Condos go green

Green bona fides: This is the first large residential building in San Francisco with a facade cladding made of Trespa, a wood pulp and resin material that is both practical and environmentally friendly.

It also boasts a "living roof," for water conservation, which is an issue even for northern California coastal cities. The sod covering not only saves water, it naturally cools and warms the building as well.

Other green features: High efficiency insulation materials and windows also cut back on heat and cooling costs. Low-energy-use appliances enable conservation on an individual level. Many of the materials used are rapidly renewable, including bamboo and cork floors used in lobbies.

The units all come with European style, dual-flush toilets. They can do a full flush, which uses several quarts of water, or a low flush, which uses less than half as much.

Prices: From the low-$500,000s for a 600-square-foot one-bedroom, to $1.3 million for a 1,000-square-foot two-bedroom, penthouse. Some 1,240-square-foot three-bedroom, townhouse units go for about $1 million.

For more information: Arterra