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PUBLiCATiONS

Nisr United states Department of Commerce

Technology Administration

National Institute of Standards and Technology

NIST Special Publication 863

U.S. Green Building Conference-1994

A. H. Fanney, K. M. Whitter, A. E. Traugott, and L, N. Simorty Editors

—oe- 100

.U57

NO. 863

^99^
7he National Institute of Standards and Technology was established in 1988 by Congress to "assist industry in the development of technology . . . needed to improve product quality, to modernize

manufacturing processes, to ensure product reliability . . . and to facilitate rapid commercialization ... of

products based on new scientific discoveries."

NIST, originally founded as the National Bureau of Standards in 1901, works to strengthen U.S.

industry's competitiveness; advance science and engineering; and improve public health, safety, and the

environment. One of the agency's basic functions is to develop, maintain, and retain custody of the national

standards of measurement, and provide the means and methods for comparing standards used in science,

engineering, manufacturing, commerce, industry, and education with the standards adopted or recognized

by the Federal Government.

As an agency of the U.S. Commerce Department's Technology Administration, NIST conducts basic

and applied research in the physical sciences and engineering and performs related services. The Institute does generic and precompetitive work on new and advanced technologies. NIST's research facilities are located at Gaithersburg, ^4D 20899, and at Boulder, CO 80303. Major technical operating units and their principal activities are listed below. For more information contact the Public Inquiries Desk, 301-975-3058.

Technology Services

• Manufacturing Technology Centers Program

• Standards Services

• Technology Commercialization

• Measurement Services

• Technology Evaluation and Assessment

• Information Services

Electronics and Electrical Engineering

Laboratory

• Microelectronics

• Law Enforcement Standards

• Electricity

• Semiconductor Electronics

• Electromagnetic Fields'

• Electromagnetic Technology'

Chemical Science and Technology

Laboratory

• Biotechnology

• Chemical Engineering'

• Chemical Kinetics and Thermodynamics

• Inorganic Analytical Research

• Organic Analytical Research

• Process Measurements

• Surface and Microanalysis Science

• Thermophysics^

Physics Laboratory

• Electron and Optical Physics

• Atomic Physics

• Molecular Physics

• Radiometric Physics

• Quantum Metrology

• Ionizing Radiation

• Time and Frequency'

• Quantum Physics'

Manufacturing Engineering Laboratory

• Precision Engineering

• Automated Production Technology

• Robot Systems

• Factory Automation

• Fabrication Technology

Materials Science and Engineering

Laboratory

• Intelligent Processing of Materials

• Ceramics

• Materials Reliability'

• Polymers

• Metallurgy

• Reactor Radiation

Building and Fire Research Laboratory

• Structures

• Building Materials

• Building Environment

• Fire Science and Engineering

• Fire Measurement and Research

Computer Systems Laboratory

• Information Systems Engineering

• Systems and Software Technology

• Computer Security

• Systems and Network Architecture

• Advanced Systems

Computing and Applied Mathematics

Laboratory

• Applied and Computational Mathematics^

• Statistical Engineering^

• Scientific Computing Environments^

• Computer Services^

• Computer Systems and Communications^

• Information Systems

'At Boulder, CO 80303. ^Some elements at Boulder, CO 80303.
NIST Special Publication 863

U.S. Green Building Conference-1994

A. H. Fanney and K. M. Whitter, Editors

Building and Fire Research Laboratory

National Institute of Standards and Technology

Gaithersburg, MD 20899-0001

A. E. Traugott and L. N. Simon, Editors

U.S. Green Building Council

Washington, DC 20036

June 1994

% 5f

U.S. Department of Commerce

Ronald H. Brown, Secretary

Technology Administration

Mary L. Good, Under Secretary for Technology

National Institute of Standards and Technology

Arati Prabhakar, Director
National Institute of Standards

and Technology

Special Publication 863

Natl. Inst. Stand. Technol.

Spec. Publ. 863

150 pages (June 1994)

CODEN: NSPUE2

U.S. Government Printing Office

Washington: 1994

For sale by the Superintendent

of Documents

U.S. Government Printing Office

Washington, DC 20402
PREFACE

This report constitutes the proceedings of the Green Building Conference held in Gaithersburg,

Maryland, February 16-17, 1994. The conference was co-sponsored by the National Institute of

Standards and Technology (NIST) and the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). Over 450

individuals attended the conference representing building product manufacturers, building owners and managers, environmental groups, utilities, contractors, builders, architects, engineers,

and the local, state, and the federal governments. The conference provided an opportunity to acquire practical, useful information on green buildings, resources, and guidelines.

The conference commenced with welcoming remarks from David Gottfried, USGBC President

and Samuel Kramer, Associate Director of NIST. Cathy Zoi from the White House Office of

Environmental Policy gave the keynote address entitled "Green Buildings - The White House

Perspective." The remainder of the conference focused on the following topics:

* International Activities - A presentation of assessment methodologies and

performance criteria for green buildings in Canada, the United Kingdom, and the

United States.

* U.S. Activities - An overview of the leading national non-profit organizations and

government agencies involved in the development of green building programs,

standards, and educational resources.

* Exemplary Green Buildings - A presentation of green building case studies, including

residential, commercial, and institutional structures.

* Current and Future Technology Needs - A discussion of current and promising new

technologies in the areas of building materials, lighting, and indoor air quality.

On the evening of February 16, visionaries Bill McDonough, AIA, and Author Paul Hawken

spoke on the "Future and Making of Things." Their presentation focused on a new approach to design, industry, public policy, and commercial activity which would lead to a restorative and

prosperous future. The final conference event was a tour of the NIST Building and Fire Research

Laboratories involved in research related to green buildings.

This proceedings includes papers from the majority of the speakers. Five of the 24 speakers

failed to submit written text to the editors.

iii

TABLE OF CONTENTS

PAPERS

NIST Welcome

Samuel Kramer 1

Assessing the Environmental Impact of Buildings in the UK

Paul Bartlett and Roger Baldwin 3

Building Environmental Performance Assessment Criteria, BEPAC

Raymond J. Cole 14

The City of Austin Green Builder Program

W. Laurence Doxsey 21

Canada's Advanced Houses Program

Tim Mayo 35

The MST Green Building Program

James E. Hill 42

The American Institute of Architects Committee on The Environment

Harry T. Gordon 55

The U.S. Green Building Council's Initiatives to Improve the Energy and

Environmental Efficiency of the "Whole Building Environment"

Michael Italiano 58

Life Cycle Assessment

Mary Ann Curran 63

Greening the White House

William D. Browning and Dianna Lopez Barnett 68

Our Future and the Making of Things

William McDonough 76

Audubon House

Jan Beyea 83

V
Design and Implementation of a Sustainable University Student Living Laboratory

Sharon R. Stine 90

Sustainable Design Options for the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Prairie Learning Center

Susan Reilly 101

Architecture, Ethics & The Environment, An Exploration of Nature & The Human

Spirit

John A. Clark, Neal I. Payton and David Tice 108

The Resource Conservation Research House

Liza K. Bowles 117

Performance of Building Envelopes, New Materials and Research Findings

J.D. NedNisson 121

Environmental Building Materials: What are they? Where are they?

Paul Bierman-Lytle 127

Green Buildings: DOE's Historical Role and New Directions

John P. Millhone 136

vi
NIST WELCOME

Samuel Kramer, Associate Director

National Institute of Standards and Technology

Gaithersburg, Maryland

With Dave's (David Gottfried, President of U.S. Green Building Council) profound challenge

and insight on this conference and the introduction, I ought to say thank you and sit down. I would be better off at that point, but I want to thank the Council for co-sponsoring this meeting

with us, and I also wanted to take a moment to acknowledge the work of Hunter Fanney and Jim

Hill, who have leadership roles in green building technology programs here at NIST, for their

efforts in organizing the Conference.

Green buildings are not new to NIST or as it was known before 1988 as NBS. As you know, the

term "Green Buildings" means buildings which are designed, constructed, operated, and

eventually demolished to have minimum impact on our global and internal envirormient. NIST

has had a long interest in this field. Going back before the oil embargo of 1973, NIST was

involved in developing the algorithms for calculation of energy usage and energy conservation in

buildings, and these techniques are used today in almost all major energy calculation programs,

including the Department of Energy's D0E2 computer program. After the oil embargo, NBS at that time, developed the very first draft of the energy conservation design standards for buildings.

It was the predecessor of the ASHRAE Standard 90, which is now incoporated within virtually

all building regulations in the United States. NIST has many programs in many diversified areas, and presently we have many programs related to green buildings such as waste minimization;

energy conservation; air, soil, water quality; indoor air quality; ozone depletion; global warming;

and green building designs.

Jim Hill, who is Chief of our Building Environment Division, will be discussing the NIST

laboratory and green building programs. We have significant activities under way in our

laboratories, and as Dave said, I hope you take the opportunity to visit our labs and to see the

programs, and to see who we are working with. NIST is directly involved in working with

manufacturers and the design profession, with the people outside who are actually creating the

buildings, the people who are designing them, and the people who are operating them. NIST is charged with working with industry. We are the lead agency of the federal government that has a

specific mandate of working with industry and the private sector, and we look forward to working with industry and interacting with them and the many professionals and intermediary

organizations as we move forward and make the transition to green technology. I think that

Dave did a very good job in describing the overall impact of green technology, and the need to further the development of green technologies.

As Dave noted, I am personally involved in a major design and construction program at NIST. It

is a $540 million program to develop the advanced technology laboratories that will enable us to pursue modem technology programs in measurement that are needed by industry in this country.
In doing this, we have under design major facilities, both here in Gaithersburg, Maryland and in

Boulder, Colorado for advanced technology laboratories. These laboratories will provide an environment for the NIST researchers that will be world class. They will be able to do work

which cannot be done anywhere in the United States and will attain the ability to compete with

the European and Japanese labs that in many cases are today much more advanced than ours. The new advanced technology laboratories will allow us to address the technology needs of

today as well as 20 years from now. In addition, we will be undertaking major rehabilitation of

our existing laboratories. The designers, the architects and engineers who are working on this

project, some of whom are here in the audience today, have been charged from the very

beginning with incorporating to the maximum extent possible green technology and to recognize

the impact of facilities on the environment. And so, in all of our design reviews we are raising

questions related to green technology, and it covers a very, very wide spectrum. I might add,

anecdotal, that in addition, these major construction programs of new and rehabilitated facilities

will be entirely metric. Those of you in the design profession who are here, and I notice

scanning the list of attendees that there are many here, may want to watch this project because it will be a major project, and it will be done entirely in metric. It will not be soft metric. It will be

hard metric, and there will be no equivalency dimensioning in the plans and specs.

We are delighted to host this conference with the U.S. Green Building Council, and although the

Council is less than a year old, I think the Council holds a promise to be a major voice for the

building industry. I think with Dave's insight, the Council will be a major voice for the

community because you have to have a wide vision necessary to recognize what is the impact of

your work on the environment and the people around you. We look forward to working with the

Council. We look forward to working with industry, with ASTM and the other federal agencies,

and others as we pursue further developments in the adoption of green technology.

I want to note one more thing. The importance of recognizing the environment is great, and it is continuously being reinforced by those of us in government and the senior policy decision

makers in government. On February 1 1, just a few days ago. President Clinton signed Executive

Order 12898, which is entitled "Federal Actions to Address Environmental Justice in Minority

Populations and Low Income Populations." This is another action which is evidence of the

continual reinforcement and reaffirmation of the importance of consideration of the environment.

All of our actions, no matter what we do in this world, unless we are living in some isolated

shell, our behavior, what you do, affects others. That's what we are talking about in green

buildings. All of our actions make a difference.

2
Assessing the Environmental Impact of Buildings in the UK

Paul Bartlett and Roger Baldwin

Building Research Establishment

Garston, Watford, WD2 7JR, UK

® Crown Copyright 1994 - Building Research Establishment

Abstract

The protection of the environment is one of today's key issues demanding international

action. In the UK, the government has issued a 'green' White Paper^^^ and two updating

reviews, setting out its Agenda; businesses are also responding by developing environmental

policy statements as part of their business strategy; general public concern is evident through

changes in purchasing practices and an increasing interest in recycling waste such as paper,

cans, and bottles. In Europe, initiatives are being taken to develop ecolabelling schemes

specifically for assessing consumer products. Environmental management systems are being

developed through BSI and internationally.

Underlying these concerns is a perception that industrialised economies have significantly and

irreversibly changed (or perhaps about to change) the planet's climate, atmosphere and

ecosystems. This perception is fuelled by reports in the media of rising pollution, poor air

quality, threats to ecosystems such as historic hedgerows, and even graffiti and litter.

What is not generally realised is that buildings, in their construction, use and demolition

account for a large share of environmental impacts. People spend about 90% of their time

indoors, at least in Northern Europe and probably much more time in the urban environment.

More importantly, buildings have an impact on the global environment through energy use and the use of chemicals such as CFCs for cooling. In the UK and other Western European

countries, buildings account for about 50% of primary energy use (and hence CO2 output),

far outweighing the contribution of either transport or industry sectors.

This paper describes action taken by the BRE to set standards for environmentally friendlier

buildings which uses market forces to bring about environmental sensitivity in the industry.

BREEAM is an environmental assessment method, embodied in an accreditation scheme,

which is enjoying considerable success in the UK. The paper describes its development and

underlying philosophy and provides details of its content and operation.

1. Introduction

The protection of the environment is one of today's key issues demanding international

action. In the UK, the government has issued a 'green' White Paper^^' and two updating

reviews , setting out its Agenda; businesses are also responding by developing environmental

policy statements as part of their business strategy. General public concern is evident through

changes in purchasing practices and an increasing interest in recycling waste such as paper.

3
cans, and bottles. In Europe, initiatives are being taken to develop ecolabelling schemes

specifically for assessing consumer products. Environmental management systems are also

being developed in Europe and elsewhere.

Underlying these concerns is a perception that industrialised economies have significantly and

irreversibly changed (or are perhaps about to change) the planet's climate, atmosphere and

ecosystems. This perception is fuelled by reports in the media of rising pollution, poor air

quality, threats to ecosystems and even graffiti and litter.

What is not generally realised is that buildings, in their construction, use and demolition

account for a large share of environmental impacts. People spend about 90% of their time

indoors, at least in Northern Europe. More importantly, buildings have an impact on the

global environment through energy use and the use of chemicals such as CFCs for cooling.

In the UK and other Western European countries, buildings account for about 50% of

primary energy use (and hence CO2 output), far outweighing the contribution of either

transport or industry sectors.

This paper describes action taken by the BRE to set standards for environmentally friendlier

buildings which uses market forces to bring about environmental sensitivity in the industry.

BREEAM is an environmental assessment method, embodied in an accreditation scheme,

which is enjoying considerable success in the UK. The paper describes its development and

underlying philosophy and provides details of its content and operation.

2. The BREEAM Scheme

The Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) is a scheme for environmental labelling of buildings developed by BRE with a number of private

sector sponsors. The basis of the scheme is a Certificate awarded to individual buildings

stating clearly, and in a way that can be made visible to Clients, the performance of the

building against a set of defined environmental criteria. This Certificate can be displayed in

the building, or in the promotional portfolio, and may form part of the developer and

occupier's overall environmental policy statement and management system. It thus rewards

positive actions by the client or the designer to improve the environmental performance of

the building, and provides a credible way of differentiating greener buildings from other

designs, and assists in marketing to an environmentally selective clientele. Developers can

thus present environmental performance as an aspect of overall quality and gain a commercial advantage from doing so.

