BuildingGreen Report

News Analysis

May 1, 2004
The first LEED

® Rating System based outside the U.S. was officially launched in Vancouver, British Columbia on April 14, 2004 by the Canada Green Building Council (CaGBC). The program is now accepting project registrations and has, in fact, already received its first full application, from the City of Vancouver. The development of LEED-BC was... Read more

Feature

May 1, 2004
We have almost a heaven and hell,” says Pauline Souza, of Chong Partners Architecture in San Francisco, describing her firm’s successes and frustrations at greening their work. Mid-sized and large design firms carry a lot of cachet, and clients tend to follow their advice more readily than they follow the suggestions of sole practitioners or small... Read more

News Brief

May 1, 2004

When the

Bush Administration attempted to lower energy-efficiency standards set by the Clinton White House (from SEER 13 to SEER 12), a coalition of consumer organizations and attorneys general challenged the move. The Second Court of Appeals in New York City rejected the Bush plans (see

EBN

Vol. 13, No. 2), but air-... Read more

Op-Ed

May 1, 2004

When I picked up my April 2004 issue of

Environmental Building News (

Vol. 13, No. 4) and saw the main article’s title, inwardly I groaned. I usually look forward to, read thoroughly, and then treasure the detailed completeness of each

EBN feature article. But “Which Grass is Greener? Comparing Natural and Artificial Turf... Read more

News Brief

May 1, 2004

Scientific Certification Systems, Inc.has released an

Indoor Air Quality Performance certification program for interior products. The program is designed to demonstrate product conformance with the indoor emissions limits associated with California’s Section 01350 specification, as well as emission criteria in the LEED

® Rating... Read more

News Brief

May 1, 2004
Wal-Mart, the world’s largest retail company, plans to test a range of

green building strategies at two new supercenters in Aurora, Colorado and McKinney, Texas. The retailer plans to partner with colleges and universities to measure the success of the technologies; results will then be shared with the broader design and retail industries, and... Read more

News Brief

May 1, 2004

Awards & Competitions

Architectural Press and Elsevier Publishers, in conjunction with Teachers in Architecture and the Circle 33 Housing Group, have announced the

2004 Design Competition for an Ecohouse. The competition is based on the principles described in the book

Ecohouse 2. Author Sue Roaf says the challenge is “to... Read more

News Brief

May 1, 2004

The

Certified Wood and Paper Association (CWPA), which was formed in 2002 during a reorganization of the Certified Forest Products Council, ceased operations on April 15, 2004. According to a letter on the CWPA Web site by the Board of Directors, the organization was forced to dissolve due to lack of financial resources. Michael... Read more

Op-Ed

May 1, 2004
Energy and Environmental Policies of the Bush AdministrationTo say that I’m discouraged with energy and environmental policy trends is an understatement. As someone with a generally optimistic outlook, I keep assuming that the policies of the current Administration can’t get any worse. But then I open the morning paper or turn on the radio and... Read more

News Brief

May 1, 2004
The American Institute of Architects (AIA) has announced this year’s inductees to the College of Fellows, among the highest honors bestowed on AIA members. Five of this year’s Institute Fellows are noteworthy green designers:

Michael Holtz, president of Architectural Energy Corporation in Boulder, Colorado;

Peter... Read more

Op-Ed

May 1, 2004

In

EBN’s March feature article, “Wire and Cable” (

Vol. 13, No. 3), the sidebar “Is Fluorine Worse than Chlorine?” may have needlessly alarmed readers in its attempt to summarize the large amount of available information on perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) in a short amount of text. The key point is that consumer and industrial... Read more

News Brief

April 1, 2004

A new ad campaign is targeting kids between the ages of 8 and 13 in an effort to reduce energy use in homes. The three-year campaign, funded by the Ad Council, Energy Outreach Colorado, and a number of other partners, uses television, radio, and Internet public-service announcements to

teach children to become

“Energy Hog... Read more

News Brief

April 1, 2004

The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and the NAHB Research Center have announced the names of the people who will work to develop the voluntary

Model Green Home Building Guidelines. The 59 stakeholders represent homebuilders, environmentalists, government agencies, and a number of trade organizations. Each stakeholder is... Read more

News Brief

April 1, 2004

In a move that has surprised many, the U.S. Green Building Council will not issue a call for papers for the November

2004 Greenbuild conference in Portland. Instead, all presentations in the break-out sessions will be invited by the program committee. The Council

will issue a call for posters and has expanded the guidelines,... Read more

News Analysis

April 1, 2004

At a March 6, 2004 workshop in San Francisco the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) introduced their plan for a Center for Green Building Research. The proposed Center would be managed by EPRI, while LBNL would direct the research efforts. The organizers are seeking funding from federal and... Read more

News Brief

April 1, 2004
by Suzy Banks with Richard Heinichen, 2004. Tank Town Publishing, 512-894-0861, 512-858-2321 (fax), www.rainwatercollection.com. Paperback, 108 pages, $15 plus s/h

First published in 1997, this updated version of

Rainwater Collection for the Mechanically Challenged benefits from the authors’ experience installing hundreds more systems... Read more

News Brief

April 1, 2004
Photovoltaic production worldwide continued to grow rapidly in 2003, according to

PV News, to a total of 742 megawatts of generation capacity. But production in the U.S. dropped by 20% due to problems at AstroPower, which fell apart following an accounting scandal, and reduced U.S. production by BP Solar, which is ramping up plants in Australia... Read more

Op-Ed

April 1, 2004

After reading about results published in the California Integrated Waste Management Board (CIWMB) study as they pertain to linoleum emissions (as described in “California Releases Data on Indoor Emissions,”

EBN Vol. 13, No. 2), many of our customers have contacted us with questions.

Forbo Linoleum, Inc. was an active volunteer in... Read more

News Brief

April 1, 2004
The winners of the annual Northeast Green Building Awards were announced in March at the Building Energy 2004 conference in Boston. The competition recognizes high-performance architecture—including new construction and renovations—built in the northeastern U.S. between the beginning of 1999 and the end of 2003. This year’s judges were

Daniel... Read more

News Brief

April 1, 2004

PBS will begin airing a new television series this June focused on green building. Energy Wise Healthy Home will track the design and construction of a new home over the course of 26 half-hour episodes. The home is expected to earn Energy Star

® Home certification and American Lung Association Healthy House certification in its final... Read more