Marc Neu - Former energy consultant, founder of Naturbaustoff and owner of a future straw-bale house
Marc Neu is chairman of ASBL De Kär (local currency www.beki.lu) and founder of Naturbaustoff Réiden, the first 100 % coherent ecological building shop in Luxembourg (www.naturbaustoff.lu). Prior to that, he worked for a long time as a regional energy consultant, assessing more than 1,000 buildings. «Most of the time, we build as cheaply as possible in order to sell as cheaply as possible. The owners then have to make do with an unhealthy indoor climate that they have to finance for the rest of their lives. It's unacceptable! Not to mention all the resulting waste... It's time for a radical change in mentality!»
Marc is currently working on a project that is particularly close to his heart: building his own house from straw, wood and clay. An approach that he believes is part of the solution. «This project, which has become my passion, combines 5 essential criteria of sustainable construction:
1. Passive construction: energy efficiency is an obligation that is automatically met thanks to the thickness of the straw bales.
2. Environmentally-friendly: wood, straw and clay can easily be recycled, unlike polystyrene.
3. Healthy: there's nothing better for your health than clay as a plaster. What's more, it doesn't burn.
4. Natural: the demolition of a straw house produces little waste; almost everything is biodegradable.
The fifth criterion is perhaps the most important: affordable living space. (...) What if we built smaller houses and got a bit of hands-on instead of spending our time hooked on the mobile phone? Interior work is a particularly good way of doing this, even if you don't have much DIY experience. In fact, this summer I visited an eight-storey straw-bale apartment block in the Vosges. 2 000 €/m2 for this "Passivhaus" (www.toit-vosgien.com). Without too much fuss, but with an extremely healthy indoor climate and low energy costs. It's also worth noting that the tenants rarely move, because they feel so comfortable here. Marc Neu has also visited a number of construction sites across the country, either as a volunteer (www.aerdscheff.lu), to lend a hand or as a supplier. One project he particularly enjoyed:
«The Matgesfeld in Sanem. What a beautiful piece of land with a community garden. This is where the hideous blue sheet metal containers that were no longer needed for a school extension were deposited. Obviously, they didn't fit in with the landscape at all. So the sheet metal was wrapped in straw, as it were, as part of a fantastic participatory project. The result is not only aesthetically pleasing, but also extremely energy-efficient. The old containers are now home to the Ëmwelt- a Bildungszenter Matgesfeld centre, where lectures and Repair Cafés are held. A brilliant project!‘
www.suessem.lu/fr/galerie/inauguration-emwelt-a-bildungszenter-matgesfeld
Driven by his passion, Marc Neu is not one to give up at the slightest obstacle. As for free time, he has virtually none. «It's true that it's nice to be able to close the office door at 5pm and go home. There are risks involved in being self-employed. In fact, I was anything but lucky when I started out as a freelancer. I had barely opened my Naturbaustoff business when the COVID-19 crisis hit me hard. Then there was the wood crisis, followed by soaring energy prices and, last but not least, exorbitant interest rates. One crisis after another. It's been no picnic at all. But if I've made it this far, I can make it in the future too. I'm convinced that more and more people will realise the situation and look for realistic and sustainable solutions. When the time comes, I'll be there to support them, if need be.