Deconstruction Services from Portland's ReBuilding Center

Now here's a green idea: rather than demolishing buildings with a wrecking ball or by implosion (though that is more fun to watch) take them apart piece by piece... and then reuse the parts.

This makes sense not only from an environmental viewpoint, but also because so many of the materials in old buildings are much better quality than new materials. Old 2 x 4's, for example, are not only thicker than new ones from Home Depot, they're usually sawn from old growth timber that has a much tighter grain and is therefore stronger than newer wood.

What we particularly like about the ReBuilding Center is their commitment to deal with issues of social justice... having a house deconstructed does take more labor than just knocking it down and sending the whole thing to the dump, but it makes more sense to spend money on workers earning a living wage than on dump fees.

And that's not just an abstract, wishy-washy equation: when the ReBuilding Center went to New Orleans to help clean up after Katrina, the $6000-$10000 it cost to deconstruct damaged houses was about what the government paid contractors to just send them to the dump.