Green is the new red, white and blue.

Thomas Friedmann

After decades of policy change and environmental awareness, the concept of green has now been accepted into the American lexicon. As citizens, consumers and homeowners in an increasingly damaged environment, we understand that we can make choices that support sustainable ways of living and buying.

As Americans, green has become a way to restructure our country and our economy.

Energy use in America

America is the largest consumer of energy in the world. Most of it comes from fossil fuels and other nonrenewable resources. 39% of the nations energy needs go to supply the construction of homes and businesses.

By applying green design to this large sector of energy use, we have a unique opportunity to make a large global impact.

The burden of building

Buildings in the U.S., as a whole, are responsible for:
70% of electricity consumption

12% of the countrys water use

40% of 38% of the energy green use house gas

65% of waste output

QuickTime and a TIFF (Uncompressed) decompressor are needed to see this picture.

Energy use in America

The Residential Sector of the U.S. accounts for: 21.6% of the countrys energy consumption 9%
of the countrys water use 74% of which is used by occupants of residential buildings!

Energy use in America

Buildings in America are responsible for

40%
of the total U.S. solid waste stream

Looking at the numbers

All of these numbers point to the construction and residential sectors of the American economy as being the largest users of energy, water and electricity and the greatest producers solid waste. By focusing on implementing green practices into these areas, a huge step towards environmental responsibility can be taken.

U.S. Green Building Council

With this knowledge and a desire to create positive change through green practices, organizations like the United States Green Building Council Live Green, Live Smart Smart Growth Network And dozens of others were formed.

Communities taking GREEN action

Communities of green-thinking leaders, homeowners and businesspeople are working to transform the way buildings and communities are designed, built and operated.

$$

$$$

Between 1997 to 2005, forty-five states voted to finance more than $30 billion worth of conservation measures.

How are people going GREEN?

Geothermal Systems
Reuse of Existing Structures Photo-voltaic Cells

Wind Power
Local Purchasing

Recycled Building Materials

Why Geothermal?
Geothermal technology is one of the most efficient ways of heating. _________________________________________ It uses a small amount of electricity to concentrate and circulate the earths natural heat. No heating fuel is burned. It replaces energy-dependent appliances by using geothermal energy to heat a home and its water. Geothermal systems are reliable, require little maintenance and last for decades. They also significantly increase a homes value.

More on Geothermal

According to the EPA, geothermal systems save homeowners 30-70% in heating costs and 20-50% in cooling costs compared to conventional systems.

Heat savings 30-70%

Cooling savings 20-50%

Geothermal Incentive

Many electric utilities have incentive programs and low-interest financing programs that can make geothermal systems more affordable to consumers. One of the main reasons geothermal technology isnt used more widely is simply because more people dont know about it.

Photo-voltaic Cells
Photo-voltaic cells are devices that convert light energy into electrical energy. Most people know them as solar cells.
As photo-voltaic technology becomes more affordable and better known, it is becoming more common in residential homes and business establishments.

Reuse of structures & material

Reuse is the second arrow of the familiar three-arrow Reduce, Reuse, Recycle sign. Reuse of buildings and construction material can have a major beneficial impact on lowering construction costs and enhancing sustainability of our built environment.

More about Reuse

Reuse of buildings means working with the original infrastructure as much as possible while demolishing only outmoded or unsafe portions. This repair or rehabilitation by construction teams spares the energy and cost of total demolition followed by new construction. This process saves natural resources of raw materials, energy and water resources while preventing pollution generated by transporting new materials, solid waste disposal and landfill use. Buildings designated for reuse must be structurally sound and durable.

Deconstruction & recycling of materials

Hundreds of used building material stores sell materials for construction and renovation projects. Lumber, bricks, doors and windows are salvaged mostly from remodeling projects, pre-demolition salvage, and the growing practice of deconstructionthe selective disassembly of buildings to reuse and recycle parts.
The EPA collaborates with organizations including the Army's Construction Engineering Research Lab, the USDA Forest Products Lab, and Habitat for Humanity to demonstrate, document, and disseminate best practices for the deconstruction of buildings.

Reusing durable components

Typically, buildings made of concrete are the best candidates for reuse due to the low-maintenance and durability of the material. Concrete and masonry exteriors are long-lasting, and often designed with aesthetic detail and craftsmanship.

Reusing durable components

Windows, floor coverings, partition walls, mechanical systems, and plumbing can be replaced and insulation added while maintaining the original concrete frame and exterior walls.

Health Benefits
Building green provides significant health benefits
Mitigates radon, lead-based paint and other hazardous materials Reduces presence of gas-off chemicals like formaldehyde and VOCs.

Lowers dependency on fossil fuels and reduces emissions

Better ventilation, less mold and mildew content

Other Environmental Amenities

Besides reducing, reusing and recycling materials, green building includes other environmental amenities:
Hard drive and walk surfaces made of permeable materials to
reduce water runoff Lower monthly utility bills

Less dependence on oil by using local materials that cut

down on transportation needs Healthy, productive work and home environments

The Big Picture

Building and construction projects account for significant portions of US energy consumption, economics, pollution and public health.

By implementing green building and Smart Growth practices, we have a strategic way to make a positive financial decision that benefits the health of ourselves and our world, while stimulating a market segment that creates jobs and promotes education and energy-use awareness.

Communities taking GREEN action

As green education spreads, more people are realizing that sustainable building practices lead to lower utility bills and less exposure to unhealthy indoor pollutants such as mold, mildew.

The USGBCs pilot program already involves more than 200 builders and 1,600 homes in the U.S., including Affordable Housing alternatives.

LEED Certification
The USGBC established Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) guidelines as a system to define and measure green buildings. LEED is the nationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings.

LEEDs Green Building Certification and rating system provides independent, third-party verification that a building meets a certain level of green performance standards.

Other Environmental Amenities

LEED certified green homes reduce energy consumption dependency

and can reduce annual utility bills by hundreds of dollars

Holistic Approach

Alternative urban planning preserves open space, creates cohesive neighborhoods with local amenities and reduces dependence on fossil fuels. The community-involved process that produces this land use planning is called Smart Growth.

Smart Growth

Smart Growth promotes green lifestyles by applying the premise that common community amenities be in close proximity to community members in order to minimize transportation costs and pollution, and to minimize the amount of energy needed to a bring products to consumers.

Smart Growth

Growth is smart when it gives us great communities, with more choices and personal freedom, good return on public investment, less dependency on cars, a thriving natural environment and a legacy.
Smart Growth Network

Smart Growth
Communities around the nation are developing in ways that offer more choices, protect natural resources, use resources wisely and improve the economy

Smart Growth Network

Health Benefits
Building green provides significant health benefits

Green building and Smart Growth community design strive to incorporate alternative transportation incentives, such as planning communities in close proximity to the places that people travel to most and promoting biking and walking.

Green Design
One beginning point in the creation of a greener future is through the use of Green Design.

______________________________________
Green Design is a construction practice that significantly reduces or eliminates the negative impact of building on the environment.

Green Design
Green design makes use of local resources including local labor, local products and local raw materials. This intentional local planning aims to keep jobs in local communities and reduces the pollution of long-range transportation.

The Bigger Picture

Green building and design aim to improve our world and improve standards of living by targeting the largest energy-using parts of our society. America can carry its pioneering spirit forward by implementing holistic Smart Growth practices, including green design and green building, to become a world leader in environmental responsibility and public health.

 2007 Live Green, Live Smart, LLC