The scheme is voluntary and self-financing. Assessments are carried out by independent

assessors licensed by BRE. BRE, as owner, underpins the UK scheme, with its reputation

for authority and independence, and provides technical support for the various criteria and

algorithms used. BRE also provides quality control, guidance to assessors on complex

technical issues and updates the scheme.

4
The first version, launched in 1991 was for new office buildings, assessed at the design

stage, and was recently been updated^^ last year, to reflect developing knowledge and

experience gained in the operation of the scheme. It has proved very popular with around

200 buildings assessed so far, about 25 % of eligible new office designs developed in this

period. It also forms part of standard specifications for designs for major property owners

and managers, such as Property Holdings, the UK government estate managers.

Other schemes have been launched for new homes^'*^ and supermarkets^^\ and light industrial

buildings^^ and others are being planned. A significant new development, however, is a new

scheme for existing offices^^, launched by the Secretary of State for the Environment in April

1993, which for the first time provides guidelines on the operation and management of the

building as well as its fabric and services. The Certificate is in two parts one dealing with

the fabric and services, the other with operation and management, allowing different groups

to use the scheme, and accommodating the various opportunities for assessment during the

life of the building.

3. Development of the Scheme

The scheme has been developed with sponsorship from major developers in the UK.

Table 1 Sponsors of BREEAM

Stanhope Properties Pic

Greycoat Pic

J Sainsbury Pic

Olympia and York

National Westminster Bank Pic

Property Holdings

Prudential Pic

Slough Estates

The Commission for the New Towns

Municipal Mutual Insurance

Safeway PLC

Budgens

BBC

Lloyds Bank Pic

Barclays Bank Pic

Davis Langdon & Everest

Cable and Wireless Pic

English Estates

Trafford Park Pic

AMEC

Table 1 lists the sponsors of the BREEAM portfolio to date. They have made substantial

intellectual contributions to the underlying philosophy, the market orientation of the scheme,

and the practicality of the criteria and assessment procedures. This pattern has been followed

in subsequent versions.

The first problem in developing the scheme is the vast range of environmental issues which

potentially could be included. Another problem is that there is already a wide range of legal

obligations relating to the environment. Of a more practical nature, there is a financial limit

to the effort that can be put into any assessment, governed by the client's willingness to pay.

One technical problem is the need to specify not only environmental criteria, but also a

practical way of assessing whether the building complies with the criteria.
It was decided to group the issues in a simple way under three main headings:

- global issues and use of resources

- local issues

- indoor issues

As an example, the issues covered for existing offices are summarised in Table 2.

It was decided not to reward designers for complying with their legal obligations, so criteria were set going beyond these obligations, setting higher environmental standards. Issues were

only included if a real environmental matter was involved; if sensible criteria could be set; and importantly if there was some means of assessing compliance. This eliminated a large

number of issues, many of some importance (eg energy content of materials). However,

BRE took the view that in spite of these gaps, enough was known to make significant steps

in defining and assessing 'greener' buildings. Issues omitted will be included at a later stage, as knowledge develops. The published reports describing the scheme list these missing

issues. On assessing compliance, it is worth noting that assessing energy performance is the

most technically demanding: most energy models make substantial and costly demands for

data input, and our problem was to find a 'simple' energy model of sufficient accuracy.

These appear to be in short supply, representing an urgent research need.

Finally, the Certificate was designed so that issues received individual, discrete 'credits', as shown in Table 2. A credit signifies the design satisfies the criteria for that issue. It is tempting to add up the credits to given an overall score for the building. However, assessing

the relative important of disparate issues is a considerable and currently intractable problem,

so this was not attempted. In later schemes, to aid communication we have included a summary of performance expressed as a single rating of FAIR, GOOD, VERY GOOD or EXCELLENT, based on a minimum level of credits in each of the three Sections

(Global/Resources, Local and Indoor). A rating of EXCELLENT indicates a high standard

of performance across the range of impacts, although there may still be scope for further

refinement.

4. Technical Contents of BREEAM for New Offices

The following sections describes some of the technical issues covered in the New Offices

Version in more depth.

6
TABLE 2: Examples of credits covered in BREEAM

Part 1: Fabric and services

4/93 (Existing Offices) Part 2: Operation and management

Global issues and use of resources

Carbon dioxide emissions

* 1 credit for less than 120 points * 2 credits " " 110 "

* " *9 credits " " 40 "

*1 credit for individual check meters for each

tenant *1 credit for adequate sub-metering for each tenant

Ozone depletion

*1 credit for refrigerant ODP of less than 0.06

or no air conditioning

*1 credit for refrigerant ODP of zero or no air conditioning *1 credit for a refrigerant leak detection system

or no air conditioning

*1 credit for on site refrigerant recovery or no

air conditioning

*1 credit for avoiding halon-based fire protection

Local Issues

Water conservation

*1 credit for building with two of the following:

- water meter

- WCs with maximum 6-litre flush

- water economy devices on urinals

Legionnaires' disease *1 credit for no evaporating cooling towers or condensers

Indoor issues

Lighting

*1 credit for high-frequency ballasts fitted to luminaires

Air quality *1 credit for adjustable openable windows in each room or for mechanical ventilation where there is no visible free-standing water in the ductwork

*1 credit for no humidification or for steam

humidification

*1 credit for an effective filtration system

capable of removing pollen particles

Environmental Policy

*1 credit for having an established and openly available overall company policy on the environment

*1 credit for a company purchasing policy which excludes the use of timber from unsustainable sources *1 credit for a company purchasing policy which excludes the use of other environmentally damaging materials

Global issues and use of resources Carbon dioxide emissions

*1 credit for having an energy policy endorsed by the board of

directors, with a suitably trained member of staff to implement it *1 credit for energy audit of the building

*1 credit for monitoring and targeting system

*1 credit for an energy efficiency improvement investment budget

in relation to refurbishment

*1 credit for an operating manual for services *1 credit for regular dissemination of information on energy use and means of saving energy to services systems operators and

occupants

*1 credit for a regular system maintenance schedule

Ozone depletion

*1 credit for regular inspection for refrigerant leaks or where no air conditioning is provided

*1 credit for minimising unnecessary emission of halon or where no

halon-based fire protection is in use

Local Issues

Legionnaires' disease *1 credit for a management system which identifies and ensures

regular maintenance and treatment of the building's cooling

tower(s)

Indoor Issues

Lighting

*1 credit for a planned programme of luminaire cleaning and lamp

replacement

Air Quality

*1 credit for a policy at avoiding health hazards arising from

passive smoking

*1 credit for a maintenance policy which ensures regular filter replacement

*1 credit for measured carbon dioxide levels of less than 800 parts per million in selected spaces

Healthy-building indicators

*1 credit for 30 points or more

*2 credits for 45 points or more

*3 credits for 60 points or more

7
4.1 Global Issues

Carbon Dioxide Production due to Energy Consumption

Since BREEAM focuses on the environment, it is appropriate to concentrate on the reduction of

CO2 production rather than the consumption of delivered energy.

Generally offices receiving the highest credit for CO2 production will have all of the features

listed below,

- improved insulation

- no air conditioning

- good use of daylighting

- energy efficient artificial light with effective controls

- efficient appliances and gas as the predominant fuel.

With all of these features in mind, it is possible to consider a quantitative scale for carbon

dioxide emissions resulting from energy use. The annual energy consumption for a

particular building is predicted using a program developed by the Electricity Association,

ESICHECK.

Ozone Depletion due to CFCs, HCFCs and Halons

Building services can have a profound impact on the amount of damage done to the ozone

layer from CFCs, HCFCs and Halons. As other uses of CFCs are eliminated (for example

aerosols) the relative importance of buildings as a potential threat to the ozone layer

increases. Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), Hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) and Halons are chemical compounds which cause damage to the earths stratospheric ozone layer. The ozone

depletion potential (ODP) for a given substance is a measure of the contribution of that

substance to ozone depletion relative to that of CFC 11. Thus CFC 11 has an ODP of 1, and

is the most damaging of the CFCs.

From both the energy and ozone depletion point of view, the best thing would be to design

buildings so that they did not need cdr conditioning. However, if air conditioning systems

must be used, they should be designed to operate on refrigerants that either pose no threat to the environment or who at least use refrigerants which have a lower ozone depletion potential

than CFC 11. So against this background there are a total of five credits available for the

design of air conditioning. But all of these five credits are available to schemes which have no air conditioning at all. In addition to air conditioning, the avoidance of the use of halons

is also considered. The elimination of ozone depleting substances from thermal insulation is also credited.

8
4.2 Local Issues

Legionnaire's Disease Arising from Wet Cooling Towers

The purpose of this credit is to eliminate the risk of Legionnaire's disease arising from wet

cooling towers associated with air conditioning systems. Once again this credit is available to buildings which have no air conditioning or have air conditioning without wet cooling

towers. However, some buildings do have wet cooling towers and in order to achieve this

credit, they would have to conform to the specification described in CIBSE TM13*^.

Noise

Unwanted sound from equipment on office buildings can cause serious noise pollution and

consequent problems for surrounding residents. The acceptability of the noise source in a

residential area can be assessed using the rating system described in the British Standard

BS4142 1990^^\ Minimal noise pollution can be achieved by ensuring that noise from fans

and other plants associated with the building, near a residential building is not less that 5db

below the background levels during any period of the day or evening, and does not exceed

the background level during any period of the night.

Overshadowing of Other Buildings

Large buildings can cause substantial overshadowing of neighbouring properties; both

sunlight and light from the sky can be effected. The impact of a new building on all nearby

buildings where daylight is of value should be checked; this would include homes, hospitals,

hotels, schools and most offices and workshops. In general any overshadowing should be

minimised. The BRE Report Site layout Planning for Daylight and Sunlight: A Guide to Good Practice^^\ contains a means of checking the degree of overshadowing.

Large buildings will also block sunshine, this is especially important for adjacent homes and

gardens. The British Standard on daylight BS8206 part 2^'°\ recommends that the interiors of

homes should receive over a quarter of yearly probable sunshine hours, with at least 5% of

yearly probable sunshine hours being received in the 6 months September to March, The

BREEAM scheme therefore gives a credit for buildings which do not cause substantial

overshadowing of neighbouring properties or which do not cause an existing situation to deteriorate.

Water Economy

Water is increasingly becoming a scarce resource with an associated increase in the degree

of financial and environmental cost. A credit is available for providing WC's which have a maximum flushing capacity of 6 litres or less.

9
4.3 Indoor Issues

Ventilation, Passive Smoking and Humidity

The purpose of each of the credits in this section is to improve the level of indoor air

quality, whilst maintaining energy efficiency. Buildings which rely on natural ventilation and

which have openable windows are a highly effective way of meeting this objective.

However, in deep plan buildings where natural ventilation would be inadequate, the CIBSE

recommendations on ventilation rates need to be followed with particular attention to the

potential presence of smoking. Therefore in the BREEAM scheme a credit is available for

the provision of openable windows and also for buildings with air conditioning or mechanical

ventilation who are able to provide a ventilation rate appropriate to the level of smoking

likely to occur in the building.

Following along the theme of smoking, a credit is also available for providing a separately

ventilated area for smokers. This area needs to be fully partitioned and allow the polluted air to escape outside without mixing with the air for the rest of the building. An alternative,

which is difficult to achieve in speculative developments, is to specify a no smoking policy

for the whole building.

The final section on air quality relates to humidity. In the HSE Specialist Inspectors Report

No 11^^^\ the control of workplace humidity is acknowledged as an important dimension of

air quality. To counter this effect, it is common practice to use a humidifier to boost the

amount of humidity in the air particularly in cold weather. If the humidifier is allowed to become contaminated with micro-organisms, it may in itself become a health hazard.

Inhalation of contaminated water from the humidifiers can cause various illnesses, one of

these is humidifier fever. In general, steam humidification has not been associated with

humidifier fever, and there is also some evidence that the sick building syndrome symptoms

are sometimes reduced when steam rather than spray humidification is used.

It is acknowledged that there is a contradictory element to recommending the use of steam

humidifiers because they increase the amount of energy consumption. However, it is still important to eliminate potential sources of illness generated by buildings. This particular

issue illustrates how the BREEAM scheme is able to cope with two environmental issues

which are important, yet might be ignored because of their complex inter-relationship.

Lighting

Again the BRE Report Site Planning for Daylight and Sunlight - A Guide to Good Practice^^\

is used as the criterion for establishing whether or not a design maximises the effective use of daylight. Most people prefer natural light to artificial light, and it has the added bonus of

reducing electricity consumption for lighting.

10
Turning to artificial lighting, a credit is available for the use of high frequency ballasts in

place of conventional ballasts. In offices, headaches and eyestrain have successfully been

reduced when high frequency ballasts have been substituted for conventional ballasts used in

fluorescent lighting.

The final lighting credit aims to ensure occupant comfort by encouraging designers to follow

the recommendations contained in the CIBSE Code for Interior Lighting^^^\ The energy

impacts of lighting are taken into account in the CO2 calculation.

Thermal Comfort and Overheating

With the strong emphasis on reducing COj emissions, it is possible to forget that there is a

risk of discomfort due to both overheating and underheating in buildings. For this reason the

scheme gives a credit for demonstrating that the building design has been subject to an

assessment consistent with the CIBSE Guide Volume A on thermal comfort^'^\ BRE believes

that increasing awareness of this issue is an important first step.

5. The Role of BREEAM and the Benefits it Provides.

The benefits to the different participants in the scheme can be identified in a number of

ways.

5.1 Benefits of Recognition.

When the scheme was launched, it was apparent that there was a demand for environmentally

friendlier buildings. Some designers and developers were trying to respond to this demand.

However, clients had no common set of standards to make an assessment of how extensively

environmental issues had been considered. Without these standards it was impossible to have

an objective and credible way of differentiating green buildings from all the rest. BREEAM

provides a way of achieving this.

5.2 Marketing Benefits.

By differentiating greener buildings from other designs, BREEAM is able to provide the

construction industry with a product to sell to environmentally conscientious clients.

BREEAM rewards a developer's positive actions towards the environment by providing

market advantage denied to those designing outside the scheme. One of the intentions of

BREEAM is to bring to the construction industry commercial benefits from addressing

environmental issues. It stimulates a market for environmentally friendlier products.

5.3 Environmental Benefits.

Whatever the designers/developers motives, the existence of BREEAM has encouraged

designers to become more environmentally sensitive. Buildings have a long life, so any

improvements in their initial design will significantly reduce their future environmental

impact. As the scheme is voluntary, it allows important environmental issues to be addressed

11
sooner than if they were covered by legislation. BREEAM could be thought of as bringing consensus to complicated and contradictory environmental issues. This work draws from

existing research programs being undertaken by BRE, on behalf of the Department of the

Environment, and also by widespread consultation with the construction industry and

professionals.

5.4 Benefits to everyone who use buildings.

Finally, BREEAM can be seen as a way of recognising that the indoor environment of

greener buildings protects the health and well-being of the buildings occupants. It draws

attention to the need to ensure the quality of the internal environment is not compromised.

6. Conclusion

BREEAM is believed to be the first scheme in the world specifically to provide recognition

of buildings where due attention has been paid to reducing environmental impacts. It has

proved popular in the UK, and a range of building types is now included in the scheme.

Similar schemes are now under development in other European countries, using BREEAM as a model. This scheme demonstrates a means whereby voluntary, market led actions can lead

to environmental improvement.

References

1. This Common Inheritance: Britain's environmental strategy. London: HMSO.

2. J J Prior. BREEAM 1/93 - an environmental assessment for new office designs.

Building Research Establishment. Report No. BR234, 1993.

3. V H C Crisp; J V Doggart; M P Attenborough. BREEAM 2/91 - an environmental

assessment for new superstores and supermarkets. Building Research Establishment.

