Beyond BAL: Earth-coupled bushfire resilient homes

As part of ongoing work to support communities rebuilding after bushfire, Renew is showcasing homes that exemplify resilient design elements and building practices that extend the understanding of best practice beyond the complicated and variable (BAL) Bushfire Attack Level rating system.

In the Beyond BAL event series, we're speaking to the people who designed, built, or live in these homes. Join us to hear how you can make your home or future build as resilient as possible this fire season. 

In this session we'll be exploring bushfire resilient homes that showcase earth-coupling, with a presentation about each home and then a panel discussion to follow. There will be plenty of time for questions from the audience. 

Featuring:

Jamie Brennan, six b design

Jamie will be discussing Leura Rammed Earth House, a large suburban home on a cliff-top in the Blue Mountains, NSW. Built almost a decade ago, it remains an excellent model of both sustainability and bushfire resilience and includes the clever use of a lap pool for bushfire defence.

Alvyn Williams, Soft Loud House Architects

Alvyn will be discussing Brockspur Eco Farm, a property that combines farming eco-credentials with a sustainable and bushfire resistant dwelling. The home is 'earth sheltered’ — being built into the site with earth and grass over and around it.

Dale Lloyd, ShelterSpace

Dale will be discussing Brown Hill Creek Project. This 7.5 star, BAL-40 home makes a strong case for comfort, sustainability and bushfire resilience in a long-life low- maintenance home. The house is cut into a north-eastern slope which is a favourable solar orientation, and the excavation 'cut’ is reused as fill behind and over the heavy-duty frame of concrete, reinforced blocks and steelwork.

Nigel Bell, ECOdesign Architects

Nigel is a the principle architect of ECOdesign Architects and an expert in bushfire resilient design. He has worked extensively with Renew as part of the Green Rebuild Toolkit, and is the project lead on the Beyond BAL project.

Tickets:

• This is an online only event, which will be held via Zoom.
  
• This is event is part of Beyond BAL event series. If you want to join us for all four sessions you can sign up to our series pass using this link.
• All tickets are completely free.
• Renew depends on the generosity of our community to continue its valuable work. We would welcome your donation here: renew.org.au/donate or via the additional donation option when choosing your tickets.

Pictured here is Brockspur Eco Farm by Soft Loud House Architects, photograph by Ben Wrigley.