Green Building: Economic & Environmental Sense

The Rocky Mountain Institute and the U.S. Green Building Council have teamed up to produce a program (approx. 30 minutes), which features the economic sense of building green. In this program, several green building projects are highlighted, including GoldmanSachs of New Jersey, Alberici Corp. of St. Louis, the University of Denver Law School, the General Services Admin. of San Francisco, the Missouri Dept. of Natural Resources, Adobe Systems, Inc., and Toyota Motor Co., of California - among others.

Features of green building, such as use of recycled materials, building on brownfield sites, natural ventilation and lighting, replacement of concrete by blast furnace slag or fly ash, and use of wood from sustainable forests are shown in vivid detail. The point is made time and time again that economic growth means environmental sustainability. Savings are highlighted: reductions in water use from 39% to 83%; energy savings from 40% to 60%, with savings of one-half million to $1.2 million annually; 95% waste reduction (which does not end up in landfields.

One of the brightest spots of the program is the segment on Daybreak Homes, the fastest selling residential development in Utah. Every home is an Energy Star home, and is reminiscent of the Clarum residential development in California.

Featured speakers include James Murdoch (son of Rupert Murdoch) and CEO of British Sky Broadcasting, James Woolsey, former head of the CIA, and George Pataki, former governor of New York. Governor Pataki discusses the green building that will replace the World Trade Center in NYC.

If you have about 30 minutes to spare, the RMI/U.S. Green Building Council program is well worth viewing:

http://bet.rmi.org/

For more information on Clarum homes:

http://www.renewableenergyaccess.com/rea/news/story?id=50474