China builds modern neighborhood -- chicagotribune.com
Mystery Reader sends this Chinese housing story. Given the pace of housing construction in China, mainly in common interest housing developments, energy conservation measures there would really amount to something.

BEIJING - It's easy to overlook the small community of houses rising northwest of this sprawling capital. But these aren't just any suburban homes. They will be some of the cleanest and most energy-efficient structures in China -- or almost anywhere else in the world -- when they are completed this year. Wind turbines and solar panels will power the 10 houses, which will also use innovative techniques to save water. The project uses green technology from the United States, Europe and elsewhere in an effort to showcase building methods that could be used more widely in China.In a country with 1.3 billion people and massive migration from the countryside to the cities, the stakes are high. Over the next 20 years, as many as 400 million more Chinese are expected to move to urban areas.