Report No. BR207. Garston, 1991.

4. J J Prior; G J Raw; J L Charlesworth. BREEAM 3/91 - an environmental assessment

for new homes. Building Research Establishment. Report No. BR208. Garston,

1992.

5. CRT Lindsay; P B Bartlett; A Baggett; M P Attenborough; J V Doggart; BREEAM

5/93 - An environmental assessment for new industrial, warehousing and non-food

retail units. Building Research Establishment. Report No. 252, Garston, 1993.

6. S J Leach; M P Attenborough; J V Doggart; R Baldwin; P B Bartlett. BREEAM

4/93 - an environmental assessment for existing offices. Building Research

Establishment. Report No. 240, 1993.

7. The Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers 'Minimising the Risk of

Legionnellas Disease' CIBSE Technical Memorandum TM 13. London 1991

12
8. British Standards Institute, 'Method for rating industrial noise affecting mixed

residential and industrial areas' British Standards BS 4142: 1990 London, BSI, 1990

9. P J Littlefair, 'Site Layout planning for Daylighting and Sunlight: a guide to good

Practice' Building Research Establishment Report. Garston, BRE, 1991.

10. British Standards Institute, 'Lighting for Buildings Part 2. Code of Practice for

lighting' British Standard BS8206: Part 2:1992, London, BSI, 1992.

IL J Sykes, 'Precautions Against Illness Associated with Humidifiers', Health and Safety

Executive Specialists Report No 11. Bootle, HSE, 1988.

12. The Chartered Institute of Building Services Engineers, 'Code for Interior Lighting'.

London, CIBSE, 1993.

13. The Chartered Institute of Building Services Engineers, 'CIBSE Guide, Volume A,:

Design Data' London, CIBSE, 1988.

PCT/PBB/nist.pap

28 January 1994

13
BUIIDING ENVIRONMENTAL PEE^FMANCE ASSESSMENT CRITERIA, BEPAC

Raymond J. Cole

School of Architecture, University of British Colunibia

6333 Memorial Road

Vancouver V6T 1Z2, Canada

Abstract. Building Environmental Performance Assessment Criteria (BEPAC) is

the first comprehensive method in Canada for evaluating the environmental

performance of both new and existing office buildings. BEPAC is comprised of a comprehensive set of environmental criteria, structured in five major topics:

Ozone Layer Protection, Environmental Irrpacts of Energy Use, Indoor

Environmental Quality, Resource Conservation and Site and Transportation. The

credited criteria of BEPAC are organized within four modules. These modules

are designed differently for the Base Building and Tenancies. Design and

Management are addressed at both levels. Each module addresses the five topic

areas. BEPAC criteria begin where average practice and codes leave off. The

standards set in BEPAC are those which are consistent with "best practice"

today and will lead industry towards more environmentally responsive practice

in the future.

Introduction

Current patterns of human activity, settlement and development create regional

and global environmental degradation at a scale which poses a serious threat

to continued human existence. The acknowledged severity of global warming,

ozone layer depletion, resource depletion and degradation of the planet's

ecosystems, together with greater understanding of the effects buildings have

on occupant health and well-being, has precipitated a growing awareness of the

need to take action to preserve and protect our environment

As the twenty first century approaches, we can anticipate a maturing and

strengthening of the public's concern and knowledge on environmental issues,

and an expectation for greater environmental responsibility. This will prompt

a search for environmental criteria to guide policy and decision-making in all

sectors of society; the building industry is no exception. The building

industry will be increasingly scrutinized for its environmental

responsibilities and will be required to develop approaches and practices

which adhere to the principles of sustainability

The Building Environmental Performance Assessment Criteria (BEI>AC)

The Building Environmental Performance Assessment Criteria (BEPAC) program is a conprehensive method of evaluating buildings with respect to a declared set

of criteria spanning global, local and indoor environments and was inspired by

the U.K. BREEAM program.

14
BEPAC is voluntary in its application and, when applied, offers a certificate

of design and management performance for office buildings and their tenancies.

The primary goal of BEPAC is to guide and encourage the market to take major

steps in introducing more environmentally responsive practices and higher

performance standards. The initial version applies to new and existing office

buildings in British Columbia. The program will eventually be extended to

cover a broad range of building types and accommodate regional differences

across Canada.

The basis for evaluations in all cases will be the performance expected by

"best practice approaches," given the current and emerging knowledge base in

these fields and the available standards which guide design and operation.

BEPAC will be applied in the field by trained assessors who have demonstrated

knowledge of all the criteria covered in the program. Two coirplementary

assessments of office buildings are provided within the BEPAC program: one for

the base building and the other for the t errancy. Each assessment results in a separate certificate. However, an assessment of a tenancy cannot be made

without the base building having been previously assessed.

A BEPAC assessment offers many advantages to building owners

BEPAC as an Assessment Tool: BEPAC provides a common and verifiable set of

criteria and targets so that building owners striving for higher

environmental standards will have a means of demonstrating that effort.

BEPAC as a Management Tool: A BEPAC assessment gathers and organizes

detailed information on the building which itself can be used by building

management to lower operating, financing and insurance costs, lower vacancy

rates and increased marketability.

BEPAC as a Strategic Planning Tool: BEPAC can be used by building owners to

identify priorities for future administration measures, building retrofits,

etc., which will keep a property current within a changing marketplace.

BEPAC as a Design Tool: In a rapidly expanding field of knowledge, it will

become increasingly inportant to have a means of structuring environmental

information for new building designs and major renovations. BEPAC offers

this and provides a reference by which building owners and design teams can formulate effective environmental design strategies.

BEPAC as a Communication Tool: Building owners can use the BEPAC assessment

to communicate to prospective tenants the inherent environmental qualities

of the building they are leasing.

BEPAC as a Public Education Tool: BEPAC, as a framework for buildingrelated environmental issues, is a valuable tool for inproving public

awareness of these iirportant matters

BEPAC Modules

The environmental performance of building results from the interaction of the

base building and its major systems with the interiors and sub-systems

introduced by the building' s tenants on the one hand, and the manner in which

the building and its various tenancies are subsequently managed on the other.

15
As such, the structure of BEPAC distinguishes between design and management

criteria for both the jbase building and the tenancies . The credited criteria

of BEPAC are covered within four modules: base building design, base building

management, tenancy design and tenancy management.

Each module contains topic areas covering a conprehensive range of

environmental issues . Criteria are defined and credited for each of the topic

areas and formulated appropriately for either designers or managers.

BEPAC Topics

Each BEPAC module offers a conprehensive set of environmental criteria

covering issues related to interior, local and global scales. These are

strxictured in five major topics areas:

Ozone Layer Protection

Environmental Irrpact of Energy Use

Indoor Environmental Quality

Resource Conse2rvation

Site and Transportation

Each topic area contains a series of criteria and, where appropriate, these

are further divided into more detailed sub-criteria. The criteria incorporate

objective performance standards using numeric evaluations where possible.

Environmental issues will clearly change over time, these categories are

sufficiently broad to embrace any potential consideration. Moreover, although

no hierarchy of inportance is implied, ozone layer protection and the

environmental impacts of energy use considerations have profound implications

and currently being framed within national and international statutes of

limitation.

Ozone Layer Protection

With the discovery of ozone layer thinning in the Arctic and the midlatitudes, evidence of the damage caused by chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)

continues to grow, leading to scientific consensus that an eighty-five percent

reduction in controlled Ozone layer Depleting Substances (ODSs) emissions is

required to stop future depletion of the layer. Ozone layer protection will

remain a priority environmental issue until ODSs are conpletely eliminated.

The challenges that building owners, designers, contractors and manufacturers

face in reducing ODS emissions will be both difficult and expensive, but

inevitable. The BEPAC ozone layer protection criteria are credited on the

basis of reducing the amount of ozone depletion substances used in buildings

and the management and elimination of those which remain.

Under building design, points are awarded for:

Making a full inventory of ODSs

Paying care and attention to equipment selection and installation to

minimize the release of refrigerants or fire suppressants

16
Making provision for future retrofit to non-ozone layer depleting

substances

Under building management, points are awarded for:

Assessing annual emissions of ODSs from a building.

Commitment to a goal of zero ODS use by formulating and iirplementing an ODS

elimination schedule.

Ensuring that building operators are trained in maintenance practices which

minimize the release of ODSs

Environmental Iirpacts of Energy Use

Energy use is central to addressing the environmental agenda. However, rather

than being solely concerned with energy use reduction per se, BEPAC assesses

the environmental iirpacts of using different fuels . The energy related

criteria are premised on:

Reducing the emissions from combustion which are known to contribute to

global warming and which contribute to urban and regional air pollution and

acid rain.

Offsetting the demand for new power facilities. Electricity is treated

separately in this version of BEPAC because 96% of British Columbia'

s

electrical capacity resides in existing hydro dams. Credits are therefore

awarded for both electricity conservation and for peak demand reductions.

Under building design, points are awarded for:

Reducing the total amount of annual emissions of greenhouse gases (carbon

monoxide, methane and nitrogen oxides) from the building.

Reducing the total amount of annual emissions of regional pollutants

(sulphur oxides, nitrogen oxides and carbon monoxide) from the building.

Reducing the total annual aiTiount of electricity used in the building.

Reducing the peak electrical energy demand in the building.

tfeeting or exceeding the envelope and systems design criteria in ASHRAE/IES

Standard 90.1-1989.

Under building management, points are awarded for:

Conducting an annual review of the building's energy performance.

Designating an Energy Conservation Manager and training staff in energy • conserving operations.

Being proactive in making building occupants aware of opportunities for

reducing energy use in their own businesses and tenant spaces.

Undertaking preventative maintenance programs of the building's mechanical

and electrical systems and documenting such practices.

Indx>r Environmental Quality

The qualities of the indoor environment which are evaluated in BEPAC are

indoor air quality; lighting quality and acoustic control.

17
Indoor Air Quality

Clean indoor air is a fundamental necessity for health and productivity in the

workplace. BEPAC air quality criteria are organized on the basis that control

of indoor pollution at source is the primary strategy for maintaining indoor

air quality and that dilution by ventilation is a necessary, but secondary

strategy

Under building design, points are awarded for:

Reducing the potential sources of pollution in the building through

effective moisture control, minimizing fiber release and specifying

materials with low toxic emissions.

Isolating potential sources of pollution by specifying effective filtration

systems, isolating cooling towers to prevent the release of contaminants

and separately zoning sources of contamination generated indoors,

Providing a mechanical system which can provide and maintain required

ventilation rate.

Locating and designing the air intakes for the ventilation system to ensure

the best possible quality air supply.

Designing effective system controls and comnrLssioning the system.

Under building management, points are awarded for:

Designating an Indoor Air Quality manager and arranging for his/her ongoing

training

Ensuring regular systems checks and maintenance and providing the operator

with operation and maintenance schedules.

Maintaining a no smoking policy and providing clear signage to that effect.

Undertaking regular, environmentally sound building maintenance practices.

Lighting Quality

Quality illumination is a fundamental necessity for comfort and productivity

in the workplace. BEPAC lighting quality criteria are organized on the basis

that:

Daylight and visual access to the exterior is a fundamental part of quality

illumination.

Well designed and controlled electric lighting is necessary for achieving

effective daylighting integration and a glare free environment for VDT

work

^^propriate task lighting which allows individual adjustment is essential

within an overall lighting design strategy.

Under building design, points are awarded for:

Providing naturally lit interiors and unencumbered views to the exterior.

Providing high quality electric lighting and specifying high frequency

electronic ballasts.

Under building management, points are awarded for commitment to regular window

cleaning and lairp maintenance programs

18
Acoustic Control

There are two inportant premises to the BEPAC acoustic quality criteria:

Protection from excessive exterior and interior noise is a fundamental

necessity for comfort and productivity in the workplace.

impropriate conditions for conversational privacy are best provided by

adequate acoustic partitioning and moderate background sound from

activities and equipment and by acoustic design of workstations.

Only building design issues are assessed under acoustic quality at the base

building level for specifying and designing low system and equipment room

noise and reduced sound transmission.

Resource Conservation

Reducing the environmental cost of material use in offices is an important

conplement to reducing the operating energy and ozone depletion inpacts. This

typically entails programs to reduce consumption, to reuse and recycle and to

purchase products with lower initial "environmental cost" such as those with

recycled content

The fundamental position taken in the resource conservation section is that

reduction is the primary method of conseirvation:

Under building design, points are awarded for:

The retention of existing building elements and landscape, salvaging or

reuse of building materials and construction waste reduction.

Specifying materials having lower environmental impacts, e.g., durable

materials with recycled content

Conservation of tropical and domestic wood by efficient wood use and

specifying products from sustainably managed forests.

The efficient control and use of site water through the retention of storm

water, water conserving landscape and use of efficient irrigation and water

recycling systems

Facilitating water conservation within the building by specifying low flow

fixtures and elimination of chillers which use potable water.

Providing dedicated recyclables storage and consumer recycling facilities.

Under building management, points are awarded for:

Designating a Building Recycling Coordinator and instituting an

environmentally responsible purchasing policy.

Requiring efficient construction and demolition waste management practices

and instituting and promoting in-house office paper conservation and

cafeteria waste programs.

Site and Transportation

The major premise of the site and transportation section is that automobile

commuting is the most irrportant environmental impact of office building

location and th^t strong management incentives are necessary to alter the

commuting habits of people.

19
Given the fundamental differences between the topic areas, it is neither

meaningful nor possible to apply weightings between them.

Extraordi rw ry Performance

The BEPAC Certificate keeps the credits for the individual criteria within

topic areas distinct and thereby presents a corrprehensive profile of building

performance. This deters the reduction of the assessment to a sinple,

misleading aggregating of points. In anticipation of unique and thoughtful

solutions, BEPAC provides for recognition of extraordinary performance at both

a design and management level. Though there is no direct points credit given

for extraordinary performance, there will be a citation appearing on the BEPAC

Certificate noting the special reason for merit . The intent is to reward the

use of innovative and productive design approaches and management practices,

and to spread awareness of such strategies to other building owners, designers

and the public.

Acknowledgments

BEPAC is sponsored by a unique collaboration of all sectors of British

Columbia's building industry: Architectural Institute of B.C.; Association of

Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of B.C.; Building Owners and

Manager's Association, B.C.; B.C. Buildings Corporation; The B.C. Energy

Management Task Force; Edgecombe Group Inc.; Real Estate Foundation of B.C.;

Environment Canada's Environmental Partners Fund Power Smart, B.C. Hydro;

ASHRAE B.C.

20
THE CITY OF AUSTIN GREEN BUILDER PROGRAM

W. Laurence Doxsey, Coordinator

City of Austin Environmental and Conservation Services Department

Green Builder Program

206 E. 9th St., Suite 17.102

Austin, TX 78701

Abstract. Home energy rating systems (HERS) are relatively well

known and offered in North America as a mechanism for encouraging

energy resourceful building construction. The City of Austin

Green Builder Program was modeled after the market based

incentives inherent in home energy rating systems but applied

toward the more holistic perspective involved with constructing

"sustainable" buildings. The Program was originally designed to

address new residential construction. It now is offering

guidelines for commercial building as well as all City funded

projects

The Program enrolls building professionals who agree to offer

their customers a range of options and building approaches that

are presented in the Program's Green Building Guide and Green

Commercial Guidelines according to the interests of their

customers and other practical considerations. The first version

of the Green Building Guide presents an environmental rating

system where building options are valued numerically allowing a score (rating) to be developed for individual projects.

Program participants receive recognition through a general

marketing campaign by the City. The marketing campaign is aimed

at educating the general public to the values and advantages of

green building. The Program additionally provides technical

assistance and guidance to building professionals. City

departments, and other citizens wishing to incorporate

environmentally responsible building practices.

