Live in a Zero Carbon House Made of Hemp

What does Uncle Sam have against hemp

? Is it that the cannabis plant still conjures up Reefer Madness-esque fears in our government? Maybe so—that could explain why growing hemp is illegal under US federal law. Not growing marijuana, mind you, but growing hemp—and yes, there is a difference. The cannabis sativa strain yields very little tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, the chemical that's responsible for giddy viewings of Yellow Submarine and the mass consumption of Hostess products nationwide.

Instead, cannabis sativa is already industrially grown in Europe—mostly because it's a fantastic, vastly renewable crop. It checks soil erosion, requires no pesticides to maintain, and grows extremely quickly.

But all of this is relatively old news—the latest development in hemp experimentation is that pretty soon, we may be able to use hemp to build ourselves carbon free houses out of hemp. A recent British study has found that building homes out of hemp may be the key to creating a zero carbon home.

From Eco Worldly:

The process for constructing the carbon neutral building material is a unique one which uses lime-based adhesive to bind together hemp fibers. Homes built from the hemp-lime material can reach carbon neutrality in large part due to the remarkable efficiency by which the fast growing hemp plant can store carbon as it grows. The lime adhesive is also important due to its powerful insulating properties.