Carbon dioxide, the leading culprit of the possible global warming effect, is a by-product of burning fossil fuels. Air quality affects the water in which many amphibians live. Current research links the possibility of deformations in frogs and lizards to poor water quality. Straw is renewed annually and is the natural waste of grain harvest. The US Department of Agriculture estimates there is enough straw left over from our grain harvest to build 4 million homes per year.
Straw bales have a very low embodied energy.
Generally, they are produced using simple machines requiring very little fuel input. The burning of straw creates visual pollution and immense amounts of carbon dioxide. The burning of straw is no longer allowed in the Willamette Valley making disposal more difficult for farmers. By finding uses for this waste product farmers are relieved of disposal problems and we insure the burning of these waste products will not be reintroduced in our communities. There is a limited amount of energy available in the environment and currently our lifestyles require us to utilize energy at a faster rate than it is being replenished.