1 . 0 BACKGROUND

"Sustainability , " or meeting present needs without compromising

the needs of future generations to meet their needs, implies an

holistic approach to developing the built environment. Yet, while

the relationships between human activity and the natural

environment are studied, mainstream development continues with

minimal recognition of sustainable building practices. While

sustainability is as much common sense as an ideal concept,

building impacts have rarely been approached from this holistic

point of view. The building industry represents a significant

user of resources, both in the building process and in the

finished products. Through proper consideration and response to

its impacts, it presents an important opportunity for creating

more sustainable communities.

21
The traditional means for causing change in building practices is

the adoption of codes and ordinances which force compliance with a given standard. This method meets with reasonable success

relative to the ability of an entity such as a municipality to

enforce the regulations, but it frequently creates political

clashes of varying degrees between the governing body and the

regulated party. These clashes often delay and compromise

enactment of environmental initiatives. An alternative approach

is to design a program that sells itself to the public without

mandatory or financial incentives. The Austin Green Builder

Program is designed around this marketing approach.

The City of Austin implemented a home energy rating program called

Austin Energy Star in 1985. It was designed to give marketing

assistance to builders who produced energy efficient homes that

exceeded the minimum requirements of the newly adopted City Energy

Code. More than 4,000 homes have been rated under this program,

and most of the active builders in the Austin area are

participating at this time. Because of the improvements in energy

efficiency of building stock seen over the past seven years, it

was proposed that this approach be used to promote the broader

scope of residential building issues associated with developing

sustainable communities.

The Green Builder Program was initiated through a grant awarded in

1990 from the Urban Consortium Energy Task Force to develop a "Sustainable Systems Rating Program." Early development

assistance was received from the Center for Maximum Potential

Building Systems of Austin, Texas. Two subsequent grant awards

were received in 1991 and 1992 to further develop and enhance the

Program. Technical and logistical information related to green

building was compiled and developed during this time as well as

the initiation of multiple demonstration projects. The City of

Austin now funds the entire operation of the Program.

Due to increased interest from the local commercial sector, the

Program currently has additional assistance from commercial energy

program staff to expand the scope of the Program to develop

commercial guidelines. Inter-departmental cooperation and City

Council support has recently led to initiatives to revise and

develop guidelines and specifications for City low-income housing.

City municipal facilities (libraries, fire stations, etc.), and

the new municipal airport.

2.0 Program Purpose

The purpose of the project at its inception as proposed to Urban

Consortium Energy Task Force was to develop a Sustainability

Rating System that can be used as a marketing tool to encourage

high levels of resource conservation, appropriate resource usage,

and positive economic development in new residential homebuilding

Rating systems such as Austin's Energy Star Rating Program for new

22
homes have become recognized as effective methods to bring about

energy conservation; in the Green Builder Program, the rating

system is used to lead homebuyers to look at and demand new homes

that conserve all natural resources, minimize pollution, and

impact positively on the local economy. The rating system, as

part of a comprehensive marketing program, was presented as

offering a transferable strategy to shift homebuyer and

homebuilder consciousness such that housing is generally improved

anii the local economy is strengthened without compromising the

quality of the local and planetary environment.

3.0 Program Development

The Green Builder Program employs an holistic analytical model

based on the concept of life cycle assessment and incorporates it

into a marketing program aimed at fostering sustainable (earthfriendly) construction practices for new homes. Development of

this program entailed several specific tasks before a rating

system could be established:

* Identify the key resource issues encompassed by new

residential building.

* Determine the evaluative criteria for consideration of

environmentally friendly options.

* Develop a model to measure impacts of options.

* Translate the model into a simplified presentation and rating

for general public use.

The conceptual development effort identified four major resource

issues for home construction: water, energy, materials, and waste.

A systems flow model was then designed to track the resource

issues through interactive matrices in the areas of sourcing,

processing, using, and disposing or recycling . This model served

as the basis for the rating system that results in a comparative

basis for considering building options and approaches.

Energy, Water, Solid Waste, and Building Material issues form the

core of the Program's current appraisal of a home's resource

impact. This purposely limits the evaluation to the building

itself. It was decided that consideration of additional issues

such as scale, location (infrastructure and transportation

issues) , zoning, and others, although of major importance, would

delay and complicate the development of a single model that could

be used, as an initial step to rate just a building proper. The

four resource areas are presented and discussed in the initial

Green Builder Program document, the City of Austin Green Building

Guide. This Guide includes background information on the four

resource issues and a rating section which allows users to assess

the relative "sustainability " of a subject home. Intended for the

general public and the building community, the Green Building

Guide has been the central marketing product of this project.

23
The Guide lists building options that were selected as being

generally understood to be positive additions to a building in the

Austin location. A decentralized bioregional perspective was

accepted as an essential tenet of a sustainability-based approach.

Any transferable considerations of individual building options

listed in the Green Building Guide must take this into account.

Each of the four resource areas and some associated options are

listed below (This is not a complete list. More options are shown

in the Green Building Guide) : WATER

Harvested rainwater system

Low-flow showerheads (<2.5 GPM)

Low-flush toilets (<1.5 gallons per flush)

Composting toilets

Graywater irrigation

Xeriscape (native, low water requirement) landscape

Pervious materials for walkways and driveways

ENERGY

Rating from the Energy Star Home Rating Program

Passive heating and cooling design

Continuous ridge and soffit venting

Thermal chimney

Solar water heating

Proper tree planting for shade

Efficient lighting

Daylighting

Photovoltaic system

MATERIALS

Wood from "certified" sustainably managed forests

Flyash concrete

Indigenous stone and brick

Non-toxic termite protection

Gypsum/cellulose wallboard (recycled material)

Natural paints and sealers

Recycled doors

Cotton insulation

WASTE

Compost system

Built-in kitchen recycling center

Hazardous material safety storage system

Builder recycles construction waste

24
3.1 Sustainability Rating

An initial effort into identifying existing or developing

methodologies for determining environmental merit in 1991

identified few helpful precedents. Accepted standardized

scientific life-cycle assessments were not developed and there

appeared to be no programs for what we wanted to accomplish. As a result, due to our limited funding for research and development,

we had to develop an approach that would be able to have

subjective assumptions sufficiently clarified. It is made clear

to the users that the current rating is employing the best

knowledge presently available and is for comparison only; it does

not attempt to recommend specific products.

Criteria were developed to quantify the relative "sustainability

value" of listed options, and encompassed the following general

guidelines or themes:

* Optimize the use of site resources in a non-destructive

manner

* Conserve all resources.

* Encourage recycling and the use of recycled materials.

* Stimulate the regional economy.

* Minim.ize embodied energy and negative environmental

impacts

* Simulate natural processes.

* Minimize health threats to building occupants.

The following is a brief presentation of seven evaluation

categories used in the "life-cycle " model, their respective

subdivisions, scoring information, and pertinent discussion. Each

option that was selected to be rated was subjected to an

evaluation with each applicable characteristic being worth one (1)

point (except when noted differently). . .-. Source points:

*Site- The resource is inherent to the site. (i.e. rain, sun,

wind, earth at the site)

Recycled- The resource consists of over 25% recycled

content (i.e. recycled plastic lumber, cellulose insulation) . (A

distinction was not made between post-consumer and post-industrial

recycled-content materials.)

Renewable- Relatively fast natural processes bring this

resource into being, (i.e. wood, rain, sun, wind, not coal, clay,

other earth materials, etc.)

Regional- A regional resource is considered to have a positive economic impact and a lowered embodied energy in

transportation f actors .( i . e . earth materials, brick, stone as well

as site resources such as sun, rain, wind, earth at site)

25
*State- A resource is considered to have

impact if from within the state.

(note-A "regional" point gains a "state" point

This reflects the additional value imparted by

activities .

Process pgjntS

Embodied Energy- The process uses energy frugally to

transform the resource (if transformed at all) . Transportation

distances are considered. Note that statistical data for embodied

energy is not available for all items (materials) and standardized

methods for computing embodied energy are needed for true equal

comparisons. Only a process that was well known to have low

embodied energy in its comparative family was valued in the

rating

Environmental Impact- In many cases, the environmental

impact and embodied energy of a process can be considered to

parallel each other - the greater the embodied energy, the greater

the environmental impact . However, this is also an area that

requires extensive primary research since the effects will extend

beyond energy-related effects (externalities) . This was beyond

the capacity of this project and, as a result, needed to be

handled similarly to embodied energy.

Regional- The process takes place regionally giving

positive economic impact.

State- The process takes place in-state giving positive

economic impact

(note- if "regional" applies, so does "state" for scoring

purposes .

I22£ points : Quantity- Point (s) are scored if the use is highly

conserving of resources. Certain building methods, systems, and

materials are more conserving than others on a relative scale.

For example, a solar water heater that provides over 50% of a home's hot water needs should be more highly valued than a solar

hot water heater that provides 20% of the home's requirement. To

account for these differences, the assigned point values in the

rating system is as follows: [1] point- if the system or device

saves up to 33%; [2] points- if the amount saved is up to 67%; [3]

points- the amount conserved exceeds 67%.

Health- The use of the material or system is specifically

non-deleterious to occupants in the short or long term. "Healthy"

home issues are legitimate concerns and certain methods and

materials are marketed to counter known health impairing

materials. Although many other materials selected for the rating

list could be classified as non-deleterious to health, only those

a positive economic

automatically

local economic

26
that are acknowledged and recommended in current material health

advisements were valued for a health "point".

Durable- The material or method is long lived and low

maintenance in its functional class (i.e. a 30-50 year life roof

is durable compared to 20 year roofing; in proper installation a material such as wood lasts indefinitely in a dry location; brick

siding is durable and low maintenance compared to wood siding.)

gggt-USe riifel points : *Easy to Recycle- The material can be used again with

processing through established systems or reused. The relative

levels of recyclability resulted in a three point category valuing

direct reuse as [3] points, processed recyclability as [2] points,

and potential but not currently done processed recyclability as

[1] point.

Proper Disposal- The material can be handled appropriately

to be non-polluting and/or is readily compostable.

(This category addresses the resource issues of Materials and

Waste and was not considered an aspect of Water and Energy.

The Integration category addresses "recycling" aspects of

Energy and Water.)

Integration

The ability of the system/resource to achieve several functions,

(i.e. a brick wall on the interior of a house serves as a structural support or divider and as thermal mass supporting a thermal flywheel effect in the house; a greywater/irrigat ion

system removes water from the wastewater system and irrigates the

landscape .

)

More than one point could be scored if multiple integration

take place

pj.f f iculty

Many good options from an environmental standpoint are difficult

to implement due to poor availability and other factors. This

category gives value to the extra effort that a building

professional incurs in implementing the more difficult options for

the following reasons

- Extra cost

- The need for extraordinary special skills. (Consider the amount

of need and availability in the following areas.)

*design

engineering

installation

27
- Regulatory demands

- Material availability

- Value perception (This implies that the builder and/or homebuyer

has acted upon knowledge of a building option, not commonly

understood by the general public, as resource-conserving and

essentially has taken a risk. Examples are composting toilets,

straw bale construction. This would also apply to options

selected that have long paybacks in the conventional economic

sense .

(This category was scored from an estimating point of view

although a quantifying formula can be established.)

A total of 1 point is available from this category.

Use Factor:

A building option may be applicable to more than one use category.

For example, a passive solar design that impacts the heating and

cooling of a home has affected two areas - heating and cooling.

If harvested rainwater is used for all indoor water

classifications used in the analysis (in this case, potable needs,

washing, toilet flushing), a use factor of 3 occurs. The Use

Factor is multiplied by the total of the other categories. This

is a slightly different perspective than "Integration" described

previously based on intent.

Ratings for each of the listed options were determined through

this evaluation. The final point rating, which compiles the

"sustainability score" of the listed options, is reduced to a category of One Star (translate "fair"). Two Stars (translate

"good"). Three Stars (translate "excellent"). Four Stars

(translate "superior") . This element was provided to be the

"bottom line" for those not interested in the complex details of

sustainability, and to simplify the rating for marketing. (It

was, however, similarly intended that as much educational benefit

as possible could be derived from the process of rating a home.)

A rating of One Star is determined by measures which go beyond

standard practice, yet are readily available and not cost

prohibitive. Ratings in the Two Star to Four Star categories will

result from options that, while not always more costly or

difficult, will require increasing levels of commitment to less

conventional building practices.

The range of points for each category allows the builder or

customer to evaluate the home for each primary category, and then

reduces the four category ratings to one final "Sustainability

Rating." For example, a home may have a Three Star "energy"

rating, a One Star rating each for "water" and "materials", and a Two Star rating in "solid waste." The resulting overall

"Sustainability Rating" for the house would be Two Star (A

28

j
scoring chart is provided in the rating section of the Guide

permits this calculation.) This approach allows the builder

customer to accurately identify weak and strong areas in the

home's resource efficiency as well as have an overall rating

the house

3.1.1 Does It Work?

There are several factors that come into play in answering this

question when we consider the ultimate goal of trying to change

conventional building practices to sustainable building practices.

On one level, the rating values for a project seem to consistently

reflect what one would intuitively expect. Nevertheless, the

mechanism itself has not been easy to use in a self-rating manner.

Very few builders want to, or accurately, apply the rating system

to their projects. Program staff are having to do the ratings

which was not the intention at the outset. The goal was to make

it simple by listing options with numerical values in place that

could be just checked off. However, interest and influence in

regards to green building seems high.

A questionable aspect of the rating system results in trying to

simplify building options to a single value that may or not hold

true under different circumstances. For example, the value of

radiant barrier in an attic may not exist if higher attic

insulation levels had been used.

Additionally, it is not clear that a very simple home with a few

green material choices (but covering all the building components

and systems) will score well versus a home that has many different

green materials. This was attempted to be sorted out in reaching

the point totals that give the one, two, three, and four star

scores by adding point totals for different homebuilding

scenarios. However, there have not been many simple homes to test

this aspect.

Finally, the fact that there are more considerations in issues of

sustainable development (scale, inf rastructural development, etc.)

misses some important concerns and should be addressed. For

example, the 1993 Parade of Homes featured all "Green Builder"

homes. Most of the homes were One Star but one home was a Three

Star and another achieved Two Stars . The Parade occurred in an

urban sprawl associated location. All the homes were on one acre

or more lots (xeriscaped) and were greater than 4,000 square feet.

We appreciated the highlighting of the Program elements in terms

of building options but we had to acknowledge that major elements

and understanding of sustainable development were missing

3.1.2 What Is Next For the Rating System?

Currently, an evaluation of an informational focused evaluation

system is being done. In this system, building options are listed

29
as before but, instead of numerical values, a brief description of

what is important about the option and some of the relevant

circumstances involving appropriate application are noted. A list

of options used in the building can be ascertained but the value

for them can be assigned by the person reviewing the list (who is

knowledgeable about them from the option descriptions)

It is possible that more salient influence on building practices

can occur in this manner. For example, if a person inquires if a home was painted with low VOC paints, he or she would know that

high VOC paints are harmful to the workers, the environment, and

potentially to the future homeowner. It is difficult to respond

to such an inquiry with an answer such as, "it was cheaper."

Although much of this information can be obtained in the glossary

of the first Green Building Guide, it is not as accessible and as

potentially influential as it would be in this format . It should

be decided by April, 1994 if this approach can be made nonburdensome and attractive and then incorporated into the next

printing of the Green Building Guide.

It is still being discussed if and how the current rating system

results will serve as part of a label awarded to a builder's

house. We feel a comparative relationship should still be able to

be determined. An examination of baseline/threshold requirements

is currently being conducted. The baseline/thresholds

determinations could still take advantage of the rating format.

