Helen English, Claire Barnett and Robert F. Fox, Jr. speak to an audience of nearly 200 individuals on the economic, environmental and health benefits of high-performance green building design.

High-Performance Green Buildings:  
A Look at Their Benefits and the Role of Federal Policy
Thursday, July 20, 2006
2:30 – 4:00 pm, 628 Dirksen Senate Office Building

The Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) invites you to a Congressional briefing on the value of incorporating high-performance “green” design in buildings – including schools.  Buildings account for more than 40 percent of annual U.S. energy use and are, in turn, responsible for more than one-third of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions.  As the lifespan of a typical non-residential building is over 75 years and that of public schools is 50 to 60 years, the economic, environmental and health impacts of inefficient building design are long-lasting. 

Recognizing that many high-performance measures can be incorporated with minimal up-front costs while yielding enormous savings during a building’s lifetime, various organizations within the building industry have established goals and created standards to build more sustainably.  In December 2005, the American Institute of Architects ( AIA ) formally called for a 50 percent reduction by 2010 of fossil fuels used to construct and operate buildings, with an additional 10 percent reduction per year for the ensuing five years.  The Sustainable Buildings Industry Council (SBIC) with the Whole Building Design Guide (WBDG) teach an integrated design approach to creating high-performance buildings that calls upon designers, builders and operators to interact closely throughout all phases of the project so that all attributes of a building’s performance are addressed equally and in an integrated fashion.  The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has created a “Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design” (LEED®) voluntary, consensus-based rating system by which to assess and promote resource conservation, energy efficiency and indoor environmental quality.  USGBC’s membership has grown tremendously in the past few years with its conferences attracting thousands.  Its point-based building-rating and performance system has become a sought-after designation and is currently used as a standard in the federal government and by a growing number in the private sector.  In addition, Healthy Schools Network has advanced federal and state interagency policy for healthy and high-performance schools -- design and maintenance protocols that are sensitive to children’s environmental health and learning needs.

Speakers:

• Robert F. Fox, Jr., AIA – Partner, Cook + Fox Architects LLP (U.S. Green Building Council member), designer of the new Bank of America Tower at One Bryant Park, New York City
• Helen English – Executive Director, Sustainable Buildings Industry Council (SBIC)
• Claire Barnett – Executive Director, Healthy Schools Network and Coordinator, Coalition for Healthier Schools

There has been bipartisan support within Congress to advance green building initiatives including legislation introduced this year in both the House and Senate (e.g., H.R. 5633, H.R. 5644, S. 3591, S. 3628) to advance energy-efficient sustainable building design.  In addition, the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (P.L. 109-58) features tax deductions for energy efficient buildings and establishes an interagency program to research and develop technologies to reduce buildings’ energy use.  As yet, Congress has not appropriated funding for this program.  The federal government also has issued Executive Orders and mandates to encourage the adoption of sustainable building design practices, including a Memorandum of  Understanding (MOU) among 21 signatory federal agencies to design, build and operate high-performance, sustainable federal facilities.     

High-performance green buildings can:

-          substantially cut the building’s energy consumption and cost

-          improve student and worker health and productivity through better indoor environmental quality

-          provide reliable electricity from on-site renewable power generation that is less susceptible to disasters and national security threats

-          reduce the environmental impacts of the “built” environment, and

-          provide jobs in the renewable energy and biobased product industries and reduce the country’s reliance on imported oil

Among recent legislation, the High-Performance Green Building Act of 2006 (S. 3591), introduced by Sen. Jeffords (I-VT) with eight co-sponsors, seeks to codify existing green building initiatives by establishing an Office of Green Building Performance within the General Services Administration (GSA) to develop and implement a consistent green building standard for use by federal agencies.  GSA owns and operates approximately 500,000 buildings with over 3 billion square feet, making it the largest landlord in the United States .  GSA is well-suited to address sustainable design in the context of other building design attributes that must be upheld, including security and disaster-resistance.  S. 3591 also would provide financial incentives to federal agencies for adopting green building practices and grants to educational agencies so that more schools can become healthy, high-performance buildings. 

The Energy Efficient Building Act of 2006 (H.R. 5633) introduced by Rep. Biggert (R-IL) with 10 co-sponsors would award grants to businesses and organizations for constructing new energy-efficient buildings or renovating buildings to make them more energy-efficient.  These efficiency improvements will save businesses and organizations substantial money in operational costs throughout their buildings’ lifetime.

In addition to large energy and water cost savings, green buildings can save money for the federal government, schools and businesses due to reduced sickness and absenteeism among their workforce.  The American Lung Association estimates that indoor air pollution costs businesses more than $100 billion a year due to death, sick days, direct medical costs, loss of productivity, and damage to materials and equipment. The Environmental Protection Agency projects that 3,500 to 6,500 premature deaths per year are the result of the effects of indoor air pollutants.

Due to the heightened susceptibility of children to airborne pollutants because of their less developed immune systems, schools would benefit from assistance in incorporating green building design principles.  There are currently 54 million children in 120,000 schools, about half of which have environmental conditions that daily erode health and learning.

This briefing is open to the public and no reservations are required.  Please feel free to forward this notice. 
For more information, contact Theresa Murzyn at 202-662-1884 (tmurzyn@eesi.org).