The scope of the report includes the US market for building products that meet these definitions of ‘green’:

• made from salvaged, recycled, or agricultural waste content
• manufactured with resource efficient, environmentally friendly processes (minimize waste, energy consumption, pollutants)
• benefit the built environment (conserve enegy, reduce indoor pollutants)
• are recyclable at the end of their useful life

The goal of the report is to identify and prioritize business opportunities for providers of green building materials (and investors) that will increase over the next five years as green building technologies increase their market penetration.  It also offers profiles of the top companies in those markets. 

Buy the report or read more at www.bharatbooks.com

The 30,000-sf, $5.5 million structure at 1095 W. League City Pkwy. will serve as the company’s new headquarters.

Wood from sustainable forests, as well as recycled carpet and countertops, were used to complete the interior. A reflective roof and eight-inch thick concrete walls insulate the building.

Concave light fixtures maximize bulb reflection and allow the building to use fewer lights. In addition, large sun-reflecting glass windows let in natural light but prevent heat from entering the building.

“We’re trying to set an example on the island that green is feasible and effective in the long run,” said Hank Hodde, education director for the U.S. Green Building Council’s Galveston branch. “It has to be more than a fad. Energy resources are just going to continue to decrease.”

About 80 percent of waste that resulted from building the credit union was recycled.

Buildings that acquire LEED certification demonstrate high standards in construction, operations, maintenance and have an environmentally conscious design.

“The fact that this growth in green building is occurring during an economic downturn indicated both that green building has become mainstream and that owners and developers are seeing it as a way to compete in the new marketplace,” said James Andrews, chairman of the USGBC’s local chapter. “It appears to reflect growing recognition by owners, operators, contractors and the community at large of the return on investment, both financially and environmentally, that green building and sustainable development brings to a region.”

The benefits of constructing under the LEED guidelines are found in buildings such as the Advanced Micro Devices campus, which has yielded annual savings of 20 percent on energy use campuswide.

The most recent buildings to achieve LEED certification in the Texas capital are the Livestrong headquarters in east Austin and the Department of Veteran Affairs Financial Services Center. Within Central Texas, Austin leads the way with 44 LEED-certified buildings and more than 190 properties awaiting certification.

This is a 2 minute version of the full 12 minute Green Building Education Film produced and directed for Stiles Corporation’s Lake Shore Plaza II project. This film earned 1 Innovation and Design Point for LEED Certification.

Sponsored by the Texas Solar Energy Society and Austin Energy Green Building, the annual Cool House Tour is coming this weekend, June 6.  Go here for details and ticket instructions:  http://www.txses.org/solar/content/cool-house-tour

One of your stops will be this renovated 1917 cottage at 607 Deep Eddy Avenue featuring sustainable materials such as renewable eucalyptus cabinetry and recycled paper countertops.

Or how about this updated AD Stenger home at 440 Ridgewood Drive? 

Get your guidebook/ticket at any Central Market, and google map your favorites!  Hope to see you there!

Builders turned bottles from Taiwan’s waste stream for reprocessing, into plastic containers that interlock strongly enough to block the elements and withstand storms or earthquakes, said Arthur Huang, managing director of the contractor Miniwiz Sustainable Energy Development Ltd.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/8622212.stm

The Sisters at the 30,000 foot, two-story monastery in Middleton, Wisconsin never intended to set a LEED record. Apparently, they have always prized sustainability–just take a look at their restoration of 95 acres of farmland to prairie and their project to dredge a glacial lake that had been previously been filled with silt.

Of course, the monastery still had to work hard to set the record. Some of the ultra-green features in the Hoffman LLC-designed building include a geothermal heating and cooling system, a photovoltaic system on the Chapel roof, windows with special glazing that allow for light and climate control, and the restoration and reuse of old pipe organs and bells. Almost 100% of the 60,000-square-foot old Benedictine House was also recycled or reused in the building process. Not bad for a bunch of Sisters with a dream.

This article courtesy of FastCompany.com, written by Ariel Schwartz.