3.2 The Sustainable Building Sourcebook

After listing "green" building options in the Green Building

Guide, we recognized that the next step would be practical

guidance and information in how to implement the options. This is

done through regular technical seminars and conferences sponsored

by the Program and through a manual designed for building

professionals - the Sustainable Building Sourcebook

(Concurrently, ongoing educational efforts through media articles

and speaking engagements are used to reinforce the program's

viability to impact building practices to the general public.)

The Sourcebook is designed to reflect upon the organizational

presentation of the Guide but is capable of being a stand-alone

work. It groups options from the Guide that go together into

topics (such as separate elements of passive solar design singled

out in the Guide) and presents information for each topic in

three general categories - Overview, Guidelines, and Resources.

The Overview contains an executive summary plus a matrix

presentation of the commercial status and implementation issues of

the topic. The Guidelines category presents pertinent

implementation guidance. In the Resources category, there are

three subsections listing logistical information - Professional

Assistance, Materials/Components/Systems, and General Assistance.

30
There are 43 topics divided among the Water, Energy, Building

Materials, and Solid Waste sections of the Sourcebook. The 400

pages of information in the Sourcebook is designed to fit into a three ring binder for updating.

COMMERCIAL

STATUS

/

Co

IMPLEMENTATION

ISSUES

/

/ / #

r—

LEgENP

SATISFACTORY

SATISFACTORY IN MOST CONDITIONS

SATISFACTORY IN LIMITED CONDITIONS

NOT SATISFACTORY OR DIFFICULT

Matrix used in Sourcebook

3.3 Current Activities

3.3.1 Demonstration Projects

The Program is currently working with an alternative learning

center, the American Institute for Learning (AIL) , and Austin

Habitat for Humanity to construct three low cost green houses for

low income residents. The AIL program, Casa Verde Builders, is

doing an exemplary job of using at-risk youth in an educational

and training format to construct the houses. The first house is

recently completed and is documented through a video generated by

the AIL students. A separate report is soon to be completed on

this successful combination of social and environmental causes.

The homes are promoted during construction as green demonstrations

and considerable media and public support has resulted. The

success of this project has resulted in the AIL, the Green Builder

Program and other City programs teaming up to propose additional

work of this type in association with US HUD ' s YouthBuild Program.

31
The City has pledged support for twelve more green low income

houses to be constructed in this manner.

3.3.2 Greening City Construction Guidelines

All City low income housing construction guidelines are being

revised to favor green building approaches . It was necessary to

develop green guidelines that have no harmful upfront cost impacts

to the future owners. These guidelines have been developed and

implementation details are being completed. This will impact over

50 homes per year.

City commercial facilities guidelines are presently being

developed for the Public Works Department. These guidelines will

affect libraries, fire and EMS stations, waste transfer

facilities, etc. Staff from the Commercial Energy Programs are

helping develop these guidelines which also need to address

renovation issues. The guidelines developed for the City

facilities will then be developed for dissemination to all

commercial development projects.

Green guidelines are also being developed for a new municipal

airport. The development of the airport guidelines will overlap

into the material being developed for the Public Works Department.

All these activities in the municipal arena reflect the increased

interest the concept of sustainability has received from elected

officials and other City personnel. The overall response from the

citizenry is similarly positive.

3.3.3 Educational Outreach and Economic Development

Despite the seeming success of the Green Builder Program,

construction activities and public awareness are still not as

strongly affected as need to be. Receiving an international award

for the Program at the 1992 United Nations Conference on the

Environment and Development, a national award from the American

Public Power Association, and numerous local awards have helped

lend credibility and promotion to our efforts and have resulted in

a fairly high national profile. Nevertheless, a boom economy

currently occurring in Austin has created a frenetic pace of

construction activities that is hard for the Program to

significantly address.

With the help of monthly seminars of a local organization that

spun off from the Program called the Sustainable Building

Coalition and our own ongoing seminars, green building is being

discussed in our City on a regular basis. Free media attention

has also resulted from our efforts assisting in some outstanding

examples of residential, multi-family, and commercial green

projects.

32
Our third annual Green Building Conference in March, 1994 will

draw over 300 persons as it has in previous years. However, this

conference will be carefully studied this year for possible

development into an even larger event next year. All indications

are that the marketplace is receptive to green building if it can

be economically feasible and strong guidance is available.

The economic feasibility of green building will depend on our

efforts to help steer economic development activities into

regional business startups such as waste to material processing.

Fortunately, seemingly due to the presence of the Green Builder

Program, we are attracting interest regarding technology transfer

in areas we feel offer positive environmental offerings to our

community. We have already seen successful business startups in

the service sector with rainwater harvesting and alternative

wastewater services

4.0 Green Builder Program Description

The Green Builder Program presently enrolls building professionals

in two categories - Builders and Associates.

Builders are enrolled in the Green Builder Program by attending a half-day training which cover the fundamentals of sustainability

and how it relates to the specific environment of the residential

home. The primary obligation of the builder as a participating

member of the Green Builder Program is to serve as a resource for

interested buyers, promoting and distributing program information,

and avoiding misrepresentation of the program. The builders agree

to rate their homes and make the ratings available to prospective

buyers. Builders are then supported by technical and marketing

assistance from the City of Austin Environmental and Conservation

Services Department through general advertising and information

campaigns, periodic technical seminars, and technical news

bulletins in the Austin Green Builder Newsletter

.

As the Green Builder Program becomes an integral part of the local

building industry, homes embracing the ideas presented in the

Green Building Guide will be highlighted in advertising and award

programs. The local home builders association has supported the

Green Builder Program, primarily because the approach allows

builders to participate in a positive, education-oriented program

and make voluntary improvements in response to buyer demand

instead of through mandatory regulations. They have been helpful

allies in getting builders to enroll in the Program.

Associate members include architects, engineers, tradespersons,

material suppliers, consultants. Like the Builders, they must

attend an orientation and technical seminar and renew their

membership annually by attending an additional technical seminar.

Both membership groups receive written materials such as the Green

Building Guide and the Sustainable Building Sourcebook at no cost.

There is also no cost to be a member of the Program.

33
4.1 Program Incentives

To help attract more participation in the Program, particularly in

regards to the fact that a boom economy generates little incentive

to try new building approaches, we are offering financial

incentives to be members. These incentives are linked to the DSM

strategies that our Department has developed. The benefit to the

Green Builders is that DSM pilot incentives (rebates) are only

available to Program members. Lumped together with existing DSM

and water conservation rebates, the pilot incentives add up to a strong incentive, particularly since we are presenting them as

"one stop shopping" rather than as separate opportunities. We

anticipate more interest from volume builders as a result of this

approach.

5.0 Concluding Remarks

The Austin Green Builder Program was developed based upon the

success of marketing energy efficiency through the Energy Star

Rating Program for new homes. The fundamental strategy is to

inform buyers of the more "earth-friendly" options available to

them when building a new home, while educating builders and using

the building industry as the mechanism for distributing

information on sustainable building. This positive, marketoriented approach brings interested buyers and informed builders

together, stimulating voluntary improvements and maintaining a working relationship between the building industry and municipal

government, while increasing the overall understanding of the

public on the issues of sustainable community development.

It is encouraging to see the increasing interest in sustainabilit

y

through our many contacts with others. We hope that our locallyfocused initiative and success will continue to assist similar

efforts worldwide and help move us all closer to a sustainable

relationship with our natural and human environment.

34
CANADA'S ADVANCED HOUSES PROGRAM

Tim Mayo, Program Manager

Advanced Houses Program

CANMET

Department of Natural Resources

Ottawa, Canada KlA 0E4

Abstract

Canada's Advanced House Program is co-sponsoring the construction

of ten Advanced Houses across the country. These Advanced Houses

are field trials of new technologies to reduce the energy

consumption in Canadian homes by 50 percent, improve their indoor

air quality, and reduce their impact on the environment. Each

house represents a unique solution to the detailed Technical

Requirements. The ten Advanced Houses, all built by teams

representing a broad spectrum of the industry, were constructed

during 1992-93. The Advanced Houses are now open to the public

for a one-year period before being sold and monitored. A number

of clear trends for greener houses are emerging.

Background

The process of making Canadian homes more energy efficient had its

beginnings in the steep oil price increases of the 1970s. At that

time, the majority of Canadian homes were leaky, naturally

ventilated, and heated by oil. In 1973 it was estimated that onefifth of the nation's energy was consumed by the residential

sector and three-quarters of that was used for space heating. New

houses in that period typically consumed 200-250 kwh/m2 of floor

area, including the basement.

Today, Canadian homes are far more energy efficient than their

earlier counterparts. Some provincial building codes, for

example, specify more than double the insulation levels for new

basements than was required less than 10 years ago. Similar

increases have occurred in the requirements for air barriers,

vapour retarders, and mechanical ventilation systems.

This dramatic change occurred in less than two decades through a

combination of public and private research initiatives, grants,

public education programs, and regulatory changes. Rather than

forcing change with stringent, innovation-stifling regulations,

the government stimulates change by creating a healthy research

environment, co- funding demonstration projects with industry, and

facilitating the transfer of information to the building industry

and the general public. The Canadian government has a clearly

focussed, three-pronged strategy for technological improvement to

the housing sector:

35
• RScD initiatives to develop new technologies,

• programs to encourage the adoption of market-ready costeffective techniques, and

regulatory minimum performance levels.

The Housing and Regulatory Environment in Canada

The significance of the Advanced Houses Program is underlined by

certain unique characteristics of the housing and regulatory

environment in Canada. Both the housing regulatory agencies and

the home building industry in Canada are coordinated by strong,

national bodies. As a result, instituting changes in regulations

and building practice means dealing with a few appropriate

agencies rather than a variety of fragmented groups.

Although housing is a provincial responsibility in Canada, the

federal government influences change through funding research

projects and setting national standards. Chief among the

standards in the housing sector is the National Building Code

(NBC) of Canada. The NBC establishes minimum building , standards

related to safety and health in buildings, although not energy

efficiency, and stands as the model for all provincial and

territorial building codes. A national committee of building

scientists, industry representatives, and both federal and

provincial regulators evaluate the code and revise it on a fiveyear cycle. For the first time, a new Building Enercrv Code will be

issued in 1995 in conjunction with the 1995 NBC.

On the industry side, the Canadian Home Builders' Association

(CHBA) represents 85 per cent of the home builders across the

country. Through its network of provincial and local builder

associations, the CHBA provides an avenue for information transfer

and the promotion of energy-efficient house construction. In

consultation with other industry and government agencies, the CHBA

maintains technical resource committees that act as a clearing

house for manufacturers, industry and government agencies and

inform builders of new products, technologies and programs.

With this direct access to the housing industry, programs brought

forward at the federal level can quickly effect change across the

housing sector. The powerful combination of industry and

government coordination at the national level has spawned a number

of successful cooperative projects which have brought the Canadian

housing industry to the point where it is today.

Canadian Milestones

Five milestone projects have played a major role in the

development of energy-efficient housing in Canada.

The Saskatchewan Conservation House was the first super-insulated

demonstration house built in Canada. Conceived as a research

project by the National Research Council, the house was built to

36
test the theories of super insulation, air tightness, mechanical

ventilation with heat recovery, and passive solar. Built in 1978,

the house had an air tightness of less than 1 air change per hour

at 50 Pascals (ACH50) when the air tightness of conventional houses

was typically 5-7 ACH50. In its first heating season, it used less

than 20 per cent of the energy required by the typical

Saskatchewan house for heating.

In 1980 the Energy Showcase of Homes in Saskatoon demonstrated

that conventional builders could be trained to use the

construction techniques developed for the Saskatchewan

Conservation House. Thirteen builders in Saskatoon designed and

built houses with the same level of performance as the

Saskatchewan Conservation House.

In 1982, the federal department of Energy, Mines and Resources

(now Natural Resources Canada) established the R-2000 Program to

"mainstream" the building of safe, comfortable, super energyefficient housing. The R-2000 Program is based on five key

features: builder training, independent plans evaluation,

independent construction inspection, independent air- tightness

testing, and house certification. The solid technical basis of

the program was established through on-going basic research and

the establishment of test procedures and monitoring protocols,

product development, and quality assurance measures including

standards, training, and certification procedures for ventilation

system installers. The R-2000 Program continues today,

spearheading the marketing of energy-efficient, comfortable

houses. Over 6500 R-2000 houses have been certified, and the

trickle-down effect has been immense.

Awareness of the need to reduce energy loads beyond space heating

and to minimize the environmental impact of housing resulted in

the Brampton Advanced House. Built in 1989, the house reduce all

energy loads by half by demonstrating a prototypical integrated

mechanical system and incorporating energy efficient appliances

and lighting, plus featuring various water-conserving appliances

and environmentally responsive products. The monitored annual

energy consumption of the house was 49 kwh/m2 compared to the

R-2000 average of 104 kWh/m2. This success -- and the interest it

aroused in leading-edge R-2000 builders -- lead to the creation of

the Advanced Houses Program.

Objectives of the Advanced Houses Program

The Advanced Houses Program is an important next step in the

process of reducing the energy consumption of Canadian houses and

in going beyond efficiency into issues such as indoor air quality,

humidity control, water and waste reduction, recycling,

eliminating CFCs, and the use of environmentally appropriate

materials

37
The identification of energy efficiency as an environmental

benefit in itself, particularly as a means of reducing CO2

production and global warming, as identified in the Montreal

Protocol, is a key feature for both the program and the industry.

Broader issues of urban planning, resource depletion, embodied

energy, and transportation were not addressed.

The objectives of the Advanced Houses Program were three-fold:

• to encourage designers, builders, and manufacturers to fasttrack the development of green technologies,

• to lever financial support from other sources for research

and development by providing seed funding, technical

guidance, and monitoring activities

• to encourage Canadian leadership in addressing global housing

challenges

A secondary objective was to field test the industry's ability to

meet a set of energy and environmental performance requirements so

as to be able to feed back into the R-2000 program and,

ultimately, the National Building Code. The Advanced Houses

Program also addresses Canada's commitments to the International

Energy Agency (lEA) and other bodies.

Launching the Advanced Houses Program

The Program was launched in 1991, in partnership with the Canadian

Home Builders' Association, as a challenge to industry -- could

they build Advanced Houses that were twice and energy efficient

and twice as green as the best currently on the market? Thirtyone teams entered the competition; ten winners were chosen, based

on five criteria:

• ability to meet the Technical Requirements

technical innovation

team expertise and project sponsorship

• monitoring and technology assessment

technology transfer and marketing plans

The teams include designers, architects, engineers, builders,

renovators, manufacturers, suppliers, utilities, and provincial

and municipal officials. In addition, each project has an

extensive list of manufacturers, suppliers, trades, consultants,

professionals, gas and electric utilities, municipalities, and

government agencies who have provided cash, services, labour, and

goods. Private sector support ranges from small local firms to

large multi-national corporations.

Technical Requirements for Advanced Houses

The technical Requirements for the Advanced Houses use the same

38
performance-based approach used with the R-2000 Program, but

expanded beyond space and water heating to cover both energy and

environmental requirements -- total purchased energy, indoor

comfort and health, and environmental features.

The total purchased energy requirement is set at exactly 50

percent less than that used by an equivalent R-2000 houses or 52

kwh/m2 -- about one-third of a conventional new house. Individual

targets were established for space heating, cooling, hot water,

lights, and appliances including motors for fans and pumps.

Because the houses were field demonstrations, all lighting and

appliances had to be supplied.

