The Lake Manitoba First Nation, a two-hour drive north-west of Winnipeg, may have found the proverbial needle in a haystack as they prepare to move a family of six next week into the first straw-bale construction home completed on a Manitoba reserve. Less than two years ago, community leaders say they began an exhaustive search for an innovative way to alleviate the backlog of 100 families waiting to for new homes to replace their existing ones, which are simply crumbling apart.
What they found in that search, say band officials, was straw-bale home construction - renewable, sustainable, simple to construct and, at a cost of $50,000, nearly 30 per cent cheaper to build than the dozen comparable $75,000 woodframe homes recently constructed on the reserve.
That means the reserve could conceivably build three straw-bale homes for the cost of two woodframe houses.
"It was an experiment that proved we can build better, build smarter and cheaper," said recently elected Chief Margaret Swan. "With our housing needs being so acute it is essential that we find a way to maximize every housing dollar we have at our disposal and this looks like the way to accomplish this."
Recent protests in Winnipeg by members of nearly a dozen bands in the province who allege financial mismanagement by their own chiefs and councils, including the failure to direct funds earmarked to improve housing conditions on reserves, serve to underscore the need to develop initiatives that Native communities can participate and have confidence in, said Swan.
In the case of the Lake Manitoba project, the ebullient chief proudly pointed out that residents volunteered their own time and labor to help get the house built.
While the new home was funded out of the reserve's current housing budget allocation, all volunteer labor and materials were factored in to determine the $50,000 price tag, said Swan
However, the 18 months needed to complete the home was longer than expected as band members went through the sometimes painstaking process of learning how to build homes based on an unfamiliar concept.
"We had to rewire the house a couple of times because even Manitoba Hydro wasn't to sure how it should be done," conceded former band councillor Robert Maytwayashing.
But now that they have the technique down pat, Maytwayashing says the next straw homes - two more are planned for construction next year - could be built in about six months and for even less.
"The next straw home can probably be built for $40,000," he confidently predicted.
What makes the project so satisfying for the community, says Swan, was the support they received from non-Native business people and local trades people who helped them complete the project.
"It was really encouraging to see people from outside the community assist us by donating their time and expertise, and in some cases even construction materials, to help us see this project through."
A Winkler-based company, Shweitzer-Mauduit, donated the 350 flax-straw bales needed to construct the walls of the new home, while Oakville entrepreneur Henry Kleeman donated his labor to install a state-of-the-art epoxy-based floor covering throughout the 1,100 sq. ft. home.
Kleeman said it was important to support a reserve looking to develop their own solutions for their housing crisis.
"It is a terrific project. The whole thing has developed community pride and confidence and clearly demonstrates that contrary to public perception there are Native communities trying their hardest to come up with practical ways of helping themselves."
And the "straw house," as it is referred to by most residents of the community of 350 people bordering on the eastern shore of Lake Manitoba, appears to be a perfect fit for the reserve's housing needs.
In addition to its cost benefits, Maytwayashing says the concept is environmentally sound, using an easily renewable resource - flax straw - and provides the opportunity for residents to do a lot of the work themselves.
It's a theme echoed by Terry LeBlanc of World Vision Canada, who was contacted by reserve leaders when they learned of the organization's work in providing expertise for alternative housing projects.
"This type of housing is ideal for Native communities to develop construction skills that they can use for themselves as well as export to other communities," said LeBlanc, who heads the Aboriginal programs department for the humanitarian organization.
The potential for other reserves to capitalize on the Lake Manitoba experiment is readily apparent, said Barry McKay, who along with two dozen others, traveled from the Rolling River reserve near Riding Mountain National Park to get a first-hand look at the unique construction method.
"Like most First Nations we also need to find ways to get the most bang for our housing dollar and develop usable skills," he said. "This type of home looks like the way to go."
Chief Swan told visitors who braved the driving rain during the home's unveiling that her community would assist other reserves by sending community members to provide their recently acquired expertise.
"That's what gives our people true ownership of this type of initiative and it's something we can share with other communities," she said.
Although there are numerous examples of 100-year-old straw homes in Nebraska, the move towards this type of construction of homes is only now beginning to catch on, said LeBlanc.
"There are fewer than 3,500 straw bale homes presently constructed in North America."
However, it appears that Canada's reserves are at the forefront of increasing the popularity of the novel construction method.
Reserves in Alberta and British Columbia, as well as Metis communities in Saskatchewan have already built several straw bale homes, and in Manitoba, the Sioux Valley reserve near Brandon, is presently building two straw home of their own.
From all outward appearances, the modest white bungalow nestled on a two-acre parcel of land, looks no different than a regular wood frame construction home and gives no hint that it's entire perimeter is constructed of 350 densely compressed flax-straw bales.
Flax-straw bales are ideal because of their low moisture content, high density and pest resistance, according to Herb Nelson, a flax fibre expert.
Inside the home 18-inch deep window sills throughout, indicate this is no ordinary home, boasting an insulation factor of R50, and walls which are touted to be able to withstand 100-mile-per-hour winds.
"When we started this thing we heard every three-pig and big bad wolf joke in the world," quipped Swan.
But all jokes aside, the home secured Canadian Mortgage and Housing Commission approval and has a fire-rating double that of wood frame homes.
And in a community where monthly hydro heating costs average $350 a month, the new energy-efficient home is expected to cut that bill by over one-third.
For Swan and others in the community the real satisfaction of a job well done will come when the new owners of the home move in.
Pointing to the bright well-lit kitchen, and superbly finished detail throughout the home, a tired but proud Swan, says it will be a moment for everyone in the community to celebrate.
"Now that everyone can see for themselves that the community has the where-with-all to get something done on their own, we can build on this first step."
Gazing out of the living-room windows on neighboring homes in desperate need of replacement, Swan harbors no illusions. "We won't have time to sit around and pat each other on the back. We've got a lot more work to do."
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