Final Climate Change Report Renews Urgency of Green Design and Constructio

The final report by the UN-backed Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) on the irrefutable evidence of global warming is a clear call to action for everyone involved in the design and building industries to accelerate sustainable practices, according to Brattleboro-based BuildingGreen Inc. www.buildinggreen.com. The final IPCC report, released in Brussels last week, dramatically reveals the role of human activity in increasing global warming. Since buildings are responsible for producing one-third or more of the world's greenhouse gases, the urgency of the report's findings—and the opportunity to reverse the damage—are greater than ever.

"It's clear to me that we have reached a tipping point within the building industry," says Alex Wilson, founder and president of BuildingGreen Inc. and publisher of Environmental Building News. "We are recognizing the reality of global climate change and waking up to the need to do something about it." For 22 years, BuildingGreen has provided impartial, science-based research, product directories, and news publications on sustainable design and construction. "The IPCC report is having a significant impact on world opinion, Wilson stated, "and will help to influence the way buildings are planned and designed for generations to come."

The IPCC report, "Climate Change 2007: The Physical Science Basis" cites proof of increases in carbon dioxide concentrations from burning fossil fuel and neglectful land use practices. This report is the fourth and most thorough review to date from 2500 IPCC scientists from 150 countries around the world. The latest report took six years to produce; the scientists behind the report are widely recognized as the world's experts on global climate change.

"There will be a strong push to dramatically reduce the carbon emissions of buildings, which will drive very significant improvements in energy performance," Wilson says. "By 2010, the average new commercial building will use just half the energy of an average commercial building in use today. The greater demand for low-energy, green buildings will, in turn, drive innovation and result in even lower energy consumption in the decades following," he predicts.

BuildingGreen regularly researches and reports on practical, cost efficient solutions for reducing the environmental impacts of buildings. A recent report on the use of renewable energy sources available through district energy systems, for example, offers cost-savings strategies to large scale developers and owners looking for alternatives to high cost heating and cooling systems. (Environmental Building News; In the Pipeline: District Energy and Green Building. March 2007)

The IPCC report confirms the value of existing initiatives including the LEED green building rating system. LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is a voluntary certification program developed by the U.S. Green Building Council. LEED will continue to evolve in response to the growing recognition that carbon emissions must be dramatically reduced. Already, in 2007, there is a plan to make a 50% reduction in carbon emissions a prerequisite for all LEED-certified buildings.

"There will continue to be growth in the number of buildings going through LEED certification, though an even greater impact of LEED will be the changes it generates throughout the entire building industry," adds Wilson, who served for five years on the Board of Directors of the US Green Building Council, the developers of LEED. "Not all buildings will be LEED-certified, but key components of LEED will become standard practice throughout virtually the entire building industry."

Making buildings energy efficient is the first step toward building green. The 2030 Challenge, which was adopted last year by the American Institute of Architects and the U.S. Council of Mayors, calls for a 60% reduction in energy use in new buildings by 2010 and net-zero-energy buildings by 2030. "With energy costs remaining high and unpredictably volatile, not only will these dramatic reductions in energy use benefit our environment," said Wilson, "they will save buildings owners and occupants a great deal of money."

"The latest IPCC report is an urgent call to action," according to Wilson. "The debate on global warming is no longer whether or not it is happening, but rather what is needed now to prevent further damage," concludes Wilson. "The building industry sector is an ideal engine for enlightened change."