Gypsum is calcium sulfate dehydrate, which is mined or produced as a byproduct of flue gas desulphurization (FGD) from coal-fired power plants. FGD gypsum may contain trace contaminants from coal processing, but not enough to represent a hazard to users. Years ago, some imported products created indoor air quality problems that required... Read more

Hi folks,

I’m sure most of you know Gail Brager, or at least know of her. For those who don’t, she helps run UC Berkeley’s Center for the Built Environment and is a long-time champion of all the things that make buildings work for their occupants. Perhaps most notably, she was a co-author of the Adaptive Thermal Comfort option in ASHRAE... Read more

Welcome to the quiz portion of VOCs: Still Here, Still Making Us Sick!

Important: This quiz covers all related articles within this topic. Scroll to the bottom of the article page to find links to all the articles covered by this quiz.

Learning Objectives
Upon completing this course, participants will be able to:


1.... Read more

Practitioners interested in reducing the embodied carbon of buildings are likely now used to considering the impact of different materials, like mass timber or low-carbon concrete. Low-carbon construction, however, may be less familiar. 

Contractors are just... Read more

Hello SMEPers,

I’m hoping to crowd source some anecdotes for a guest lecture I’ll be giving at Yale’s architecture school. The topic is integrated design (especially between architects and engineers) and how it enables better sustainability outcomes.

John Boecker has this great story about how choosing a paint color with higher... Read more

Check out this new executive order. It is broad and includes a lot of items, but of interest to this group, there are some things in here that we pointed towards in our letter back from the beginning of the year, including 24/7 carbon-free electrical energy, a net-zero emissions portfolio by 2045 and net zero emissions from procurement... Read more

Hello everyone,

Wondering if anyone has evaluated/considered/specified wood fiber insulation for use in lieu of mineral wool as the exterior wall insulation?  Am mostly looking to better understand domestic availability, r-value and fire/combustibility.

We have a multi-family building in DC where the client is interested in using... Read more

All, today is the day I had committed to sending out the DRAFT request to equipment manufacturers of what is needed for full electrification.  I apologize that I didn't have time or focus to get my thoughts together till now (I had intended to share this with Chris and others prior to sending to the full group, but just didn't get my thoughts... Read more

Re: 310 CMR 78.00: Ban of Covered Products Containing Certain Flame Retardants. This law took effect as of April 01, 2021, and is enforced by Mass DEP. 

Quick Summary: Law bans 11 types of chemical flame retardants from... Read more

I am still basking in the afterglow of this week's summit, and getting ready to share nuggets of wisdom with my colleagues at our all-staff next week. I was so immersed in the moment that documenting the outlines and choices presented for breakouts slipped my mind. Is there somewhere to access these slides to refresh my memory?

Thanks... Read more

Hi folks,

I wanted to let people know about this webinar--I've heard it's good. If you do catch it please let us know what you think. Jason has offered to do a private version for our Peer Networks as well--I'd love to know how interested people would be in that opportunity.

November 14, 2019 from noon to 1 PM Pacific Time

... Read more

Ace Brockwell

Welcome to the quiz portion of An Advocate’s Guide to Resilience Regulations!

Learning Objectives
Upon completing this course, participants will be able to:


1. Explain how U.S. municipalities are using codes to improve the resilience of the built environment in the face of worsening climate change.

2. Delineate five... Read more

Extremely proud to say that the just-announced winner of the international 'Next Generation Facade' design competition is a team led by the 2017-18 EDR Research Fellow, Liz McCormick.   The facade normally separates inside from outside. What if the 'facade' was a place you occupied, where you worked? What if different parts of the facade... Read more

Hello Sustainable Design Leaders!

Here at BuildingGreen we are excited and looking forward to creating a valuable and engaging online summit with you all for 2020!

You can Register HERE as well as review important information.

The Summit will happen throughout the week of July 13. The specific meeting times are: 

3:... Read more

Hi folks,

We had a great conversation about this today, following up on a past agenda item that we didn't get to, but that Kim wrote about a few weeks ago on a different thread. He said:

We didn't get to item 7:  "Question about company size as a qualification for the network".  I'd like to offer this input:  I'd like to open it... Read more

I know we have talked about this on various calls, so I wanted to post in case anyone hasn't seen that the IRS has provided an update with rules on how to access the direct pay option.

https://www.usgbc.org/articles/irs-issues-ira-tax-credit-rules-tax-exemp...

Hi,

There is a Blog section on the BIT User site. Will you have a blog post in time for launch? Or should we hide that section to begin with?

https://live-bituser.pantheonsite.io/blog

Andrea