GREEN BUILDINGS RISING

New AIA study reports "green" buildings are on the rise
November 20, 2009 (San Francisco Examiner)

SUMMARY
Downtown: That’s where the fight to turn back global climate change is. The bad guys are the Jets and the Sharks and Officer Krupke (that's a Westside Story reference) and the Crips and the Bloods (back to reality)and the cops and the robbers and the Mayor and the City Council and you and me and the guy on the corner.

And guess what: The people of the U.S., led by smart local politicians, are getting busy doing what has to be done because it’s just as good for their pocketbooks as it is for their climate.

The widespread and rising development of green buildings in greening cities is documented in Local Leaders in Sustainability – Green Building Policy in a Changing Economic Environment, the latest report from the American Institute of Architects (AIA),

For all the effort and clamor about stopping deforestation – and it’s certainly important to stop it – deforestation accounts for only 17% of the world’s GhGs. 40% of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions (GhGs) come from buildings.

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The short answer to global climate change is not something exotic and out of reach. It’s insulation, weather stripping, efficient windows and doors, energy-saving appliances and equipment, habits that conserve heating and cooling energy and electricity, adding solar panels and small wind and using temperature-moderating geothermal and mass transit and other obvious innovations.

While the economic downturn has slowed the growth of the New Energies and the construction industries because of slowed access to big capital, leaders in the cities of the nation have turned to Energy Efficiency and distributed small-scale New Energy like never before because it is so good for the bottom line. The costs of a green building are greater than those of traditional construction but a green building easily recoups the costs in its lifecycle and building green generates, jobs, tax revenues and supply chain business opportunities.

The ultimate goal of AIA’s report is to establish guidelines that lead to a way of life in which the concept of “building green” no longer exists because BEST building is green building.

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COMMENTARY
Statistics show clearly that the design and construction sectors of the economy have been hurt badly by the recession. Nevertheless, community leaders and policy implementers are continuing sustainable design projects. Construction has suffered “devastating” effecs but sustainable building design is maintaining, and in some cases improving, market share.

First, some key definitions (as used in the AIA study):
(1) Green Building Program - Legal or regulatory mamandate or incentive for the construction of green public, residential, and/or commercial buildings.
(2) Sustainability - Meeting present needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs.
(3) Sustainable Design - One that includes (a) avoiding the depletion of energy, water, and raw material resources, (b) preventing environmental degradation caused by facility and infrastructure development and (c) creating livable, comfortable, and safe environments that facilitate productivity.
(4) Green - A sub-set of sustainability focused on the lifecycle environmental impacts of materials, as in “Reduce, Recycle, Reuse.”
(5) Life Cycle Analysis - Assessment of the total environmental impact and business costs/benefits, from raw materials through manufacturing, packaging, shipping, installation and performance, to the final resource recovery.
(6) The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) rating system - LEED was created by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), uses life cylce analysis of the design, construction, and operation of high-performance green buildings to certify their level of sustainability.

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Major findings of the AIA study:
(1) There are 138 cities of over 50,000 people with green building programs, better than 1 in 5. That is 50% more (46) than at the time of the last (2007) AIA study.
(2) Over 53 million people live in U.S. cities with green building programs and 24 of the 25 most populous U.S. metro regions have a green building policy.
(3) 21% of surveyed cities have a green building program. The 2007 survey found such programs in only 14% of the surveyed cities. If cities under 50,000 were included, the authors believe the 21% figure would be higher.
(4) Regional distribution of green building programs:
(a) Green building is everywhere;
(b) The western region has the most green building programs (56 cities in 6 states, 41% of all green building programs);
(c) The mountain region ranks second, with 24% of U.S. green building programs and 24% of the U.S. population that have green building programs;
(d) The eastern U.S. has 75% more cities (49) such programs than it had in 2007;
(e) The central U.S. only has 21 green building programs but the AIA study found growth and innovation even in that region.
(f) The survey found that across the country cities have virtually unanimously refrained from cutting back on their green building programs in the face of the economic downturn but are, instead, integrating green building policies into their economic recovery and development plans.

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The goal of a green building program is to provide the opportunity in each unique community to create livable, sustainable lifestyles. The uniqueness of the programs is demonstrated by the report’s case studies, which show examples of diverse, holistic green community trends and practices in:
(1) Los Angeles;
(2) Boston;
(3) Grand Rapids, Mich.;
(4) Philadelphia; and
(5) Nashville.

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These case studies also show how city leaders are keeping their innovative programs going in hard economic times, in pursuit of green jobs and success in the budding New Energy economy.

The AIA study finds little doubt the U.S. Department of Energy’s $3.2 billion Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Funding, part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) directed specifically at localities, has helped to sustain the momentum of green building. But the fundamental impulse, according to AIA, comes from the simple fact that green building makes good sense.