Designs were required to meet the sum of these individual targets,

with trade-offs permitted between categories. Because only

"purchased" energy was specified, the teams were able to explore

"free" energy in the form of renewables and heat recovery.

Indoor environmental requirements include room-by-room

ventilation, compliance with exposure guidelines for pollutants,

noise limits from mechanical equipment, and humidity control.

Environmental requirements include a 50 percent reduction in water

consumption, the use of federally approved "EcoLogo" products,

recycled materials, indoor recycling facilities, and a construction waste management plan. Except for refrigerators, no

CFCs were allowed.

Current Status of Advanced Houses

Ten winners were chosen in early 19 92, and all were under

construction later that year. By early 1993, nine of the ten were

completed and opened to the public for a mandatory one-year

demonstration period; most were also open to industry tours during

construction

Each of the ten Advanced Houses is unique, with its own impressive

array of new ideas, new products, and developmental prototypes.

Each Advanced House is pushing the limits of building technology

to meet the Technical Requirements. This high-profile innovation

has been used to gain considerable media attention and public

interest in the issues surrounding environmentally responsible

technologies. All ten have been the subject of local, national,

and even international media coverage. Approximately 200,000

visitors have toured the houses, including a number of foreign

trade delegations. Consumer awareness of and demand for green

buildings has been greatly increased.

By the end of 1993, three Advanced Houses had been sold, again a

mandatory requirement. Once occupied, they will be monitored for

one year to evaluate their performance. The results of the

performance data will be used as a basis for upgrading the

requirements for R-2000 houses. Commercialization strategies will

39
be developed for those technologies determined to be winners.

Emerging Trends

The major trend in the Advanced Houses is an integrated design

approach, the "house as a system.' Because energy loads have been

so drastically reduced, the old rules of thumb no longer apply.

The first step towards reducing loads was to upgrade the building

envelope. Insulation levels are above conventional practice, but

not excessive, typically R30-R45 walls and R50-R60 ceilings. Most

use recycled cellulose insulation. Thicker walls are provided by

trusses or manufactured studs. All used high-performance windows,

usually triple-glazed, low-E coated, argon-filled units with nonconducting spacers; the result is that all attained a passive

solar contribution of greater than 35 percent and four reached 50

percent or better.

With mechanical systems, the trend is toward integration of

heating, cooling, hot water, and ventilation systems, with the

ventilation system becoming the prime design consideration. With

the significant reduction in heating and cooling loads, and a 50

percent reduction in internal gains from lights and appliances, a standard furnace is no longer the base around which the mechanical

system is designed. Because loads are so low, completely new and

different approaches to heating/cooling/ventilation supply and

distribution can be explored.

Eight Advanced Houses used home automation systems to control

their mechanical system. All but one used a water-based system,

transferring the heating/cooling through fan coils into the

ventilation ductwork. Several also used radiant-heated floors.

Three houses experimented with earth cooling systems by burying

cooling pipes around the foundation and under the floor slab

during construction.

Selecting materials to comply with the indoor air quality

requirements was a major problem for the builders. Exposed

part icleboard in cabinets and vanities was the major problem,

following by flooring, paints, and adhesives. Solutions ranged

from using solid wood cabinets to sealing all exposed

part icleboard with approved sealers to prevent out-gassing of

formaldehydes. Floor finishes tended to prefinished hardwoods,

ceramic tiles, and natural fibre carpeting. All houses used

approved water-based paints and other finishes; none used recycled

paint due to uncertainty as to the chemicals it might contain.

Several houses used air filtering systems and one experimented

with indoor plants as air purifiers. The effect of building

materials on indoor air quality is a complex one and requires

major additional work.

However, the benefit of eliminating indoor polluting materials is

that ventilation becomes occupant-based rather than house-based.

40
Seven of the houses use occupancy sensors -- motion detectors or

CO2 sensors to control ventilation and thus provide an

additional benefit of reducing fan energy consumption.

The environmental requirements drew an exciting range of

responses. Water consumption is reduced indoors with low-wateruse fixtures and appliances, and reduced outdoors with droughtresistant landscaping and underground watering systems; one even

used an old-fashioned rain barrel. Four houses used cisterns

buried beneath a garage floor. Construction waste management

plans made a significant reduction in the 2.5 tonnes of waste that

a typical new house sends to landfill. One house reported no

construction waste -- it was all recycled or re-used. Another

house reported that while it sent 2,500 pounds to the dump, it

managed to use over 20,000 pounds of recycled materials, including

enough recycled newsprint to create a stack of newspapers six

storeys high! Products with recycled content include rubber

pavers, recycled gypsum wallboard, shingles and siding from

cellulose, roofing from recycled steel, a crushed glass/gravel mix

for foundation drainage, carpets made from plastic pop bottles,

and many more

Conclusion

Canada's Advanced Houses Program has successfully challenged the

innovative spirit of the residential construction industry. By

encouraging the formation of broad-based teams working with

partners throughout with industry, the program has been able to

obtain a 5:1 leverage on it federal funding dollars. Many new

prototypes came out of their laboratories for field trials, and

the commercialization of numerous products has been accelerated.

All ten Advanced Houses are predicted to meet or exceed their

energy targets. More technical information is needed on the

effect of specific building materials on indoor air quality.

Finally, industry awareness and acceptance of the benefits of

innovative green technologies is strong, and public response has

been high. Several builders of Advanced Houses have added

environmental features to all their houses or are offering

environmental upgrade packages. Already the technical

requirements for the R-2000 Program have been upgraded to reflect

both the energy efficiency and environmental lessons learned in

Advanced Houses

41
THE NIST GREEN BUILDING PROGRAM

James E. Hill

Chief, Building Environment Division

National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)

Gaithersburg, MD 20899

Abstract

For over 2 decades, NIST has been involved in energy conservation programs. NIST's

current programs broadly span the areas from waste minimization to air, soil, water, indoor

air quality, ozone depletion, and global warmmg. The latest endeavor NIST is undertaking

is the "Green Building Program" m which NIST is at the forefront of designing buildings

using environmentally safe materials. NIST's program has two components. The laboratorybased activities involve NIST staff working directly with manufacturers and designers to develop technologies conducive to energy efficiency. The second component, demonstration

buildings, includes environmentally safe buildings which are monuments to green

technologies. These buildings not only demonstrate cost effectiveness and evaluate green

technologies, they also identify new technologies needed to develop an effective green

building.

Introduction

Green buildings are ones designed, constructed, operated, and demolished to have a muiimum impact on the global, neighborhood, and internal environments. Green buildings

have long been an interest at NIST and its predecessor organization, the National Bureau of

Standards (NBS). Even before the Oil Embargo of 1973, NIST had developed the basic

algorithms or calculation techniques for predicting energy transfer in buildings [1]. These

techniques are used today in all major energy simulation programs such as DOE-II for

designing energy conserving buildings.

After the oil embargo, NIST developed the very first draft of an energy conservation design

standard for buildings that was the predecessor of ASHRAE Standard 90, now used in all building regulations across the United States [2]

NIST currently has an extensive group of programs in a wide variety of environmental

technologies:

waste minimization

energy conservation

air, soil, and water quality

indoor air quality ozone depletion and global warming

green building design

42
Advances in technology, key to stimulating the nation's economic growth, are critical to solving the nation's environmental issues. According to President William Clinton and Vice

President Albert Gore in Technologv for America's Economic Growth. A New Direction to Build Economic Strength [3],

"Our most important measure of success will be our ability to make a difference in

the lives of American people, to harness technology so that it improves the quality of

their lives and the economic strength of our nation. We are moving in a new

direction that recognizes the critical role technology must play in stimulating and

sustaining the long-term economic growth that creates high-quality jobs and protects

the environment."

As the only federal laboratory with the primary mission of helping U.S. industry strengthen

its international competitiveness and as the nation's premier measurement laboratory, NIST is ideally poised to help U.S. industry to make the transition to "green" technologies.

Laboratory-Based Activities

The NIST Green Building Program has two main components: laboratory-based activities

and a recently-begun demonstration phase. The laboratory-based activities have been

designed to work directly with manufacturers and building designers to help develop

technology for enhanced energy efficiency, improved indoor air quality, and replacements for

chlorine-based refrigerants.

Improved Energy Efficiency - Thermal Insulation

NIST research on heat transfer through thermal insulation began in 1910 and in 1912 led to development of the first Guarded Hot Plate apparatus for precise measurement of heat

transmission. This device and its successors have provided the basis for calibration of the

measurement devices used by industry and regulatory authorities for determining the thermal

resistance of insulation. Twenty-five millimeter thick calibration transfer standards were

routinely supplied to industrial laboratories for calibration purposes prior to the 1970's.

Concerns for energy efficiency after the 1973 Oil Embargo led to routine use of 150 to 450-

mm low density insulation in U.S. buildings. In 1978-79, the Federal Trade Commission

proposed requiring manufacturers to label their products for thermal resistance at a thickness

representative of typical installation. Industry representatives, concerned for the accuracy of

labeling, requested that the rule be deferred until their measurement devices could be

calibrated with full thickness, low-density insulation calibration transfer standards.

In the late 1960's NIST staff formulated a radical new approach for accurately measuring

heat transmission through thermal insulation, a circular line-source Guarded Hot Plate. At

industry's and the Federal Trade Commission's request, NIST built a 1-m diameter version

of the Guarded Hot Plate capable of fiill thickness measurements up to 380 mm to within 1 percent uncertainty and made calibration transfer standards available to industry.

43
In 1981, NIST completed the 1-m circular line-source Guarded Hot Plate that met design

specifications. NIST subsequently developed two standard reference materials (SRM): a

fibrous-glass blanket (SRM-1451) in 1985 and a fumed silica board (SRM-1449, 1459) in

1990. To date, approximately 60 SRMs have been sold and an additional 70 special

calibrations have been completed for U.S. industry to support the accurate testing,

production, and labeling of thermal insulation.

Advanced insulation products are now being developed and introduced into the U.S. market

[4]. Examples of these products are aerogels, powder filled panels, and evacuated panels.

These products offer extremely high insulating capabilities. For example, theoretical

calculations reveal that an R-value approaching 100 may be achieved in a 25.4 mm thick

evacuated panel.

Unfortunately, current test procedures for measuring thermal conductivity are only applicable

to materials which are homogenous, have planar surfaces, and have relatively poor insulating

capabilities compared to advanced insulation products. NIST is now developing appropriate

measurement techniques to allow an accurate determination of the overall thermal

conductance of advanced insulation systems.

A facility for the calorimetric testing of advanced insulation panels has been designed and

fabricated. A Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) is in place with

a compact vacuum insulation manufacturer (Aladdin Industries). The new calorimeter will

be tested using different insulation samples of known thermal conductivity. Each insulation

sample will be evaluated over a range of mean temperatures and compared to measurements

made on the NIST 1-m Guarded Hot Plate. These comparisons will be made to document

the accuracy of the calorimeter when used to test homogenous materials. Once complete, the

apparams will be ready to determine the thermal conductivity of the evacuation insulation

panels. Other measurement techniques, such as the use of infrared thermography, are also

being investigated to determine the thermal conductivity of the evacuated insulation panels.

Large Building Automation Systems

Over the last 15 years, automatic control systems in buildings have changed from

predominately pneumatic control systems to supervisory Energy Management and Control

Systems (EMCS) to distributed direct digital control or DDC systems. Recently, the

development of local area networks has now made it possible to distribute "intelligence"

throughout a building with more of it being placed at both the highest and lowest levels.

Centrifugal chillers and package air handling systems are now being manufactured with their

own digital controls. In the future, integrated building services which combine EMCS, fire

detection, security, data processing, and communications are likely to be increasingly in

demand.

44
This decade and a half of progress in building controls has been made in spite of the fact that

the previous and present generation of EMCS and DDC systems all tend to employ

proprietary communication protocols which prevent systems supplied by different

manufacturers from cormnunicating with each other. This has resulted in "captive

customers" who, upon buying a control system, are unable to upgrade or expand it without

going back to the same manufacmrer. This lack of communication capability between

control systems made by different manufacturers also prevents the building owner from

obtaining the most capable building service. It does not allow building owners to choose,

regardless of the manufacturer, the best EMCS system, the best digital controllers, the best

security system, the best fire detection system, or the best telecommunications system. To

do so today would result in incompatible, parallel systems, with redundant wiring and

equipment, conflicting control functions, excessive costs, and a nightmare of different

maintenance and operating procedures. The solution to the problems lies in the development

of standard communication protocols for EMCS and DDC building control.

For the past 7 years, NIST has worked cooperatively with the American Society of Heating,

Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) to develop BACnet, a communication protocol for Building Automation and Control networks. BACnet has been

published as a draft ASHRAE standard and has completed its first public review. Several

changes have been made to the draft standard as a result of the public review. A revised

version of the standard was released in January, 1994 for additional public review. If this

second review proceeds smoothly, it is expected that BACnet could be published as an ASHRAE standard in 1994.

The ASHRAE committee developing BACnet is known as the Standards Project Committee

(SPC) 135P. The membership of SPC 135P represents a balance of interests between

vendors, users, and general interest groups. The current membership of SPC 135P is shown

in Table 1

45
Table 1. Membership of SPC 135P

Voting Members Interest Catefforv

Andover Controls Inc PrnHiippr

Cornell University User

Enffineerinff Economics T T<!Pr Gresham, Smith & Partners User

Honeywell, Inc. Prodiirpr

Johnson Controls, Inc. Profliippr

The Kling Lindquist Partnership General Interest Landis & Gyr Powers, Inc. Producer

National Institute of General Interest Standards & Technology

PolarSoft General Interest Public Works of Canada User

Siebe Environmental Systems Producer

The Trane Company Producer

Non-Voting Members Interest Category

Delta Controls, Inc. Producer

Energyline Corporation Producer

IBM User

RRH Associates General Interest Staefa Control Systems, Inc. Producer

A ground swell of pressure from the user community motivated ASHRAE to form a conmiittee to develop the BACnet standard. The pressure from the user community has

increased since that time as expectations have been raised by publication of the draft

standard. The largest landlord in the world, the United States Government, is also beginning

to participate. The General Services Administration is planning to make conformance to BACnet a requirement for control systems purchased by civilian federal government

agencies. The Department of Defense is also considering a requirement to use BACnet in

military facilities. This kind of consumer interest has been a strong influence on

manufacturers of building control systems.

The three largest control system manufacturers in the United States, Honeywell, Johnson

Controls, and Landis & Gyr Powers have all publicly announced their intention to support

BACnet in their products. At least 17 other manufacturers have also aimounced similar plans

[5] . The Trane Company has announced that it will sell products which implement an early

version of BACnet and provide a free upgrade to the final version of the standard.

46
NIST has just organized a consortium to conduct interoperability tests on BACnet

implementations. All manufacturers who want to develop a BACnet implementation have

been invited to join, the consortium and test their implementations. So far, 13 companies

have joined NIST consortium: American Auto-Matrix, Andover Controls, Delta Controls,

Johnson Controls, Inc., Landis & Gyr Powers, PolarSoft, Siebe Environmental Controls,

Snyder General, Staefa Control System, Inc., the Trane Company, Cornell University,

Teletrol Systems, and Orion Analysis Corporation.

There is also international interest in the BACnet protocol. The European Community has

formed a standards committee to adopt a standard protocol for Europe. BACnet is one of the

leading candidates for adoption as a European standard.

The final answer on tne success or failure of BACnet will not be known for some time but,

for all of the above reasons, there are grounds for optimism.

Building Envelope Design Methods

NIST pioneered the development of a wide variety of diagnostic techniques for determining

the integrity of building envelopes. They have covered tracer gas techniques for determining

the air leakage into and out of buildings and the use of thermographic techniques for

measuring the integrity of building envelopes [6-8] . Many have been incorporated into

national and international standards.

