My friend and one of the nation’s leading pioneers in energy efficiency, Blair Hamilton of Burlington, Vermont, died on April 8, 2011 after a long battle with non-Hodgkins lymphoma. He was first diagnosed with the disease in 1991, but continued his highly productive work for two more decades.

In 1986, Blair was the cofounder... Read more

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has published a higher emissions standard for producers of PVC (polyvinyl chloride), the type of vinyl commonly used to make pipes, windows, siding, and other building products. The proposed new rule is designed to protect public health in communities near the plants.

PVC plants emit a... Read more

The American Institute of Architects Committee on the Environment (AIA-COTE) has announced its Top Ten Green Projects for 2011. “The bar has been raised” since the Top Ten competition began, noted members of the jury. “Now we want to see diverse project types, projects that resolve urban issues or social issues, projects that change... Read more

Owens Corning's EnergyComplete latex foam sealant is applied with a paint sprayer, goes on quickly, and remains flexible after curing.

Build tight, ventilate right is the building science mantra. Spray-on latex sealants provide a new tool for airtight construction.

Last month I watched a demonstration of Owens Corning's "... Read more

Sometimes being a practical person isn’t that fun. Last night my wife and I were watching the classic 1977 movie, “Close Encounters of the Third Kind.”

Leading up to the climactic scene, the protagonists are racing to the location where they expect aliens to appear, while outrunning the U.S. Army and the United Nations. To do... Read more

 

Dow Global Technologies has announced a new flame retardant for use in polystyrene insulation. Dow hopes the new chemical, a brominated flame-retardant (BFR), will replace HBCD (hexabromocyclododecane), a BFR whose use has come under fire from the European Union for environmental and health reasons (see “Flame Retardant Used in... Read more

It turns out you can learn a thing or two from your fuel bill—and if you get fuel delivered, your delivery ticket.

But first, how cold a winter did you think it was? Or perhaps I should say, how cold has it been so far? I’m struggling to get a fire going this morning, and out my window there is two feet of snowpack still on the... Read more

In April's EBN, we take a look at green structural engineering, insulation in-fighting, and a revolutionary anticorrosion coating. Plus: embodied carbon in 500 words or less!

The roof of the Kogod Courtyard at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington is an undulating gridshell of steel, aluminum, and glass. For the April 2011 feature... Read more

The Evora cork flooring in this kitchen is renewable, comfortable, and surprisingly durable.

Kitchen renovation on your list? We pick some standout green products that are worth a look.If you're trying to green a kitchen, you're in luck. Kitchens use a lot of energy and water, and as an indoor environment, they are a place we like to keep... Read more

Power corrupts, and wind power corrupts pristine ridgelines. Maybe it doesn't have to.

Wind faces fierce opposition in Vermont; this Searsburg operation is the only existing project.

I've always assumed that opponents of wind power were just displaying a faux-green kind of NIMBYism. If these protestors really cared about the... Read more

by CMPBS, 8604 FM 969, Austin, Texas, 78724; www.cmpbs.org. Published 2010, 332 pages, hardback, $75.

This delightful book reviews 35 years of pioneering vision, research, and demonstration by the Center for Maximum Potential Building Systems (CMPBS), in Austin, Texas. Through hundreds of illustrations, photographs, and descriptive text,... Read more

AIA Surveys People Downloading Its Sample IPD Forms

Source: The American Institute of Architects (AIA). Survey done June 23 – July 2, 2010,

sent to 19,484 valid email addresses, with response rate of 8%.

Integrated project delivery, or IPD, is an innovative legal framework for design and construction in which the owner, the... Read more

By Paula MeltonA new report from the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) suggests that a popular variety of “smart” meter installed by utilities does not cause excessive radio frequency (RF) exposure during normal operation. The meters employ wireless technology to transmit real-time energy-use data to utilities. As power and gas companies... Read more

Is it possible that while we’ve been using hazardous solvents to apply corrosion-resistant paint for decades, the ingredients we needed for a safer, better product could have been picked up in any 1920s drug store?

EonCoat and EonCoat HT (for high-temperature applications) are waterborne, ceramic, corrosion-resistant coatings made for commercial... Read more

By Paula MeltonTwo of North America’s largest cleaning product manufacturers, Clorox and SC Johnson, have disclosed nearly all the ingredients in each of their products. Consumers can now go to www.cloroxcsr.com to find out what’s in Clorox bleach, 409, Pine-Sol, Liquid-Plumr, and other Clorox products, and to www.whatsinsidescjohnson.com to... Read more

By Paula MeltonSchooled in Sustainability: STARS Grades First Campuses—Thirty-nine colleges and universities have received sustainability ratings through the new Sustainability Tracking Assessment & Rating System (STARS). Nine schools got a gold rating, twenty got a silver rating, nine got a bronze rating, and one reported its data without... Read more

By Emily CatacchioThe California Carpet Stewardship Bill (AB 2398) signed into law in October 2010 requires carpet retailers to help divert used carpet from landfills. Retailers are now required to create and implement a carpet-recycling plan to increase the percentage of post-consumer carpet diverted from the landfill. The nonprofit Carpet... Read more

By Emily CatacchioOne-third of all developed land in the U.S. was developed between 1982 and 2007, according to the National Resources Inventory (NRI)—a survey of non-federal land conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Resources Conservation Service along with Iowa State University. American Farmland Trust (AFT), a U.S.... Read more

By Paula MeltonThe U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has awarded $5.5 million to three different research groups studying the health and environmental risks of nanotechnology—the science of manipulating very small particles in order to take advantage of unique properties displayed only at the molecular level. While nanomaterials such as... Read more

By Paula MeltonThe European Union (EU) has announced that it will restrict the use of six chemicals, requiring that within three to five years manufacturers will have to apply for specific exemptions to continue their use. The new rules, covered under the REACH program (the EU policy regulating chemicals), are expected to have major global... Read more