The Home Depot and Habitat for Humanity are teaming up to build eco-homes for lower income families. The $30 million program will help in the construction of at least 5,000 homes and is being funded by The Home Depot Foundation, the company's non-profit department (in aisle 6, near the bathroom fixtures). The foundation was established in 2002 to fund affordable housing and community forests. Over 5 years, the project will help make approximately 17% of the Habitat homes built during that period more sustainable. A one-year pilot program will start with 30 affiliates in rural and urban areas and in different climates to measure the impact of the effort.

"Our organization supports the construction of homes for families that are healthy to live in and affordable to own," said Kelly Caffarelli, president of The Home Depot Foundation. "We are thrilled to be partnering with Habitat to create additional opportunities for thousands of families of modest means to experience the economic and health benefits of green building practices. We believe that the impact of this program will be far-reaching and will add to the long-term success of families and communities across the country."

A prominent goal of the plan is to earn third-party green building certification by installing energy and water efficient fixtures and ensuring healthy indoor air quality. However, the idea is not just to make houses that are good for the planet, but good for limited budgets too. The organizations say that the homes will have smaller energy bills and be cheaper to maintain.

The money will not only give Habitat for Humanity the means to build, but will go to providing technical resources and training in green building practices as well. The hope is that the skills and experience will leave a lasting impression on the organization's home-building affiliates around the U.S.

The Home Depot has been pretty busy on the environmental scene lately. Last May, The Home Depot Foundation announced a $100 million initiative to plant trees and provide "affordable, healthy homes for working families," as well as a $600,000 donation to the National Building Museum for sustainable design. They also helped fund Brad Pitt's project for a greener rebuild the Lower 9th Ward of New Orleans. Still, I wouldn't expect him to show up on a Habitat lot near you anytime soon.