NIST just completed a design guide for thermal integrity and airtightness of office building

walls that incorporates a wide variety of recommendations developed as a result of using the

diagnostic techniques in government office buildings [9]. Most recently, NIST has pioneered

the development of analysis techniques for moisture migration and accumulation in building

walls that destroy their thermal integrity. This has been implemented in the computer

program MOIST [10]. MOIST predicts the combined transfer of heat and moisture in

building envelopes. The program inputs hourly outdoor weather data and predicts the

moismre content and temperature of the construction layers as a function of time of year.

The algorithms of the program include moisture transfer by diffusion, convection, and

capillary flows. The moismre transfer resistance offered by vapor retarders and paint layers are readily included in simulations [11, 12].

NIST is currently experimentally verifying MOIST by comparing a series of laboratory

experiments. Twelve 1.2 m x 1.2 m test walls were installed in the NIST calibrated hot box.

Each of the test walls was instrumented to measure the heat transfer rate at the inside surface

and the surface moisture content of the construction layers. The exterior surfaces of the test walls were subsequently exposed to simulate steady and time-dependent winter outdoor

conditions. The heat transfer rate and the moisture content of the construction layers were

measured as a function of time and compared to corresponding values predicted by MOIST.

The preliminary agreement between the measurements and computer predictions is good.

47
A MOIST user can investigate the effect of various parameters on moisture movement and

accumulation within the building envelope. These parameters include climate, building

materials, the use and placement of vapor retarders, and the relative placement of building

materials. MOIST' s capability to predict the moisture accumulation within each building

material as a function of time allows the user to select the most appropriate building

materials and construction for a given climate. This will insure that buildings do not exhibit

moisture-related material degradation, thereby lengthening the service life of the materials.

Improved Indoor Air Quality

NIST has a major research program on building indoor air quality. Its goal is to develop

measurement and testing procedures, technical data, and comprehensive computer models to

assist building designers and operators to improve indoor air quality in buildings.

The program has two major elements. First, ventilation and building assessment protocols

are being developed as tools for use by building operators and indoor air quality

investigators. A large part of laboratory and field work has dealt with how air moves into

and within large commercial buildings [13-19]. A unique feature of the work in two of the

government buildings was the design and implementation of a "diagnostic center," centrally

located instrumented facility in the building with the capability of automatically sampling air

throughout the building [20]

The second major element of the program is development and application of multi-zone

indoor air quality models that predict pollutant levels from sources introduced into buildings

from outdoor air, and those generated inside from sources such as indoor combustion

processes and furnishings. The modeling of contaminant dispersal has been accomplished by

idealizing any building as a collection of well-mixed zones connected together by discrete

flow paths. Element assembly techniques have been used where equations describing the

discrete elements of the model are assembled into a set of equations approximating the

behavior of the system as a whole. The modeling approach has been implemented into a computer program, CONTAM [21].

The CONTAM computer program has been applied to several test cases for the validation

purposes. Comparisons between computed results and exact solutions for special cases of

single and two-zone buildings and numerical solutions computed by other contaminants

dispersal programs have shown excellent agreement. Comparisons between computed results

and measured data have also been good. However, the amount of good measured data is limited.

48
Alternative Refrigerants

Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) are used as the working

fluids in virtually all small and large-scale refrigeration and air-conditioning equipment. But,

their chlorine is destroying the earth's stratospheric ozone layer. As a result, U.S. industry

is replacing these chemicals as quickly as possible in response to national and international

laws and agreements. Two independent, well-coordinated divisions within NIST, the

Thermophysics and the Building Environment Divisions, have been focusing on the CFC

problem since 1981.

NIST is providing the thermophysical properties and engineering data needed to identify

promising alternatives, to retrofit existing equipment, and to design and optimize new

equipment for the replacement fluids. The most promising replacements at this time are

partially-fluorinated methane and ethane molecules with no chlorine and mixtures of such

compounds. Fluorinated propanes, butanes, and ethers are also being investigated.

For the past 10 years, NIST has been involved in measuring selected thermophysical '

properties of the alternatives including vapor pressure, equation of state, heat capacity, speed

of sound, thermal conductivity, and viscosity. NIST has developed models to predict the

properties of pure fluids and mixtures, even when little or no data exist. Industrial cycle

simulation codes and equipment design programs require such models in machine-readable

form. Thus, NIST is providing computer packages for the CFC and HCFC alternatives and

their mixmres. The most widely-distributed NIST-produced microcomputer-based predictive

package to date is REFPROP [22], which can calculate the thermophysical properties of 38

pure refrigerants and all possible combinations of up to five component mixtures of these

refrigerants.

For over 15 years, NIST has been developing the generic engineering data needed to assist

refrigeration system designers in the selection of system configurations and hardware

components. Many of the new refrigerants have a more complex molecular structure and

higher molecular weight than the refrigerants being replaced. To assist the manufacturers, in

general, NIST has incorporated the REFPROP data source into its machinery simulation

codes and conducted thermodynamic cycle analyses to evaluate various alternative

refrigerants and mixmres for the traditional refrigeration cycle with and without specific

machinery modifications. The results of these analyses are then verified in a laboratory

breadboard system.

In addition to the above generic studies, NIST is currently conducting about six proprietary

laboratory studies with various manufacmrers of refrigerants and equipment. The focus of

these smdies is on the specific adaptation of the most promising refrigerant alternatives and

the determination of what hardware changes are necessary for energy performance

optimization.

49
Demonstration Buildings

Beginning in 1993, Congress directed NIST to begin a national demonstration of green

building technologies. Four building projects were selected in 1993 and an additional one was added in 1994. The purpose of these projects is to:

1 . demonstrate the environmentally-safe technologies that are currently available

and cost-effective to use in specific building applications,

2. evaluate the effectiveness of the technology once in place, and

3. in the course of designing the buildings or building additions, identify the

technologies that need development to make an effective green building.

The buildings and their status will be described briefly.

Fish and Wildlife Refuge in Walnut Creek, Iowa

This green building will be the Visitor's Center to be built on this new 2800 hectare refuge.

The design is currently 50% complete, and construction is scheduled to begin in August,

1994 with occupancy in April, 1996. Enermodal Engineering has done the assessment of

green technologies to be incorporated into this building. Technologies include daylighting of

large parts of exhibit area, the use of biofuels for space heating, the use of sustainable

building materials, the integration of mechanical system with fire protection, water storage,

and the generation of electricity from methane at the solid waste landfill. Susan Reilly of

Enermodal Engineering has described the results of this predesign study in a separate paper

in the conference proceedings.

New England Aquarium Expansion

The New England Aquarium in the Boston Harbor is being expanded with an 11,000 m^

addition that will more than double the current facility. The project is currently in the preschematic design phase. An architecmre engineering consulting firm has just been selected.

Attention to date has been given to the nature of the expanded exhibits and exhibit areas

prior to the design of the facility. It may be up to five years from today before the facility is completed.

50
NIST Advanced Technology Laboratories

NIST has just embarked on a major 10-year renovation program for the NIST campuses in

Gaithersburg, MD and Boulder, CO. As part of that program, NIST will be designing and

constructing new Advanced Technology Laboratories on both campuses. The architecture

and engineering firm under contract to NIST is now developing the program documents and

has been charged with developing a section of Green Buildings criteria to be used in guiding

this project.

The Advanced Technology Laboratories are currently in the early schematic design phase.

The laboratory building in Gaithersburg is plaimed to have a floor area of approximately

30,000 m^- The one in Boulder, CO will be approximately half that size. The NIST green

building staff is working closely with the architectual/engineering firm of Henningson,

Durham, and Richardson, Inc. on these laboratory projects. The major challenge in a

facility such as this will be to minimize the energy consumption with mechanical and

electrical systems that must be designed first and foremost to provide exacting interior

environmental conditions conducive for research work at molecular and atomic scales. For

example, many of the laboratories require temperature variations at the research work station

of less than 0.01 °C. This is expected to require abnormally large amounts of air circulation

in the laboratory spaces.

The design of the Gaithersburg laboratory is expected to be completed in AprU, 1995 with

construction completed in June, 1997 and occupancy in early 1999.

Montana State University. Economic Renewal and Technology Transfer

The grant has just been awarded and no definite plans have been made to date on the

building to be built.

Columbia University. Geochemistry Building

This is to be a new 6000 m^ facility on the campus of the Lamont-Dougherty Earth

Observatory along the Hudson River just north of New York City. Comprehensive planning

has been completed for this building by the Craxton Collaborative/Ehrenkrantz and Ecksmt

Architects [23]. Building construction is scheduled for early 1995 with occupancy in mid1997.

The collection of technologies to be incorporated into this facility is impressive. They

include fully daylighted laboratories, an absorption chiller plant, desiccant system for latent

loads, air-to-air solar preheat for the air delivery system, fumed hood design for all the

laboratories with occupancy sensors tied directly to a central energy management system,

maximum use of recycled materials and detailed plans for commissioning of the building

envelope. The building is estimated to result in 60-70% energy reduction compared to use of

conventional technology in a similar building. The consultants are still examining the

51
possibility of coupling of the building to the ground and using wind turbines for additional

energy savings.

Summary

NIST's 20-year old energy conservation programs led the way to the new Green Building

Program. With the commencement of the Green Building Program, NIST is emerging as the

leader of designing buildings using environmentally safe materials. The two-phase program

includes laboratory-based activities, as well as national demonstration projects. These

buildings demonstrate green technologies, identify new technologies, and demonstrate the

cost-effectiveness of using green materials for construction.

Acknowledgment

The author expresses gratitude to Janet L. Land for her support and assistance in writing and

editing this paper.

52
References

[I] ASHRAE Algorithms

[2] ASHRAE Standard 90

[3] President William J. Clinton and Vice President Albert Gore, Jr., Technology for

America's Economic Growth. A New Direction to Build Economic Strength. 1993,

Superintendent of Documents, Government Printing Office, Washington, DC.

[4] K.T. Feldman, Jr., "Advanced Insulations for Refrigerated Shipping Containers,"

ASHRAE Journal , pp 42-46, February, 1993.

[5] "New R&D Consortium to Test Interoperability of BACnet Products," Energv User

News. Vol. 18, No. 11, November, 1993.

[6] A.K. Persily, et al., "Diagnostic Techniques for Evaluating Office Building

Envelopes," ASHRAE Transactions . Vol. 94, Part 2, 1988.

[7] R.A. Grot, et al., "Evaluation of the Thermal Integrity of the Building Envelopes of

Eight Federal Office Buildings," NBSIR 85-3147, Gaithersburg, September, 1985.

[8] R.A. Grot, et al., "Measurement Methods for Evaluation of Thermal Integrity of

Building Envelopes," NBSIR 82-2605, Gaithersburg, November, 1982.

[9] A.K. Persily, "Envelope Design Guidelines for Federal Office Buildings: Thermal

Integrity and Airtightness," NISTIR 4821, March 1993.

[10] D.M. Burch and W.C. Thomas, "MOIST: A PC Program for Predicting Heat and

Moismre Transfer in Building Envelopes - Release 2.0," NIST Special Publication

853, Gaithersburg, September, 1993.

[II] D.M. Burch and W.C. Thomas, "An Analysis of Moisture Accumulation in a Wood

Frame Wall Subjected to Winter Climate," NISTIR 4674, Gaithersburg, October,

1991.

[12] D.M. Burch, "An Analysis of Moisture Accumulation in Walls Subjected to Hot and

Humid Climates," ASHRAE Transactions . Vol. 99, Part 2, 1993.

[13] A.K. Persily and W.S. Dols, "The Relation of CO2 Concentration to Office Building

Ventilation," Proceedings of the ASTM Symposium on Air Change Rate and Air

Tightness in Buildings . Atlanta, April, 1989.

[14] A.K. Persily, "Tracer Gas Techniques for Studying Building Air Exchange," NBS

Interagency Report 88-3708, February, 1988.

53
[15] A.K. Persily, "Ventilation Rates in Office Buildings," Proceedings of ASHRAE

Indoor Air Quality 89 , San Diego, April, 1989.

[16] A.K. Persily and W.S. Dols, "Field Measurements of Ventilation and Ventilation

Effectiveness in an Office/Library Building," Indoor Air. Vol. 3, pp 229-245, 1991.

[17] A.K. Persily, W.S. Dols, and S.J. Nabinger, "Air Change Effectiveness

Measurements in Two Modern Office Buildings," Indoor Air. Vol. 4, pp 40-55,

1994.

[18] A.K. Persily and R.A. Grot, "The Air Tightness of Office Building Envelopes,"

Proceedings of the ASHRAE Conference on Thermal Performance of Exterior

Envelopes of Buildings III , Clearwater Beach, Florida, December, 1985.

[19] R.A. Grot and A.K. Persily, "Environmental Evaluation of the Portland East Federal

Office Building - Preoccupancy and Early Occupancy Results," NBS Interagency

Report 89-4066, April, 1988.

[20] A.K. Persily, S.W. Dols, and S.J. Nabinger, "Environmental Evaluation of the

Federal Records Center in Overland Missouri," NISTIR 4883, August, 1992.

[21] G.N. Walton, "CONTAM93," NISTIR 5385, March, 1994.

[22] J. Gallagher, et al., "NIST Thermodynamic Properties of Refrigerants and Refrigerant

Mixtures Database (REFPROP)," Version 4.0 User's Guide, NIST Standard

Reference Database 23, Gaithersburg, November, 1993.

[23] Croxton Collaborative/Ehrenkrantz & Eckstut Architects, "Lamont-Doherty Earth

Observatory of Columbia University Planning Report: Master Plan, Green Guidelines

and Conceptual Design," New York, January, 1994.

54
The American Institute of Architects

Committee on The Environment

Harry T. Gordon, AIA

Principal, Burt Hill Kosar Rittelmann Associates

Vice Chairman, AIA Committee on the Environment

Formation -

In response to growing concerns about the impact of the building industry on the global environment,

AIA formed the Committee on The Environment (COTE) in 1990 to increase awareness of the

relationship between the designer and the built environment. As one of the fastest growing AIA

professional interest areas, the AIA COTE now has 62 state and local components, and about 1,600

members.

Mission

The mission statement of the AIA Committee on the Environment is:

To Create Sustainable Buildings and Communities by Advancing, Disseminating and

Advocating Environmental Knowledge and Values to the Profession, Industry and Public

We have structured our activities around the three processes identified in the mission statement:

Advancement: To promote research, education, and professional development that advances the knowledge and understanding of sustainable design.

Dissemination: To create a model information clearinghouse for disseminating

knowledge of sustainable design.

Advocacy: To effect national, regional, and local policies and programs to encourage sustainable design.

Major Accomplishments

Since its inception, the AIA COTE has successfully undertaken major environmental initiatives, including:

• Development and publication of the Environmental Resource Guide (ERG)

• Development and sponsorship of Building Connections, a series of three videoconferences, with

the theme of Linking Economy and Ecology for a New Prosperity. The subjects of the

videoconferences were (1) Energy and Resource Efficiencies, (2) Healthy Buildings and

Materials, and (3) Sustainable Communities. The videoconferences were seen by over 10,000

people nationwide and the tapes are now available through AIA.

• AIA World Congress - The theme for the international conference was Architecture at the

Crossroads: Designing a Sustainable Future. Held in June 1993 in Chicago, IL, the meeting was the first major international meeting to focus on environmental issues since the Earth Summit

held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and was attended by over 10,000 people from 80 countries.

