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BY Tali Aaron : March 22

Green Building mandates are coming. Are we ready?

green building


Whether building owners and managers believe in global warming or not, the sustainability movement continues to grow and it will ultimately encompass both commercial and residential structures in the U.S. It is happening with increasing velocity and smart property owners and managers should be preparing now for the inevitable rules and regulations designed to conserve energy and reduce carbon emissions and global warming.

A harbinger of things to come can be seen in the State of California, where two new measures will significantly ratchet up the need for building owners to optimize the energy efficiency and sustainability of their structures, whether new or existing.

One measure is AB-32, which requires that the state reduce carbon emissions and greenhouse gas – the key ingredient in global warming – from all sources to 1990 levels by 2020. The other measure is the state’s new building codes, Title 24 that goes into effect Jan. 1, 2011. The new codes include the CALGREEN requirements that all new buildings be “more energy efficient and environmentally responsible.” These are mandatory requirements.

While the U.S. still has a long ways to go to be truly sustainable, we are not by any means laggards. Going green is a national movement that is taken seriously by many property owners and developers, and the rest will have to jump on board the green bandwagon, either by law, by consumer demand, or to be considered a good corporate citizen. And there are significant economic benefits for home owners and other property owners and managers to go green.

For instance, approximately $40 billion is spent annually in the United States just to cool buildings, which accounts for one-sixth of all energy consumed annually. Other major consumers of energy in commercial and industrial buildings include manufacturing processes, waste disposal/recycling, water, transportation, and operations. Being truly sustainable – as opposed to being “greenwash” – is a complex and challenging mission.

While there are many different products and procedures available in an ever expanding green marketplace, there are some steps that can be taken which are basic yet effective. At the top of the list is the “cool roof,” which can be implemented rather easily and at a very reasonable cost. Cool roofs consist of materials that effectively reflect the sun's energy from the surface.

There are four broad categories of roofing materials that can be used to upgrade a roof's reflectivity to 'ENERGY STAR' levels: metal, tile, roofing membranes and reflective coating. Of the four, a reflective coating may be the most economically achievable for existing buildings because it doesn’t require any significant retrofitting of the structure, which can be costly and time-consuming. Based on our experience, a reflective coating can lower interior temperature of a commercial or industrial building by 8-12 degrees during the hottest four hours of a summer day, noon to four in the afternoon. This will significantly reduce roof temperatures and more importantly, significantly reduce the building's energy requirements for air conditioning.

Author Bio: Michael Magallanes is vice president of Coat’N’Cool, a cool roof product. He can be reached at [email protected]

While there are many different products and procedures available in an ever expanding green marketplace, there are some steps that can be taken which are basic yet effective.  At the top of the list is the “cool roof,” which can be implemented rather easily and at a very reasonable cost.  Cool roofs consist of materials that effectively reflect the sun's energy from the surface. There are four broad categories of roofing materials that can be used to upgrade a roof's reflectivity to 'ENERGY STAR' levels: metal, tile, roofing membranes and reflective coating.  Of the four, a reflective coating may be the most economically achievable for existing buildings because it doesn’t require any significant retrofitting of the structure, which can be costly and time-consuming. Based on our experience, a reflective coating can lower interior temperature of a commercial or industrial building by 8-12 degrees during the hottest four hours of a summer day, noon to four in the afternoon. This will significantly reduce roof temperatures and more importantly, significantly reduce the building's energy requirements for air conditioning.

Recommended for Further Reading:

Posted in: Green Construction, Green Homes Buildings
Tags: roheline ehitus (3)   title 24 (5)   california (183)   AB 32 (3)   green buildings (3)   construccion verde (3)   Green (549)   ecogebouw (3)   อาคารสีเขียว (7)   environmental responsibility (3)   อาคารประหยัดพลังงาน (3)   
Last Modified: March 22, 2010 at 4:01 pm
First Published: March 19, 2010 at 2:00 pm

13 Responses to Green Building mandates are coming. Are we ready?

  2. rateitgreen on June 28, 2012 at 11:26 pm


    RT @SoniaJerezS @cleangreenpro: #GreenBuilding mandates: Are we eady? http://t.co/tUaL0HlL #cleantech #renewableenergy #in #alternergy #eco

    Reply
  3. Sonia Jerez on June 28, 2012 at 3:07 am


    Green Building mandates are coming. Are we ready? http://t.co/FQ8MkNT0 #eco #cleantech #greenbuilding #renewableenergy #in RT @cleangreenpro

    Reply
  4. buildaroo on June 27, 2012 at 3:28 am


    Green Building mandates are coming. Are we ready? http://t.co/iWEDAGbU #eco #cleantech #greenbuilding #renewableenergy

    Reply
  5. buildaroo on August 18, 2011 at 10:17 pm


    Green Building mandates are coming. Are we ready? http://t.co/yn5Qr6G #eco #cleantech #greenbuilding #renewableenergy

    Reply
  6. buildaroo on February 20, 2011 at 10:20 pm


    Green Building mandates are coming. Are we ready? http://bit.ly/cg9xjA #eco #cleantech #greenbuilding #renewableenergy

    Reply
  7. Lavish & Lime on February 19, 2011 at 12:51 am


    #Green Building mandates are coming. Are we ready? http://bit.ly/cg9xjA #eco #cleantech RT @EcoDogEnergy @cleangreenpro

    Reply
  8. EcoDog FIDO on February 16, 2011 at 5:45 pm


    RT @cleangreenpro: #Green Building mandates are coming. Are we ready? http://bit.ly/cg9xjA #eco #cleantech #greenbuilding #renewable

    Reply
  9. David M Cunningham on January 20, 2011 at 3:47 am


    RT @cleangreenpro: Green Building mandates are coming. Are we ready? http://bit.ly/cg9xjA #eco #cleantech #greenbuilding #renewableenergy

    Reply
  10. Green Building Market in U.S. Grows 50% in 2010 on December 1, 2010 at 2:22 pm


    [...] Green Building mandates are coming. Are we ready? [...]

    Reply
  11. Cool roofs are a great Economical way to Improve a Building’s Energy Efficiency « Alternative Energy « buildaroo.com on March 22, 2010 at 5:15 pm


    [...] new California green building mandates, building owners are starting to take building green more seriously.  In an ever expanding green [...]

    Reply
  12. Greentalk on March 22, 2010 at 2:52 am


    RT @buildaroo: Green Building mandates are coming. Are we ready? http://bit.ly/cg9xjA

    Reply
  13. Hunter West on March 21, 2010 at 11:18 pm


    How to cool the planet: 03/21/2010 05:30; Green building mandates are coming. Are you ready? http://bit.ly/cg9xjA ... http://bit.ly/a11wag

    Reply
  14. txtgreen on March 21, 2010 at 11:44 am


    RT @buildaroo #Greenbuilding mandates are coming? Are we ready? http://bit.ly/cg9xjA #energyefficiency #green #eco #building #energy: ...

    Reply

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