Sustainable Buildings: The Next Green Wave

25 Aug 2008 Sustainable principles for the design, construction, and renovation of homes and buildings are imperatives that will yield economic, health, and most importantly, environmental benefits. In terms of lowering the ecological footprint of the built environment, the lion's share of media attention and legislative focus has thus far centered on automobiles and alternative fuel sources. Both areas are important when developing strategies to help mitigate climate change, but they're not the largest contributors of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. That burden falls on homes and buildings.

The Impact of Buildings

Buildings and the embedded energy within their interiors account for an estimated 48 percent of all GHG emissions, far more than transportation (27 percent) and industry (25 percent). To boot, 71 percent of all electricity generated by power plants goes toward operating buildings. Homes and buildings in the United States account for nearly the same amount of carbon emissions as the economies of Japan, France, and the United Kingdom combined. If current trends continue, annual energy consumption in the United States is expected to increase by 37 percent over the next twenty years. During that same time frame, GHG emissions from buildings are expected to rise by 36 percent. But here's where the tide can turn: by 2035, three-quarters of the buildings in the United States will be new or significantly renovated, allowing for a radical change in thinking and design.

The Barrier of Cost

In December 2007, the McKinsey & Company consulting firm released a report titled "Reducing U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions: How Much at What Cost?" It examined the cost of five different initiatives that could significantly lower GHGs through whatever changes would be necessary to reduce the carbon emissions from automobiles, industrial plants, electrical power sources, and carbon sinks. The initiatives determined that improving the energy efficiency in buildings and appliances would have the lowest average cost of any area. "This largest cluster of negative cost options included lighting retrofits; improved heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems; building envelopes and building control systems; and use of efficient consumer and office electronics and appliances. "