North Carolina House passes anti-LEED bill

The N.C. House of Representatives approved a final reading of a bill that is expected to bar public projects from using the USGBC's LEED program. The bill will now move to the state senate for review. H.B. 628 says that public projects may use “a nationally recognized high-performance environmental building rating system” if that program doesn’t use a credit system “disadvantaging materials or products manufactured or produced” in N.C.

New NASA base exceeds LEED Platinum

The new NASA Sustainability Base at the Ames Research Center in Mountain View, California will exceed the requirements of LEED Platinum with systems that will eventually use only renewable energy and closed-loop water maintenance facilities. Atop the two-story 50,000-square-foot building is a solid-oxide fuel cell and rooftop solar arrays, supplying the building with more energy than it requires and sending surplus electricity back into the grid.

Boston to require energy disclosures

Boston will become the eighth city in the U.S. with an energy rating policy, following similar recent legislation in Philadelphia and Minneapolis. The citywide building energy rating and disclosure policy, passed by the city council on May 8, applies to all commercial buildings 35,000 square feet or larger and residential buildings with 35 units or more. The ordinance requires building owners to report and disclose energy and water usage and greenhouse gas emissions and will cover approximately 1,600 buildings.

Cornell's net-zero tech campus

The New York City Council approved Cornell’s two-million-square-foot tech carbon positive campus planned for Roosevelt Island. Construction will commence with the first, state-of-the-art academic building that will feature the latest environmental advances, such as geothermal and solar power, to achieve net-zero energy for the landmark structure.

Lake Tahoe ski resort wins environmental honor

Homewood Mountain Resort in Northern Lake Tahoe earned the Golden Eagle Award for environmental stewardship by the National Ski Areas Association (NSAA), in honor of Homewood's commitment to innovative watershed management and the water-quality monitoring. The annual award is NSAA’s highest environmental honor and recognizes exemplary environmental performance in the ski resort industry.

The top 10 green building projects of 2013

The American Institute of Architecture’s annual list of the most sustainable new structures around the country includes a brewery, a school, and a senior housing facility. Half of this year's winners are in California.

U.S. job market bursting with green tech opportunities

Colorado's Ecotech Institute tracks the growth of the green job market. New data reveals over 700,000 clean jobs posted across the United States between January 1, 2013 and March 31, 2013.

EPA grants of $62.5M to green U.S. communities

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the selection of 240 recipients recommended to receive $62.5 million in grants to protect people’s health and the environment in local communities. These new investments, funded by EPA’s Brownfields Assessment, Revolving Loan Fund, and Cleanup (ARC) grants, provide communities with funding necessary to assess, cleanup, and redevelop contaminated properties, boost local economies, and leverage jobs.

Top 10 countries for LEED building

The USGBC released an infographic of "LEED in the World." The U.S., China, and the UAE lead the world because they have the most LEED projects.

Motor City starting over from scratch

Detroit has emptied out so much in the last few decades that certain neighborhoods are starting over from scratch to be more sustainable. Boston-based Sasaki Associates, for instance, has come up with an ambitious plan called TechTown to replace abandoned, crumbling infrastructure with sustainable development.

Green roofs -- a haven for native plants

Green roofs save energy, improve water management, and expand natural space. National Geographic grantee Clark DeLong is studying how adding native species to green roofs can provide conservation and add habitat.