Continuing the industry-specific discussions held during its November 2006 Greenbuild conference, the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has created Member Circle listservs representing ten industry sectors: contractors and builders, product manufacturers, educators, government professionals, architects, engineers, site designers and planners, interior designers, real-estate professionals, and facilities managers. “We encourage all employees of USGBC member companies to participate in the dialogue by sharing best practices and lessons learned relating to green building and LEED^®,” says USGBC, which plans to expand each Member Circle to include a webpage, a calendar of events, and articles. For more information or to sign up, visit www.usgbc.org/DisplayPage.aspx?CMSPageID=297.

Whole Foods Market, Inc., a Fortune 500 company based in Austin, Texas, has purchased more than 458,000 megawatt-hours of wind energy credits to offset all of the electricity used in its stores, facilities, bake houses, distribution centers, regional offices and national headquarters in the U.S. and Canada. The two-year contract with Renewable Choice Energy, Inc., represents the largest corporate purchase of renewable energy credits in U.S. history, according to Kurt Johnson, director of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Green Power Partnership. For more on renewable energy credits, see

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Vol. 11, No. 5.

The nonprofit Center for Neighborhood Technology (CNT) has earned a Platinum rating in the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED^® Rating System for new construction and major renovations for the renovation of its headquarters in Chicago. The 14,000 ft² (1,300 m²) building is expected to use about half the energy of a conventional building. “CNT’s mission is to promote more livable and sustainable urban communities,” says CEO Kathryn Tholin. “We wanted to actually live that mission through this renovation, and show other organizations that you do not need an enormous budget or a

new building to become green.” The renovation cost only $82 per ft² ($880/m²), compared to $90–$130 per ft² ($970–$1,300/m²) for conventional rehabilitations in Chicago, according to the project’s architect, Farr Associates Architecture, Planning, and Preservation. CNT is online at www.cnt.org. Details about the renovation are at building.cnt.org.

Ecotone Publishing, LLC, based in Kansas City, Missouri, announced in February 2006 that it will offset all carbon dioxide emissions related to its business operations. Ecotone, which publishes books about green design and construction, purchased 50 tons (45 tonnes) of carbon offsets to cover emissions caused by its travel, waste production, and use of paper, fossil fuels, and electricity in 2005. Ecotone’s announcement followed a similar initiative in May 2005 by New Society Publishers, based in Gabriola Island, British Columbia. New Society purchased 235 tons (213 tonnes) of carbon offsets to cover its 2003 operations. Snowbooks, Ltd., based in London, was the first publisher in the world to become carbon neutral, in 2004. Ecotone is online at www.ecotonedesign.com. New Society is at www.newsociety.com. Snowbooks is at www.snowbooks.com.

Hopland, California, experienced its worst flood in more than 50 years on December 31, 2005, decimating the Real Goods Solar Living Institute (see BuildingGreen’s Case Studies Database). “The devastation to the site from being 8'–10' [2.5–3 m] under water for many hours is staggering,” says John Schaeffer, founder and president of Real Goods. The geodesic dome that housed interns burned to the ground, four cars and one tractor were submerged, all of the natural buildings on the site were damaged, and archives, tools, workshop materials, furniture, and personal property were destroyed, amounting to at least $150,000 in direct damages, according to Schaeffer. Fortunately, he reports, the main building was built above the 100-year flood level and suffered no damage. The institute is welcoming donations for rebuilding at www.solarliving.org/flood.cfm.

New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson signed an executive order in January 2006 requiring all executive branch state agencies, including the Higher Education Department, to adopt the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED^® Rating System. New buildings 15,000 ft² (1,400 m²) or larger and those with over 50 kW of peak electricity demand are required to achieve LEED Silver. The same applies to renovation projects that are 15,000 ft² or larger or have over 50 kW of peak electricity demand and include upgrading or replacing two of the three major systems (HVAC, lighting, and plumbing). In addition, all new and renovation projects larger than 5,000 ft² (465 m²) are required to use no more than half the average U.S. energy consumption for their building type, as defined by the U.S. Department of Energy. The order is online at www.governor.state.nm.us/orders/2006/EO_2006_001.pdf.

New federal efficiency standards for residential central air conditioners took effect in January 2006. President Clinton set the 30% jump in efficiency, from SEER 10 to SEER 13; President Bush challenged the move but was overruled by the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in a lawsuit brought by the Natural Resources Defense Council (see

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Vol. 13, No. 5). The new standard applies only to newly manufactured units; less efficient equipment manufactured before the standard took effect may still be sold.

The American Institute of Architects (AIA) Center for Communities by Design has selected six communities and two regions to receive technical assistance in 2006 under the Sustainable Design Assessment Team (SDAT) program. The towns are New Orleans, Louisiana; Syracuse, New York; Longview, Washington; Guemes Island, Washington; Lawrence, Kansas; and Hagerstown, Maryland. The regions are northeast Michigan (including Presque Isle, Alpena, and Alcona counties) and northern Nevada (including the same area as the corresponding AIA chapter). “The forward-looking program is intended to help address challenges that communities face, such as transportation design strategies, air- and water-quality improvement possibilities, local economic development, brownfields issues, and how to manage growth associated with increasing and shifting populations,” says David Downey, Assoc. AIA, managing director of the Center. See

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Vol. 14, No. 8 for more about SDAT. The Center for Communities by Design is online at www.aia.org/liv_default.

Downtown populations in the U.S. grew 10% in the 1990s, according to a Brookings Institution report, following 20 years of overall decline. The study, “Who Lives Downtown,” presents findings related to downtown population, household, and income trends in 44 cities from 1970 to 2000. The study is online at www.brookings.edu (search for “downtown”).

Six former administrators of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), including five Republicans, called on the Bush administration to impose limits on greenhouse gas emissions, which are contributing to global climate change. “This is a major disaster for the world,” said Russell Train, who served under Presidents Nixon and Ford from 1973 to 1977. William Ruckelshaus, who served as the first EPA administrator, under President Nixon from 1970 to 1973, and again under President Reagan from 1983 to 1985, agreed, noting, “Why argue about things you can’t prove? . . . There are all kinds of things we can do right now, and we ought to be taking those steps.” According to Lee Thomas, who served under President Reagan from 1985 to 1989, “We’ve got to start on this action. We can’t wait.” The U.S. Department of Energy anticipates a 37% increase in U.S. carbon emissions by 2030.