.4 million litres of dam water has been left in the dam.  We’ve been drinking rain water here in the city all that... Read More

Road gardens save lives

We’re saving lives with our road gardens. Here’s why. Air quality in Western Sydney has reached several important health thresholds for a pollutant (called, “Nox”) and particulate pollution, and population projections and lack of public transport options will result in more high pollution days. Several NSW Government Reports have reported that high air pollution days are linked to respiratory failures resulting in an average of 550 deaths per annum. This... Read More

Do Australian governments support sustainable development?

A student studying property has asked me a question and the question and answers are below: “I would appreciate if you could give me your thoughts on  the following: 1) Do you think “Green” Design and Development in residential properties  is supported and progressive in Australia. There is some support by governments. But when you add up the positives and negatives, no, Australia’s local, state and regional governments do not support sustainable residential... Read More

TAFE urban farm course now open

Living Sustainably Information Session 10am Tuesday, 21st September 2010 EEORA Centre 333 Abercrombie Street Chippendale Gallery AG.16 For more details phone Outreach on 9217 5006 or 9217 3130 Email: patricia.lane@tafensw.edu.au TAFE and I are working together to give skills to people in Sydney who are doing it tough, whether young or old, and on the ‘edge’ of things.  We’re offering a course to show how to use energy and water, how to grow food in streets,... Read More

Calculate the sun for your house

There’s a beaut device on the web which allows you to see how the sun affects your site, your solar hot water panels or your solar photovoltaic panels – or how your neighbours roof may affect your panels  . . . Visit it here: www.suncalc.net… It’s on Google Maps.  To use it, type in an address and a date, and it shows you the track of the sun, from sunrise to sunset. That’s the path the sun takes on that date.  So you may see where the sun rises... Read More

Choosing a sewage system for a house

I’ve been asked this question: “We are very interested in installing an aerated system to treat our greywater for in-house use and would appreciate any advice on which supplier to use. So far Ozzi Kleen have been the most responsive to our enquiries.” I consider at least two products for on site sewage projects: Aqua Nova (aquanova.com…, and Innoflow (www.innoflowtechnologies.com…) The first is about half the cost of the second.  Both will do the... Read More

Inspiring city planning

On ABC  iView for a week or so there’s an inspiring example of city planning at Portland in the US where the city: is reducing city traffic, increasing public transport making the car a guest on many roads cutting transport related pollution and much more. To visit it on the web: ABC iView E2 Transport: Ep5 Portland: A sense of place Enjoy, Michael  Read More

  • Michael Mobbs

    Michael is a former Environmental Lawyer who is uniquely placed to consult in four main areas:

    • Sustainability Coach and Speaker,
    • Sustainable Urban Farm Design greening, watering and cooling the cityscape, roads, parks, suburbs,
    • Major Projects Consultant Commercial and Industrial,
    • Residential Sustainability Consultant.
    For permission to re-print any articles or to book Michael for a speaking engagement go to Contacts. Please ensure all quotes from Michael's blog include a reference to sustainablehouse.com....au.