Thank you for the article on the Greenguard™ certification program (in

EBN

Vol. 12, No. 10). Unfortunately, some of the information presented in the article may be misleading. I would like to comment on a few issues you mentioned.

The story behind this switch is quite interesting.

Roger Maynard, AIA, of the Maynard/David Partnership, Inc., a... Read more

The request for proposals (RFP) for a new municipal building lands on your desk. It includes a requirement that you specify environmentally preferable products (EPP) without compromising performance or increasing costs. You’ve used green materials in buildings before, so this requirement shouldn’t be a problem—you just have to find out how the... Read more

The Office of the Federal Environmental Executive has released a report detailing, for the first time, the federal government’s progress in greening their own building stock. The report, “The Federal Commitment to Green Building: Experiences and Expectations,” outlines the state of federal green building, barriers to increased progress, and... Read more

We have assembled for the second year a best-of compilation of papers being presented at Greenbuild. The Pittsburgh Papers includes 15 papers on topics... Read more

The U.S. Green Building Council is accepting applications for pilot testing their

LEED™ Rating System for Core and Shell Development (LEED-CS). Many buildings qualifying for consideration under LEED-CS will be designed and built speculatively, without tenant commitment. Intended for projects where the owner does not control interior... Read more

The Danish Uridan® line has been introduced to the U.S. market by Uridan-USA (a division of GDK International) of Kissimmee, Florida. Uridan joins two domestic manufacturers of non-water-using urinals—Waterless Company (see

EBN

Vol. 7, No. 2) and... Read more

Germany leads the global biodiesel market, producing over a million metric tons each year and making the alternative to conventional, petroleum-based diesel fuel available at filling stations around the country. Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has awarded $960,000 in grants to conduct a biodiesel fuel education program. The ... Read more

Leading sustainable design and engineering firm Arup has opened a Seattle office to better serve the Pacific Northwest. Arup is currently working on projects in Seattle and Portland, including the new Seattle Public Library (with Rem Koolhaas’ Office of Metropolitan Architecture), the new Justice Center, Weiden and Kennedy’s Corporate... Read more

The U.S. Green Building Council is accepting applications for pilot testing their LEED™ Rating System for Core and Shell Development (LEED-CS). Many buildings qualifying for consideration under LEED-CS will be designed and built speculatively, without tenant commitment. Intended for projects where the owner does not control interior design and... Read more

The Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) was honored as a finalist in the Environment Design category of the National Design Awards from the Smithsonian Institution’s Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum. RMI was recognized for their “innovative green design processes that promote the efficient and restorative use of resources and new business models... Read more

The financial benefits of clean-air regulations over the past decade were 6 to 10 times greater than the costs of complying with them, according to “Informing Regulatory Decisions,” a comprehensive study undertaken by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs. According to the same report, the... Read more

California has become the first state in the country to ban the manufacture, processing, and commercial distribution of two chemicals that have been shown to cause neurological and developmental damage to humans. The legislation affects two types of PBDEs (polybrominated diphenyl ethers), both of which are common flame retardants: The penta... Read more

Despite steady increases in residential energy-efficiency technologies, homes built over the past decade use an average 92.7 million Btus of energy each year, more than homes built in the previous three decades, according to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Energy Information Administration. DOE blames the larger size of new homes for the... Read more

GreenWood Ranch Estates held a grand opening in August for what is thought to be the country’s first grid-independent subdivision. Homes in the Arizona community (midway between Phoenix and Las Vegas) start at under $100,000. Each of its 487 homes will be equipped with a 1.65 kW photovoltaic power system. The homes will use propane for some... Read more

Green Ground Zero has extended the registration deadline for their International Sustainable Design Competition for Lower Manhattan. The competition was officially launched in September with a keynote speech by Architect William McDonough. Registrations are due February 9, and submissions are due February 16. Details are available online at www... Read more

The Northern Hemisphere is warmer now than it has been at any point in the past 2,000 years, according to a study by British and American researchers published in

Geophysical Research Letters this August. Meanwhile, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) acknowledged in a July press release that global warming is causing... Read more

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is planning a

national program to promote water efficiency, in the hopes of reducing both water use and water and wastewater infrastructure needs nationwide. As part of the program, EPA is considering a water-efficiency label similar to the successful Energy Star label. More information on... Read more

Few things are as fundamental to human well-being as the air we breathe. This issue of EBN features air filtration, a complex and important topic. Lurking behind the filtration technologies and life-cycle cost analyses, however, is an ethical and social minefield.