L.A.'s Green Paragon

Rainwater cistern? Check. Composting bins? Check. Insulation made of recycled glass? Check. Solar panels, light-reflecting roof, and copious ventilation? Check, check and check.

Tucked inconspicuously in the hills of Mount Washington, a neighborhood located 10 miles northeast of downtown, the house also "has the first permitted gray water system in Los Angeles since California adopted new rules for recycling household waste water as landscape irrigation."

Allan Schaben notes, "Single-family homes in L.A. use an average of 280 gallons of water each day, according to the Department of Water and Power; 151 of those gallons go toward the yard. By using gray water and rain water for their outdoor needs, Pasker and Leipert expect to reduce their home's use of city water by 50%."