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May 13, 1999, Bury St. Edmunds, England:
U.K. Government To Subsidize Hemp Housing
England's government is getting into the
hemp housing business. The Housing Corporation, a government
agency that develops low-cost housing, will spend more than
$150,000 building two homes out of compressed hemp fiber,
the Financial Times reported Wednesday. "Hemp composites,
including paneling and fiberboard, comprise one of the
fastest growing segments of the wood products industry,"
NORML Foundation Executive Director Allen St. Pierre said.
He noted that several European countries, including France
and Germany, already use hemp hurds in housing
construction.
The Housing Corporation will construct the homes using a
method popularized in France that secures a mix of hemp and
hydraulic lime on a timber frame. Many companies are
exploring the use of hemp as a building material because it
provides significant thermal and sound insulation, is fire
repellent, and recyclable.
For more information, please contact :
Allen St. Pierre of The NORML Foundation at (202) 483-8751
or
NORML board member Don Wirtshafter of The Ohio Hempery at
(740) 662-4367.
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