BuildingGreen Report

News Analysis

October 1, 2000
Greenguard

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

News Brief

October 1, 2000
TXU Electric

, the largest electric utility in Texas, has entered into a “sell all, buy all” wind power contract with FPL Energy, LLC, a subsidiary of Florida Power and Light, a $6 billion national provider of electricity-related services (15% of FPL’s energy portfolio comes from wind power, with 85% coming from renewables or natural gas). FPL... Read more

Op-Ed

October 1, 2000
Errata on BEES Review

In our review of the BEES 2.0 software (EBNVol. 9, No. 9), we made two unfortunate errors:

1. When we expressed skepticism about the installed costs of vinyl siding and stucco, we reversed the numbers. BEES uses $1.29/ft2 ($13.89/m2) for stucco and $2.07/ft2 ($22.39/m2). for vinyl. We have also learned that these... Read more

News Brief

October 1, 2000
Awards & Competitions

On June 15, 2000,

Collins & Aikman Floorcovering was presented with one of six Corporate Conscience Awards from the New York City-based Council on Economic Priorities. C&A was recognized for its ER3® carpet products, made largely from old carpet; for its take-back program for old carpet; and for its... Read more

News Brief

October 1, 2000

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

News Brief

September 1, 2000

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

News Analysis

September 1, 2000
Ag-Based Polymer Carpet from Interface

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

News Brief

September 1, 2000

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

Feature

September 1, 2000
The historic district of New Orleans—like much of the rest of the city—is being ravaged by termites. The city is at particular risk because huge quantities of wood were installed underground to stabilize buildings when the city was built on the unstable Mississippi River delta, and because this is where Formosan termites, a particularly voracious... Read more

News Brief

September 1, 2000
Newsbriefs

On July 25, 2000, the Henrico Community Housing Corporation in Virginia celebrated the opening of Hilliard House, a transitional housing facility near Richmond for up to 30 women and children. Thanks largely to the efforts of HCHC Board President Karl Bren,

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

Product Review

September 1, 2000
Termi-Mesh – Stainless Steel Screening for Protection Against Termites

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

News Brief

September 1, 2000

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

News Brief

September 1, 2000
Newsbriefs

Urban Options, a nonprofit organization in East Lansing, Michigan that is dedicated to improving the quality of the urban environment, is sponsoring its Second Annual

Tour de Sprawl—a bicycle and/or bus tour of Meridian Township—on October 8. For details, call Urban Options at 517/374-4444. This should be a companion to the... Read more

Op-Ed

September 1, 2000
On EBN’s LEED Coverage

The U.S. Green Building Council would like to thank

Environmental Building News for an excellent article in the June issue on the development and content of LEED™ Green Building Rating System (EBN

Vol. 9, No. 6). We are extremely excited by the market response we have seen and believe that LEED is, and... Read more

News Brief

September 1, 2000
Newsbriefs

On August 8, after lengthy consultation with a number of environmental groups,

Lowe’s Companies, Inc. released a progressive statement on its wood purchasing policies. Among other measures, the policy aims to identify ancient forests and eliminate wood purchases from them, and to discourage conversion of native forests to... Read more

News Brief

September 1, 2000

A study conducted for the Federal Energy Management Agency (FEMA), reported in the

New York Times on June 28, has concluded that at least a quarter of the

houses within 500 feet of U.S. coastlines may be lost to erosion during the next 60 years. If sea levels rise due to global warming, coastline erosion could be even worse.... Read more

News Analysis

September 1, 2000

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

News Brief

September 1, 2000

In announcing a

Global Coal Initiative to research clean coal technologies, the Electric Power Research Institute forecasts a fourfold increase in worldwide power demand by 2050. “Meeting this estimated demand will require the equivalent of building a new 1,000-megawatt power plant somewhere in the world every two days for 50 years,”... Read more

Product Review

September 1, 2000
SmartGuard Borate-Treated Wood Products Introduced

In what is potentially one of the most far-reaching developments in light-frame construction in the last decade, Louisiana-Pacific, Osmose, and U.S. Borax have introduced the SmartGuard family of borate-treated wood products for home building. The products were rolled out on April 4 in... Read more

News Analysis

September 1, 2000
Consolidation in the Cellulose Industry

On August 1, Louisiana-Pacific Corporation merged its GreenStone cellulose insulation division with the U.S. Fiber division of Casella Waste Systems, Inc. to form U.S. GreenFiber, LLC. With the creation of this 50:50 joint venture, both U.S. Fiber and GreenStone have ceased to exist. The new company will... Read more