Rick Crawford
We, as humans, have three basic needs: food, clothing and shelter. I’ll spend some time on food and clothing in future articles, but let’s take some time to discuss shelter. In the beginning we were hunter-gatherers and needed shelter to protect us from the elements such as snow and lighting and in the case of prehistoric man, to hide from predators such as the American Lion and other beasts. Eventually, we began to cultivate our own food, which meant we were able to settle down and live in permanent dwellings such as homes, villages and cities were constructed. Of course, buildings would have consisted of whatever natural resources were available and relatively close by, such as fresh water needed for drinking and for farming. With two out of three of our basic (food and shelter) needs met, we then had enough time begin learning, writing and developing cultures within our communities as well as enough shelter, food and water to grow our population, which today stands at roughly 7.6 billion people.
As human population has exploded over the last few hundred years, so has the need to conserve natural resources as we live on a planet with finite resources. Additionally, as we have evolved from cave men (and women) to modern man, so has our understanding of science and the realization that our buildings are significantly contributing to climate change in the form energy usage from the buildings to the manufacturing of materials used in construction today. In fact, according to the United States Green Building Council, buildings account for 39% of CO2 emissions in the United States. This means there is an opportunity for building to minimize their impact on climate change through green building practices….So, what is green building?
Although addressing energy usage is important, green building is more than energy addressing energy. Green building is defined by the United States Green Building Council (USGBC) as “the planning, design, construction, and operations of buildings with several central, foremost considerations: energy use, water use, indoor environmental quality, material section and the building’s effects on its site.”
Energy
Energy use is an important component to address because an energy efficient building demands less from the energy utility, which usually gets their energy from fossil fuels like coal and natural gas that contribute to climate change. Therefore, a building that is designed to take advantage of features such as natural light, is well insulated, uses Low-E windows, installs LED lights and uses renewable energy is going to demand less energy and contribute less to climate change in addition to saving the owner money on power bills.
Water Use
Water use is also a critical component to green buildings because water is probably the most valuable natural resource on the planet. We cannot live without it, so any form of waste on a planet with a growing population is simply idiotic. Buildings that install low-flow toilets and faucets, or waterless urinals, or even recycling non-potable water not only save money, but are responsibly protecting our most valuable resource.
Indoor Environmental Quality
Indoor environmental quality refers to the air quality inside the building. For example, Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC’s) are gases that are emitted from building materials such as paints, furniture and cleaning supplies that can cause eye, nose and throat irritation, headaches and some are even known to cause cancers in humans. Buildings that use materials with zero VOC’s are making the building healthier for its inhabitants or workers.
Material and Resources
Material selection is important for a green building because the materials it gives preference to materials made from recycled content, which generally uses less energy than using virgin materials, or the material has a lifecycle assessment (LCA) which takes the environmental impact of the material through all stages of the products lifecycle and “from materials acquisition to manufacturing, use, and final disposition.” These are only a couple of examples of materials selection, buildings that use materials with recycled content or products with LCA’s typically have a better environmental performance.
Site Selection
Site selection can have a major impact on the environmental impact of a building. For example, an office building constructed with the greenest materials, enough solar power for all its energy needs, rain cisterns to meet its water needs and no VOC’s making it an excellent candidate for a green building, but if the building is located 1,000 miles from any of its employees, is it really green if everyone has to commute 2,000 miles per day therefore burning fossil fuels just to get to work? This is an extreme example, but you get the point. Buildings need to take into account how close they are to public transit, schools, hospitals etc, so site selection is also a critical component for green buildings.
This is a pretty high level overview of categories that green buildings take into account, but we have come a long way from hunter-gatherers to smart buildings that go beyond just providing shelter. Many building owners then take the next step to get their buildings certified green through such organizations as Green Globes, LEED and Living Building Challenge. Below is a great video from United States Green Building Council (USGBC) providing additional examples on what makes a green building:
If you are a business owner, or building owner, interested in learning more about green building, Emerger Strategies can use its extensive green building experience to guide you through everything from different sustainability strategies such as solar all the way to achieving green building certification.