Few states are as serious as Colorado when it comes to being green. No surprise, then, at word that one of the first ever net-zero-impact homes is being built in the hills outside of Boulder, CO. But not everyone is convinced that this carbon-friendly house is all that green.

The home features pretty much every mitigating technology you can name: passive solar "sunspaces" heat up like tiny greenhouses, and the air they warm heats the rest of the home as it circulates.  Photovoltaic panels turn sunlight into electricity, while precise builds and non-toxic caulks prevent from leaking into or out of the house, increasing thermoregulatory efficiency.

But not everyone is so impressed with the structure. Despite generating more energy than it needs, the house takes up 6,800 square feet—larger than necessary by pretty much any standard. Critics suggest the effort needed to maintain the place, including landscaping services, housekeepers, and the like, will not be offset by energy sold back to the grid. Additionally, the house is 10 miles outside Boulder, meaning that even the most mundane trips will likely come with a heavy carbon price tag.

Still, I think that this house is a good development. Popular opinion holds that environmental friendliness requires a lower standard of living.  This home refutes that claim in the loudest possible way.