of green buildings from the U.S. and Europe, will be traveling from its New York City origin to several other locations over the next year. The exhibit was organized by the Architectural League of New York and curated by Peter Buchanan. Details may be found online at www.archleague.org. At press... Read more

Builder John Abrams of Martha’s Vineyard is a storyteller. One of his favorite stories is about Gandhi:

Your publication is at the very top of my periodical reading list. I am concerned, however, about the article regarding HID vs. T-5 fluorescent lighting (July/August 2000). While I’m totally in agreement with the concept, it appears to me that the 1st Source lighting analysis may be flawed. It is very risky to... Read more

trademark symbol Lists

IAQ-Rated Products

A new Web-based product registry from Air Quality Sciences, Inc. (AQS) offers product manufacturers an opportunity to promote products that meet widely referenced indoor air quality (IAQ) guidelines. While the number of building materials listed currently is small, it is... Read more

William Bobenhausen, Director of Sustainability at Steven Winter Associates (SWA) of Norwalk, Connecticut, was conferred the honor of “Fellow” by the American Institute of Architects at the May 2000 AIA Convention in Philadelphia. Meanwhile, SWA has received an official citation from the Connecticut General Assembly for “exemplary efforts to... Read more

Meanwhile,

polar ice is melting. The July 21 issue of

Science reports that the massive Greenland Ice Sheet, which contains roughly 10% of all fresh water on earth, is melting at a rate of 12 cubic miles (51 km3) per year. This melting results in 0.13 mm of sea level rise worldwide annually, according to NASA researchers.

Just as common window screening keeps airborne pests out of buildings, Termi-Mesh keeps out subterranean termites. But that is where the analogy ends. If you are going to bury a screen underground, build walls on top of it, wrap it tightly around pipes, make it “chew-proof”... Read more

Few efficiency standards have generated as many jokes and complaints as the 1.6 gallons per flush (6 liter) toilet requirement. The Energy Policy Act of 1992 required manufacturers to reduce the quantity of water per flush to 1.6 by 1994. Some say the industry was caught off guard and was given insufficient time to... Read more

Although the number of

local green building programs is still relatively small—there are fewer than 20 nationwide—forces are growing. In June of this year, the Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish Counties (Greater Seattle) released their Built Green™ program. Partners for the home builder-based program include King and... Read more

Interface flooring has obtained sole licensing rights to make flooring products with NatureWorks™, the new corn-based polylactide (PLA) polymer. Jointly developed by The Dow Chemical Company and Cargill Inc., NatureWorks is made using 30% to 40% less fossil fuel than the amount required for conventional... Read more

Recent doctoral work in geography by Ryan Jensen at the University of Florida-Gainesville revealed that the city of Gainesville has twice the leaf coverage of the nearby city of Ocala. When Jensen then checked average utility bills from the two cities, he found that Ocala residents were paying $126 more per year than Gainesville residents.... Read more

Software from the Building and Fire Research Laboratory, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). No charge. Download from the Web at

www.bfrl.nist.gov/oae/bees.html or order from the U.S. EPA’s Pollution Prevention Information Clearinghouse, 202/260-1023, ppic@epamail.epa.gov. Information: Barbara C. Lippiatt, 301/975-... Read more

Ocean

surface waters near the equator are warming at an “alarming” rate, according to analysis by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) released on July 28. Between 1984 and 1996, water temperatures have risen approximately 0.1°F (0.056°C) per year, which the researchers say is far more than can be explained by... Read more

Hilliard House is also a distinctly green project. The $1.2 million... Read more

Champion Enterprises and the U.S. Department of Energy have partnered to produce

the first HUD-code (mobile) home made entirely of structural insulated panels (SIPs). The 1,384 ft2 (129 m2) home, built in Silverton, Oregon, uses SIPs in the walls, floors, and ceilings. Two SIP manufacturers, Premier Building Systems and Precision Panel... Read more

Ecowork by Studio eg

In what EPA is calling the “largest enforcement penalty ever taken against a single ‘smokestack’ company under the Clean Air Act,” Portland, Oregon-based Willamette Industries is expected to spend in excess of $90 million in fines and pollution controls. The company violated the Clean Air Act by failing to install proper pollution controls or... Read more