Straw bales offer excellent insulation. This translates to direct dollar savings for the homeowner, and a corresponding reduction in the use of fossil fuels and CO2 emissions. Construction costs can also be reduced when building with straw bales. They are cheap to buy and easy to build with. Stacked like huge bricks, straw bale wall systems can be erected quickly without much building experience and few power tools.
Straw is available wherever grain crops are grown, and is annually renewable.
In fact, it's considered an agricultural waste product, and in many parts of the world is simply burned in the fields. The millions of tons which go up in smoke every year cause a great deal of air pollution. It makes sense to bale this nuisance, and turn it into an energy-efficient resource. A non-toxic product itself, bales allow a gradual transfer of air through the wall, bringing fresh air into your living environment, especially when combined with a natural plaster. And you can forget about neighborhood noise, too.