Sustainable Development Focus
Construction Dive - Aug 3 The global green building materials market is on pace to hit $255 billion by 2020, growing at an annual CAGR of approximately 12 percent, according to a report from Zion Research. Zion found the green materials market was valued at $127.5 billion in 2014, with the public facilities, education, commercial, and industrial sectors dominating market demand. In 2014, North America accounted for more than 40 percent of the total green building materials market, according to the report. One major factor behind the projected spike in green building is likely the U.S. Green Building Council's December announcement that it plans to add more than 5 billion square feet of green buildings over the next five years through its LEED and EDGE green building rating systems.
GreenBiz - Aug 8 Buildings account for nearly 40 percent of U.S. carbon emissions. Initiatives such as Architecture 2030 and California’s Title 24 are not only helping to create a general framework for sustainable buildings but also pushing the boundary with Net Zero Buildings (NZBs) or Zero Energy Buildings (ZEBs) that aim to almost completely offset a building’s adverse climate change impacts. A study from the New Buildings Institute envisions several potential futures for net zero buildings with a recent paper by ASHRAE directly addressing both potential and warnings. If NZBs are properly incorporated into the grid, they have the potential to provide enormous benefits to society and help reduce carbon emissions beyond what the buildings can do in isolation. They have the potential to make our electric grid more resilient and more sustainable by participating in demand response, energy storage, and aid in the grid’s smart modernization.
GreenBiz - Aug 8 When it comes to green building labels, Energy Star and LEED have plenty of name recognition in the U.S. Now, real estate managers have another system to consider as an alternative for proving a property’s energy efficiency and sustainable operating credentials. The 25-year-old BREEAM methodology, developed and officiated by U.K. consultancy BRE, is migrating to the U.S. under an initiative spearheaded by consulting firm BuildingWise. The first building to be assessed using the framework, a city-block-scale renovation project in downtown Los Angeles called The BLOC, should receive its certification from BREEAM USA by October.
Central Valley Business Times - Aug 3 California has moved closer to its zero net energy goals, with 108 new and renovated commercial buildings that have been either verified as generating as much energy as they consume or that are working toward that target, the California Public Utilities Commission says. The goals include having all new residential construction in California be zero net energy by 2020 and all new commercial construction by 2030. Electricity is responsible for approximately 20 percent of California’s greenhouse gas, with residential and commercial building consuming 70 percent of the electricity (equal to 14 percent of greenhouse gases).
Environmental Leader - Aug 8 Dallas Fort Worth (DFW) International Airport has become the first carbon neutral airport in North America by switching to renewable energy sources and converting its bus fleet to compressed natural gas vehicles, among other low-carbon initiatives. The Airport Carbon Accreditation Program upgraded DFW Airport to “Level 3+ Neutrality,” which is the highest level of environmental achievement available to airports. Since 2010, DFW has achieved 29 percent reduction in carbon emissions on a per passenger basis as well as an overall 38 percent reduction in energy costs, while total passengers at the airport increased by 15 percent over the same period.
Portland Business Journal - Aug 8 Columbia Green Technologies is putting its stamp on Amazon's urban campus in downtown Seattle. The Portland-based green roof company is topping off the Doppler and Meeting Center rooftops that are part of Amazon's four-block vertical campus with technologies to manage stormwater. Vegetative roofs help capture stormwater that would otherwise flow into stormwater systems. Green roofs can also result in considerable savings. San Diego-based American Assets Trust, the developer of the huge Hassalo on Eighth luxury housing complex in Portland's Lloyd EcoDistrict, said it saved nearly $1.5 million after adding an onsite sewer and stormwater treatment system, which included green roof technology.
E&E Publishing - Aug 8 Del Mar has pledged to switch to 100 percent renewable power by 2035, a goal approved by the City Council as part of a climate action plan (CAP). Late last year, San Diego approved a CAP as part of a general plan update subject to the California Environmental Quality Act, which means the city could be sued if it failed to take pledged actions. Del Mar's move is more of a road map, without a legal obligation to cut emissions. The city of 4,300 people created a list of actions it could take to meet the green goal. At the forefront is offering community choice aggregation, through which the city would become a kind of alternative utility that buys electricity for residents. It could then seek renewable power beyond the levels of San Diego Gas & Electric Co. Other options include making streets more pedestrian-friendly to reduce vehicle trips, putting in roundabouts to curb idling, reducing waste sent to landfills, designating parking spaces for electric cars and for scooters and motorcycles, and collaborating with neighboring cities on adding a nearby fueling station for alternative fuel vehicles.