The AIA study makes 10 broad recommendations for policymakers and community leaders, 6 of which were part of previous AIA reports and continue to be applicable and 4 of which are based on findings in the new study:
(1) Green building programs should be inclusive, bringing in the design and construction communities and aiming to create universally applicable green buildings standards.
(2) Architects should be regarded as a valuable resource.
(3) A Director of Sustainability within the Office of the Mayor is a wise expense for a community developing a green building program because someone is needed to coordinate multiple facets and move the process.
(4) Training and rating municipal employees in green building issues from the initial review to the occupancy permit creates expertise and facilitates excellent programs.
(5) Simplicity and consistency are vital to the success of a green building program, though politics might dictate more complexity.

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(6) Adding green zoning, green city planning, green city purchasing, hybrid vehicle fleets and streamlined solar permitting to the green building program adds to its momentum, popularity and acceptance.
(7) Green jobs programs and green business certification programs do the same and add players to the building program. (The relationship between green building programs and the development of green businesses is elaborated on in the “cities/trends” section of the report.)
(8) Cities should expand their programs to the metropolitan region because competition between a region’s municipalities leads to policy innovation and better programs. It also grows the programs up to the regional scale and involves the broader design and construction communities and the general public.
(9) Remove outdated legal obstacles, streamline zoning, update codes and allow for mixed-use development, greywater systems and new types of construction.
(10) The greatest effect of a green building comes when it becomes part of a green community.

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How city leaders see green, sustainable:
(1) As an investment in a healthier and environmentally friendly community of the future;
(2) As an opportunity to create green collar jobs locally;
(3) As a means of cutting local energy and water consumption and expense; and
(4) As a way to build better buildings and more livable, appealing communities.

The growth of green buildings programs between the time of the 2007 study and this 2009 study indicates the moment is ripe and U.S. city leaders are already leading the transition. The excuse that green building it too expensive is no longer applicable, freeing citizens and community leaders to imagine a better way.

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Advantages of green buildings in urban areas:
(1) They reinforce the natural efficiency of high-density walkable and mass transit-friendly neighborhoods;
(2) They incline city-planners to include nature into buildings in the form of natural lighting, green, living roofs and other natural features instead of relegating it to parks and suburbs.

Advantages of green buildings in suburban areas:
(1) Stimulates planning toward mass transit-oriented and smart-growth thinking that includes walkable, mixed-use neighborhoods;
(2) Stimulates creative people in the design and construction sectors to think in terms of Energy Efficiency.

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Going forward, cities should strengthen existing green building programs and set higher targets for greenhouse gas emissions. This will be facilitated by building rating systems based on “greenness” that lead to neighborhood designs that augment and enhance “greenness.”

Examples of such rating systems include:
(1) The STAR Community Index (ICLEI), a consensus-based measurement and rating instrument that evaluates livability and sustainability.
(2) The International Green Construction Code from the International Code Council, the first-of-a-kind code framework for commercial buildings, will be a major step toward zero-emissions buildings.

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City leaders all over the country have promulgated and protected green building programs because all over they country they see the same thing: That green building programs are a key element in the hope that comes when citizens make a commitment to the nation’s New Energy and Energy Efficiency future.

City leaders are learning that their own ambitions benefit when they lead their cities’ citizens into the benefits of the New Energy economy and the transformation that will redeem the world from the ravages of global climate change, one building, one neighborhood, one community, one city, one region and, ultimately, one country at a time.

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As the nation, through its buildings and neighborhoods and communities and cities, takes on this challenge, the knowledge, resources, and ability to transform the world grows. Buildings, which are the biggest source of climate change-inducing emissions, will become the means of turning the tide and spawning the New Energy century.

Perhaps the most important single observation in the report is that its goal – to eliminate the concept of “green building” by advocating for policies that turn it into “best building” – is in the process of rapidly becoming a reality.

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QUOTES
- From the report’s conclusion: “Over the past two years green building has continued to thrive, and we foresee that this effort will only continue to grow, particularly as communities integrate sustainable practices into economic development goals. Architects will influence the future built environment, and by pushing for green buildings, there is an opportunity to design healthy, environmentally sound buildings, which will better serve citizens of America and the world.”
- From the report’s recommendations: “…Green buildings do not exist in a vacuum. In order to truly curb carbon emissions and preserve open spaces and create livable communities, sustainability efforts must incorporate the whole built environment…Ultimately, green building practices are a piece in the larger puzzle that is a green community…”

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- From the report’s recommendations: “…when one city chooses to push ahead and lead on green building locally, a cascading effect tends to happen where the other surrounding communities also want to achieve better results. This leads to a virtuous cycle of improving and strengthened green building standards…”

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- From the report’s recommendations: “…The future is green, and cities that are on
the leading edge can capitalize on innovative policies and incubate new businesses in the clean technology industry…”
- From the report: “One of the most important observations to be gained from this research is that an effective policy is one that encourages private developers to consider sustainable features and explore the cost-effectiveness of efficient design as a matter of course…[in] the entire streetscape, leading to more vibrant and livable communities…[T]he future looks bright for sustainable design. The ultimate goal is for the concept of “building green” to no longer exist, and instead have green design integrated into all buildings. This day is soon approaching, and the AIA is advocating for policies to make this green future a reality.”