Environmental Housing to the Extreme

I recently came across this article on the internet that displayed a house built in whales that was built environmentally consciously. When i began to read the article and stopped because my attention was grabbed not by the words i was reading but the pictures of the actual house. Not until i viewed all the pictures did i begin to read the article again. The pictures are amazing and remind me of a hobbit hole from Tolkiens Lord of The Rings books. It made me really jealous of the house and thoughts of how i could build my own hobbit home!

While my reaction to this home was very positive I am somewhat pessimistic of it's practicality. For example while this house is environmentally friendly in the materials it's built with, but was it built in the most economically conscious way? Also will this home be able to endure mother nature?