The program will defray some of the costs of ceiling tile disposal, while helping to reduce pressure on landfills. On a large commercial building... Read more

Dear Editor:

I read your recent article about linoleum (October 1998) and was particularly interested in the section dealing with indoor air quality, which I felt you covered well. However, I was very disappointed with your conclusion to “recommend it widely.”

You seem to be fostering an attitude that,... Read more

The

American Institute of Architects New York Chapter’s Committee on the Environment has organized a panel discussion at which the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority will address their role in administering up to $6 million per year in grants for design professionals and building owners. Set for 8:00 a.m. on... Read more

From an environmental standpoint, the low-slope roofing on commercial and industrial buildings is a big problem. (“Low-slope” roofing is often incorrectly called

flat roofing—it nearly always has a slight pitch). For starters, there is a lot of it. No one in the industry seems to know how much low-slope roofing exists in the United... Read more

We at

EBN have been working over the past year on an exciting new computer program that provides suggestions for improving the environmental performance of buildings, and case studies to illustrate the results. The

Green Building Advisor prompts the user for some basic information about a... Read more

As noted in

EBN

Vol. 6, No. 9 (October 1997), the

American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) is now updating its indoor air quality Standard 62-1989 incrementally in a “continuous maintenance process.” The first significant changes are open for public review from... Read more

In what may be one of the most significant developments in green building in recent years, the Department of the Navy has become the first Federal agency requiring all facilities and infrastructure-related design and construction to incorporate sustainable design principles. While energy efficiency and... Read more

by Baruch Givoni, 1998. John Wiley & Sons, New York. Hardcover, 496 pages, $64.95

Baruch Givoni has long been a champion of passive approaches to climate control in buildings. In Climate Considerations in Building and Urban Design he documents the theory and practice of low-tech comfort in buildings and the relationships... Read more

The U.S. Green Building Council’s (USGBC) rating system for buildings, Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), is not yet officially released but is already making waves. LEED was developed through a consensus process among the diverse USGBC membership, which includes product manufacturers, architects, environmental and government... Read more

Eminent green architect

William McDonough announced in late August that he will not seek reappointment as dean of the University of Virginia’s School of Architecture when his five-year term expires next June. McDonough will continue to teach at the University, and to direct the Institute for Sustainable Design, which he... Read more

EBN last covered torchiere-style standing lamps with energy-saving compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) instead of halogen lamps, we tested two very different products (

EBN

Vol. 6, No. 10).

One used three 26-watt CFLs (each with its own ballast), providing three light... Read more

The

Rosebud Indian Reservation in South Dakota is considering affiliation with

Habitat for Humanity to develop affordable housing on the reservation. The problem, according to Marty Kooistra of Habitat, is that while a typical Habitat house ends up costing $41,000 to $45,000, the realistic cost ceiling on the Rosebud Reservation... Read more

by Dru Meadows and Charles Bell, 1998. TheGreenTeam, 5822 South New Haven, Tulsa, OK 74153; 918/742-7593;arcvet@earthlink.net. Softcover, about 90 pages, $35.

Dru Meadows, well known for her pioneering green design work with BSW Architects in Tulsa, and Charles Bell set a very challenging course for... Read more

by Janet Marinelli, 1998. Henry Holt & Company. Hardcover, 230 pages, $25.

After years of fighting linoleum as a competitor to its vinyl flooring products, Armstrong World Industries, Inc. has now purchased DLW Aktien-gesellschaft of Germany, the world’s second largest linoleum manufacturer. Publicly, Armstrong is playing up other DLW assets, including a strong distribution network... Read more

—one in Austin, the other in McKinney (north of Dallas). Grant funding from the State Energy Conservation Office of the General Services Commission is providing sustainability teams to work with the architects and engineers. The Austin sustainability team is led by Bob Berkebile of BNIM... Read more

Much of the published information on the energy performance of straw-bale buildings is based on measurements done in 1993 by Joseph McCabe at the University of Arizona as part of his master’s thesis. McCabe used a “guarded-hot-plate” apparatus (procedure ASTM C-177-85) to measure heat flow... Read more

The American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE) recently announced the 1998 winners of its

biannual

Champion of Energy Efficiency Awards:

•

Marilyn Brown, Eric Petersen, and Joseph Romm, for their leadership in influencing U.S. climate change policy and other contributions to... Read more

The Energy Outreach Center, a nonprofit organization based in Washington State, has established an Internet-based building materials exchange system that is available for use by local governments anywhere. The Reusable Building Materials Exchange operates as a bulletin board where users... Read more