Product Review
Builders concerned about out-gassing of formaldehyde from medium-density fiberboard (MDF) have long used Medex in cabinets. This exterior-grade product, originally developed for highway signs, is considerably more expensive than conventional MDF or particleboard, however. Now Medite II fills the need for a... Read more
News Brief
Carol Venolia, Publisher/Editor
If “progressive construction” can be defined as pushing the tools and techniques of conventional builders in the direction of less environmental destruction, then Building With Nature’s material goes beyond progressive, into the forefront of visionary thinking about construction. This bimonthly newsletter, now... Read moreNews Analysis
A study published in the June 5, 1992, issue of
Science by researchers at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and the Institute of Atmospheric Physics at the University of Arizona suggests that smoke emitted into the atmosphere from human activities may be having a significant effect in counteracting... Read more
Explainer
Product Review
To the best of our knowledge, this product is now being marketed under the name Rauhsaser by Better Wall System of Kenora, ON.
CoverAge is a tacky name for a great product that all remodelers should know about. It is a paintable, textured wallpaper that’s made entirely of recycled paper (at... Read moreNews Analysis
EBN Advisory Board member Mike Nicklas led an international delegation of renewable energy experts in promoting sustainable energy at the Earth Summit last month. He and others were negotiating for inclusion of renewable energy and energy conservation measures into agreements being worked out for the United Nations... Read more
News Brief
The American Institute of Architects convention in Boston this past June was the setting for a changing of the guard in the American architectural establishment. The Institute’s first woman president took the reins, the Committee on the Environment became its largest and fastest growing committee, and the first installments of the Environmental... Read more
Feature
Carefully stake the building site and driveway, remove trees that are within the excavation area or too close, then erect a fence to keep heavy equipment off fragile soils and away from nearby trees.
Protecting trees and the local ecosystem when building on previously unbuilt land is a vitally important—yet often overlooked—part of environmentally responsible construction. Healthy trees and shrubs can reduce a home’s environmental impact and directly benefit homeowners in a number of ways:
•Enhancing comfort by shielding the house... Read more
Op-Ed
Introducing the first issue of our newsletter.
Buildings have a tremendous impact on the environment. In North America, buildings and the building industry account for about 30% of carbon dioxide emissions, 35-40% of ozone depletion, 20-30% of municipal solid waste, vast quantities of natural resource consumption, and dramatic loss of open space each... Read more
Feature
Susan Maxman is the first AIA president to make sustainable design a priority.
Q.Where would you say architects as a group stand on environmental issues?
A.Architects tend to be reactive rather than proactive. It is important that we take the lead on these environmental issues. The architecture schools in particular tend to be conservative. They just aren’t... Read more
Feature
Ozone depletion and global warming are two of our most serious environmental problems—and foam insulation materials containing CFCs (chlorofluorocarbons) contribute significantly to both of these problems. The environmentally concerned builder or designer should make it a highest priority to avoid them. Even many of the non-CFC alternatives... Read more
Quiz
Basic page
Testing web-to-lead to existing contact in Salesforce.
function timestamp() { var response = document.getElementById("g-recaptcha-response"); if (response == null || response.value.trim() == "") {var elems = JSON.parse(document.getElementsByName("captcha_settings")[0].value);elems["ts"] = JSON.stringify(new Date().getTime());document.... Read moreForum topic
Hi all,
I see that this was a hot topic for the Winter Retreat this past year, but I am wondering how your firms manage standard materials across your practice. two aspects - standard specification items, and also designer choice materials.
1. Do you have a spec baseline with high performance materials that you start with for all... Read more
Forum topic
Has anyone submited this credit in lieu of demand response before? I'm attempting on multiple projects but not sure what to expect review wise or how much confidence to have in the ability to get more than 1 point for trying.
https://www.usgbc.org/credits/gridoptimal-152-v4?return=/credits/New%20C...
Forum topic
I am looking for examples of adaptive reuse projects that have addressed current or future flooding by elevating floors from the existing condition.
Forum topic
Would anyone have an example LEED Homes v4 specification they would be willing to share? We are working on our first LEED Homes project, a midrise low income housing development here in Houston. We have a LEED Homes provider, but she will not provide the specifications, which seem to be quite different in requirements and submittals from our... Read more
Author
Boyd is part of the marketing team at BuildingGreen, where he supports analytics and social media engagement.
Boyd’s experience before joining BuildingGreen includes a decade in the paddlesports industry guiding whitewater trips as well as 5 years working in beer and wine manufacturing with a focus on customer interaction as well as... Read more
Forum topic
Hello Green Gurus,
Here is the information for this month's Peer Networks Webinar, Making the Case for Equity with Data: a Free Tool for Project Teams. We hope you will join us!
Register HERE.
Making the Case for Equity with Data: a Free Tool for Project Teams
Tuesday, July 27th, 2021
1pm - 2pm ET (10am - 11am... Read more
Quiz
Welcome to the quiz portion of Mind the Gaps: Making Existing Buildings More Airtight!
Learning Objectives
Upon completing this course, participants will be able to:
Identify key performance problems related to leaky building enclosures.
Examine the benefits of making existing buildings more airtight, such as... Read more


