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Green Building Rules Go Private in America's Cities
by Teresa Herrmann - May 6th, 2008
in
Apocalyptic scenes usually paint cities as the center of civilization’s demise.
Here's a new twist on that old tale: new regulations require private buildings -- not just public ones -- to follow green standards are cropping up in America's cities.
And they may just transform our urban jungles into greenhouse gas saviors.
Buildings are responsible for an eye-popping 43 percent of the nation's carbon pollution. Cities can chip away at that pollution through tough regs on buildings, especially on private development projects.
And some cities have already begun. Fourteen in fact, reports the LA Times.
Take Los Angeles.
It has just passed a package of new building laws called Private Sector Green. The rules will require all private building projects greater than 50,000 square feet to be certified by the US Green Building Council’s LEED standard.
In exchange for building green, the city will work with developers to speed up construction approvals and to remove obstacles in the municipal code for elements of sustainable building design, such as green rooftops and permeable pavement.
San Francisco is staking its green building claim too with its own standards for private construction, while Dallas is making its mark in the South.
Beginning in 2009, the Texas city will require all homes and commercial projects to be 15 percent more efficient than the base energy code. And by 2011, all Dallas homes will be built to LEED standards or the Green Built North Texas Standard, and all commercial projects will be LEED certifiable.
Portland may soon levy taxes against buildings that don't meet green standards in a first-ever carbon tax for homes.
Buildings that increase their efficiency by 30 percent won't incur any fees. Buildings that become 45 percent more efficient will see cash rewards.
It's just the beginning really. But the signs are plenty that America's cities -- and their leaders, of course -- may just help to save us after all.
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