In the Netherlands, Ballast Nedam Development is planning eight houses with prefab straw panels.
The design was the result of a contest dubbed “Nature House,” or Natuurhuis in Dutch, to develop materials for climate-positive housing. The first pilot project will take place in Heeze in the province of Noord-Brabant.
“The Nature House fulfils the high sustainability ambitions and at the same time focuses on affordability and scalability,” Ballast Nedam Development says in a press statement. “By using prefabricated straw panels, it is possible to build on a large scale. The house is more than 95% biobased. Besides straw, a residual product from the agricultural sector, a whole range of other bio-based materials are used.”
The winning design came from architecten|en|en. Construction company Van Herpen will build the houses in Heeze, Netherlands. Strotec will supply prefab straw panels made by EcoCocon. The straw modules are load-bearing, and each of the eight houses sequesters 90 metric tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
Ballast Nedam Development adds that it aims to “introduce the new normal for living in the Netherlands and unleash a materials transition.”