Or ask the manufacturing workers in the Midwest who, because their companies successfully transitioned into clean energy manufacturing, escaped the job loss that befell millions of their brethren over the past decade. In Ohio, a business that once manufactured packaging materials now produces harvesters that transform algae into fuels and plastics. Another that produced large-diameter bolts for construction projects is now making bolts for wind turbines. Not only do these jobs provide the income and stability that Americans want, but they also contribute to U.S. energy independ­ence and fight global climate change.

The statistics don’t lie: Even without a comprehensive national policy, clean energy jobs in the United States have grown at more than twice the rate of overall jobs over the past decade, according to a 2009 study by the Pew Charitable Trusts. Passage of a federal clean energy and climate bill will increase these job numbers exponentially by unleashing a torrent of economic innovation that has the potential not only to save our environment and climate but also to revive the U.S. economy.

By Jerome Ringo in US News and World Report

Jerome Ringo is the former president of the Apollo Alliance, a coalition that promotes clean energy and green jobs. He is currently senior executive for global strategies with Green Port, a private company that focuses on establishing sustainable “green” ports around the world.  Full Article available at:  http://www.usnews.com/articles/opinion/2010/02/22/green-jobs-are-putting-america-to-work.html

Even the startup costs of building green can be comparable or less expensive than average construction prices where resource efficient and smaller mechanical, electrical and structural systems are more effective than oversized, underutilized systems, according to the US Green Building Council (USGBC). Generally, McGraw-Hill Construction estimates that green buildings generate an increase of 7.5% in a building’s value and a 6.6% improvement in return on investment, while decreasing operating costs by 8-9%.

The payoffs go far beyond financial returns. A recent study published by the University of San Diego and CB Richard Ellis Group showed that employees in LEED certified buildings take 2.9 less sick days each year than in non-green offices, which saves their employers roughly $1,200 per worker and results in significant productivity gains that generate sales. The research doesn’t determine exactly which green technologies improve employee health and productivity, but it is clear that natural lighting and cleaner air increase office stamina and even retain staff.

Externally, green buildings are creating market differentiation opportunities, improving reputations with clients and minimizing risks to corporate brand equity. Even in recessionary times, green buildings have been commanding higher rents; $30 per square foot, $3 over the national average of $27, and vacancy rates are over a percentage point lower. Green buildings also welcome government tenants and increase public sector good will.

Demand for green buildings continues to climb, as the value of green building construction is expected to reach $60 billion in 2010, up from $12 billion in 2008. Green is being incorporated into building codes at local and state levels. By upgrading now, buildings can anticipate these mandates and upgrade on their own terms, avoiding delays or operational losses. As more and more buildings become LEED certified, traditional buildings risk obsolescence and forfeit any first mover benefits of going green. Simply put, green buildings create a triple net effect, benefitting the owners’ bottom line, its tenants, and the environment. This author is left with just one question: Why notbuild green?

Courtesy of www.justmeans.com

UNEP’s report, “Buildings and Climate Change – Summary for Decision Makers,” emphasizes that buildings are an area of great potential to impact climate change. The report is a result of three years of study by the UNEP Sustainable Buildings and Climate Initiative (SBCI), a think tank and partnership between the United Nations and leading companies and organizations in the building sector.

Buildings account for more than 30 percent of worldwide energy use. Fortunately, buildings present vast opportunities to reduce energy consumption and related greenhouse gas emissions. Globally, buildings generate the equivalent of 8.6 billion tons of CO2 a year, according to the report, and this amount is expected to nearly double over the next two decades. Population growth and urbanization are cited as the impetus for new construction growth.

For example, new construction in China over the next ten years will be so prolific that it will equal the size of all existing buildings in the United States, the report says. Investment in new buildings is also expected in South Africa. UNEP warns booms like these will likely double the amount of pollution associated with energy use in buildings.

Along with the report, the climate summit served as the debut of SBCI’s global Common Carbon Metric for Buildings to measure energy efficiency and greenhouse gas emissions of buildings. The new metrics were created in conjunction with the International Energy Agency, International Standardization organization, World Green Building Council, International Initiative for the Sustainable Built Environment and Sustainable Buildings Alliance as well as private sector companies and associations.

This information adapted from greenandsave.com News