55
Plenary presentations were made by:

AIA President, Susan Maxman, FAIA

UIA President, Olufemi Majedodunmi, Hon. FAIA

Southern California Edison CEO, John Bryson

His Royal Highness, The Aga Kahn, Hon. FAIA

Ontario Hydro Chairman and CEO, Maurice Strong

The culmination of the World Congress was the signing of the Declaration ofInterdependence

During the World Congress, winners of an international Ideas Exploration: A Call for

Sustainable Community Solutions, were exhibited. This international competition, sponsored by

the AIA and the International Union of Architects (UIA) attracted over 400 entries from 50

countries exploring interdisciplinary solutions to sustainable habitat problems.

Greening of the White House - the AIA coordinated the efforts of over 100 multi-disciplinary

experts to produce a Feasibility Study investigating all opportunities to employ energy saving and

environmentally sound technology in all White House facilities and operations (including the Old

Executive Office Building). Currently AIA is assisting in the planning of pilot projects to demonstrate the most successful recommendations.

COTE developed a brochure for building owners, titled, Healthy, Productive Buildings: A Guide

to Environmentally Sustainable Architecture. The brochure is available from AIA, and addresses

site planning, energy use, indoor environment, materials selection, and recycling/waste

management.

Cote sponsors annual International Symposia on environmental topics, drawing speakers and

audience on design and environmental topics. The themes of the symposia are:

Proceedings of the symposia are available from AIA,

Current Initiatives

During 1994, the AIA COTE will continue to publish and expand the ERG, and complete the following

projects:

• At the AIA Annual Convention, held in Los Angeles during May, there will be a series of

workshops and presentations addressing environmental topics and a display of energy and

environmental design tools.

• Publish a quarterly newsletter for COTE members

• Conduct a roundtable and publish a white paper addressing Incentives for Increasing Energy

Efficiency in Building Design (with funding from the Energy Foundation)

1991

1992

1993

1994

Energy, Environment and Architecture

Designing Healthy Buildings - Indoor Air Quality

Sustainable Strategies for Communities and Materials

Building Materials and Technologies (Fall 94 in NYC)

56
Publish a white paper describing the Energy Responsive Building Design Process (with funding

from Southern California Edison)

Publish a Glazing Design Handbook detailing energy efficient glazing guidelines (with funding

from Southern California Edison)

Publish an Energy Efficient Products Catalog (with funding from the Energy Foundation through

the AIA Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture Council on Architectural Research)

• Conduct an Energy Design Tools Workshop (with funding from the U.S. Department of Energy,

through the AIA Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture Council on Architectural

Research)

AIA Environmental Resource Guide

With substantial support from the U.S. EPA, AIA is developing and publishing the Environmental

Resource Guide, a quarterly subscription service, composed of: Overview of Critical Issues; Case Studies

and Special Reports; and Bibliographic Resources and Contacts. The environmental topics addressed in the ERG include:

Site Design and Land Use

Natural Resources

Energy

Recycling and Waste Management

Building Ecology

Material reports have been published or are being prepared for 25 major construction materials or

building systems, including:

Concrete Aluminum Steel Steel Framing Wood Framing Tropical Woods

Plywood Particleboard Insulation

Sealants Glass Plaster and Lath

Linoleum Vinyl Flooring Gypsum Board Systems

Carpet Systems Paint (8 new materials scheduled for 1994)

In the preparation of these material reports, AIA has developed an improved Material Life Cycle

Assessment (LCA) methodology, which has the following additional characteristics (compared to prior

LCA methods):

Includes Quantitative and Qualitative Information

Adds "Use Phase" and Transportation issues to LCA

Identifies energy savings benefits of materials

AIA has an LCA Methodology Report in preparation, which will be available to ASTM and others

working in the life cycle assessment area.

57
THE U.S. GREEN BUILDING COUNCIL'S

INITIATIVES TO IMPROVE THE ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL

EFFICIENCY OF THE "WHOLE BUILDING ENVIRONMENT "

Presentation by:

Michael Italiano, General Counsel

NIST/USGBC Green Building Conference

February 1994

I trust everyone can hear me here with the mobile microphone. This is about as high-tech as I'll get for a lawyer.

What I'll cover are the programs of the U.S. Green Building Council and the Council's decisionmaking process on national policy issues relating to Green Buildings.

Last week I was in New York City talking about green buildings before the HOK Architectural

firm, the 5th largest in the country, and their sustainable development committee; it was a very

enlightening experience. Architects, by nature, are exciting, innovative, idealistic, with a strong

commitment to green buildings. It was a very productive meeting, and I left with a sense of

enthusiasm. Unfortunately, the next day I had to speak before the Annual Meeting of the Bar

Association on the same topic in front of 150 lawyers. It was quite a different experience.

The first question by a lawyer was, I believe, four minutes in length and most everyone had no

idea what the question was when he was done; my answer was simply "no"! I couldn't imagine if

the 400 people or so here today were all lawyers! It's good to be before the Architectural

Building community.

Introduction and Overview

An important question we need to ask is "Why are we here today?" I think we are here because

there is a strong public demand for environmental and energy efficiency in the built environment.

According to EPA for at least the past three or four years, there has been one hundred twenty

billion dollars annually spent on the environment. This is being done because there are some 30

federal statutes relating to environmental protection. On average there are about 1 0 separate

statutes at every state level. This legislation has taken since the 1970's to accumulate. They have

been enacted because of strong public demand for environmental protection. Public opinion

polls have shown for the last five years that support for environmental protection exceeds 90%.

It is a very popular national commitment. There are no more debates over whether we need to stop pollution. Those have long gone, and this is being recognized by the building community.

The Council receives daily requests for environmental information on products from the national

media and consumer groups. What do we do until standards and criteria are developed? That is the difficult question. I think those that objectively respond to the public's increasing demand for

58
green information will profit and flourish. Those that do not, I think, will become obsolete.

The council believes that the best way to respond to this strong public demand is through, timely,

valid, and consensus decision-making.

What Is The Green Building Council?

The Council is the only non-profit, balanced, consensus coalition in the Building Industry

working to improve environmental and energy efficiency of the "whole building environment."

What do we mean by that? We mean site development, the things that go into planning for

buildings, wastewater treatment, water use, construction design, planning and operation of the

building, and the use of building materials. What's the life cycle history of those materials?

What is the effect on indoor air? What happens to the building when the design life is exceeded?

Is it renovated? Is it destroyed? What happens to construction debris? Most of these waste

materials in a building go to landfills. This is the "whole building environment." The council

takes that view of the whole building environment and has as members the major groups

involved in the building industry: building products manufacturers, environmental groups,

building owners and operators, managers, contractors, architects and engineers, government,

utilities, real estate firms, professional societies, and universities. The important part of this

membership is that it is a consensus process, weighted by the Council bylaws so the voting is balanced, and each group has specific voting rights. The Council's priority is to initiate, develop,

and accelerate the implementation of green building policies, programs, technologies, and

standards on a national basis.

The Council structure is fairly simple. We have officers and committees, but the true decisionmaking function is with the Policy Board where there is weighted voting of all the represented

members.

What Is A Green Building?

What do we mean by a green building? Essentially they are structures that are designed,

renovated, constructed, operated and demolished in an environmentally and energy efficient manner. Green building concepts include energy efficiency and conservation, air quality,

including indoor air quality, resources and materials efficiency, environmental performance, and

improved environmental quality in the air, water, and on the land.

U.S. Green Building Council Accomplishments

Some of the programs that have been initiated by the Council include: (1) the ASTM standard

practice on green buildings which was approved in the initial subcommittee ballot; all the

negatives were resolved yesterday; (2) we have initiated life cycle assessment standards in

ASTM for building material manufacturers; (3) working with ASTM we have obtained a grant

for accelerated life cycle standards development on a national basis; (4) we have completed,

through EPA, and Public Technology, Inc. which is the research arm of local government, The

Sustainable Building Guidebook: (5) we have established a working relationship with over 17

59
federal agencies; we think its very important that they participate and be involved; (6) the

Council has also initiated a green building residential standard yesterday at our subcommittee

meeting under the lead of The Alliance to Save Energy; (7) we have initiated a green building

benefits study; (8) we testified before EPA on environmentally preferable product guidance.

This guidance will have a major impact, not only in the building industry, but on all manufactured products in the United States; (9) we have worked with EPA and provided a suggested voluntary indoor air partnership program comparable to Green Lights. EPA is convening an initial meeting and we will be there with them next Tuesday; and ( 1 0) we have also

initiated a Green Building Fund that will be run by the Chief Executive Officer of Herman

Miller, Inc. and CEO's of all our entities, similarly to the high priority given to green buildings

and the environment by the White House project. Establishing a top corporate level commitment

is extremely important and one of the recognized principles defined under pollution prevention

standards.

ASTM Green Building Standard Practice

Let me take a minute and talk about the ASTM green building standards. Their purpose is to provide a framework for design, construction, operation and demolition of commercial buildings.

The strategy is important. The commercial standard incorporates key components of green

buildings in the architectural plans and work documents, and will be incorporated into building

codes.

To those of you who are not familiar with ASTM standards they have been under development

since 1898. ASTM is an open, democratic process and has a long history in the building

industry. The building we are in today probably has 50 or so ASTM standards, ranging from the

tensile strength of steel, compaction of concrete, hardness of back fill, and specifications for

PVC pipe. The building industry has developed over 600 ASTM standards and incorporated

them into the building codes through a consensus mechanism.

Some of the important considerations for green building standards relate to both the building site and the building. For the site we have considerations for water conservation, such as xeriscaping. Conservation of water is important in reducing runoff, recharging aquifers, and

reducing erosion. We have suggested requirements for wastewater treatment. It is important to minimize the generation of wastewater, especially in new construction. Loadings of wastewater

into our coastal and estuarine waters are one of the primary causes of coastal water quality

degradation. We have requirements for the site for energy efficient outside lighting. We also

have water efficiency standards inside the building that comply with the Energy Policy Act.

Water conservation in the building is extremely important because it increases the efficiency of

wastewater treatment. The less wastewater you generate the better the systems perform, the

more removal. We also have about 30 indoor air quality practices for building owners and

managers.

Significantly, yesterday the Subcommittee voted to eliminate smoking from commercial

buildings consistent with EPA's definition of secondary smoke as a class A carcinogen. The

building standard also covers energy efficiency, utility rebate programs, and reducing plug loads

60

i
which is the accumulation of electrical use inside the building.

ASTM Life Cycle Assessment Standards

The Council has also initiated on a unanimous basis life cycle standards in ASTM by

determining what are consensus good commercial practices for building product manufacturers.

The standards cover the whole building, the product including its life cycle history, and the

envirormiental and energy impacts with the ultimate goal of identifying what is envirormientally

preferable. It is based on existing consensus developed through EPA and Society of

Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC) reports. Dr. Jim Tshudy who is the head of

Armstrong World Industries Environmental Product Innovation Center, chairs this ASTM effort. There are a number of standards being developed, including an overall "guide" for what should

be life cycle assessments by corporations, a "practice" defining the corporate inventory process,

and "practices" defining how you conduct "impact assessment" and "lifecycle improvement".

The standards define assumptions, how you deal with uncertainties in data, and how you make

judgments. We need to separate out those judgments. What is a political judgment? What is something that is technically-based? The improvement standard, obviously, is the most

important. How do companies change their manufacturing process to improve the overall

environmental and energy efficiency "life cycle", of those products?

This is a schematic that identifies the continuous improvement process in life cycle evaluation.

Let's take a quick example for any building product. What we are looking at is a whole history

of that product, ranging from resource extraction, mining, environmental and energy impacts,

including transportation from the mine to the manufacturing facility. What are the impacts

there? What are the releases to the environment? What is the energy use in that facility? What

are the impacts in transportation to the market place and to the building? What are the impacts at the impacts at the building? What then is the overall fate of those products? Where do they end

up? In looking at that overall life cycle approach we believe that this is the most objective way

of defining what is environmentally preferable.

Defining Green Building Benefits

The Council is also working on green building benefits. This is obviously an extremely

important area, and I think that worker productivity and the improved productivity of people in

the building is the most important issue facing the building industry. From those Council

members that have developed and built green buildings, we know that the productivity gains are tremendous. We are developing a protocol for obtaining benefits data. Then we can go to the

investor and constructor of the building and say "This is what you are going to save, these are the

benefits." That's essential in order to get green buildings into the mainstream.

Environmental Labelling. Rating Systems. Full Cost Accounting and Taxes on Pollution

And, then, finally, the Council is looking at emerging issues that we will be debating on March

8th at the American Institute of Architects. We know that these are issues that need a lot of

discussion and objective analysis. Product certification and environmental labeling is obviously

61
very important. Do you use life cycle evaluation? You have legal requirements by the Federal

Trade Commission and all the Attorney Generals. The law says "These evaluations and claims

by companies on what is environmentally preferable have to be based on competent scientific

evidence. You have to look at the whole life cycle of the product. You can't just look at one part

of it." These are existing legal requirements.

There are a number of rating systems in the United States. We need to evaluate them. They are increasing in use. Do they really give you a good measure of how green that building is? I think

we need to be sure of that without slowing down the rating process. Information provided to the

consumer must be accurate and competent.

And, finally, the most controversial issue, although one that you will hear more about at the

major speech tonight by Paul Hawken and Bill McDonough, in part based on Paul's book

Ecology of Commerce, is full life cycle costing, fiill cost accounting, and the cost of pollution.

Paul has recommended in his book that these costs be taxed on the polluting activity and be

placed into the economy over a 20-year period. Obviously, this is very controversial because

historically, the United States has not accepted effluent or pollution charges even though they are used in Europe.

A good example of how this might work is with municipal refuse. A number of the communities

in the United States and Toronto today place a higher fee on garbage than other communities.

They incorporate the costs for groundwater pollution. Most landfills leak in the United States

causing cleanup and groundwater monitoring costs. When you take your garbage out, it doesn't

take that into account. The 1 5 or 20 communities in the United States that have increased tipping

fees and per bag cost, based on full cost accounting, have found substantially less waste going to

landfills.

Conclusion

That concludes my remarks. As a final premise we need to recognize that we are here today

because there is a public demand for these issues to be evaluated, discussed and resolved.

Buildings, productivity, energy and environmental efficiency are a huge investment in the

country, and we think that a deliberative debate with decisions on a consensus basis in an

expedited manner, is going to be very effective. Thank you.
LIFE CYCLE ASSESSMENT

Mary Ann Curran

Pollution Prevention Research Branch

U. S. Environmental Protection Agency

26 W. Martin Luther King Drive

Cincinnati, Ohio 45268

Abstract. Life-Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a technical, data-based and holistic

approach to define and subsequently reduce the environmental burdens

associated with a product, process, or activity by identifying and quantifying

energy and material usage and waste discharges, assessing the impact of those

wastes on the environment, and evaluating and implementing opportunities to

effect environmental improvements. The assessment includes the entire lifecycle of the product, process or activity encompassing extraction and

processing of raw materials, manufacturing, transportation and distribution,

use/reuse, recycling and final disposal. LCA is a useful tool for evaluating

the environmental consequences of a product, process, or activity, however,

current applications of LCA have not been performed in consistent or easily

understood ways. This inconsistency has caused increased criticism of LCA.

The EPA recognized the need to develop an LCA framework which could be used to

provide consistent use across the board. Also, additional research is needed

to enhance the understanding about the steps in the performance of an LCA and

its appropriate usage. This paper will present the research activities of the

EPA leading toward the development of an acceptable method for conducting

LCA's. This research has resulted in the development of two guidance manuals.

The first manual is intended to be a practical guide to conducting and

interpreting the life-cycle inventory. A nine-step approach to performing a comprehensive inventory is presented along with the general issues to be

addressed. The second manual addresses life-cycle design.

Introduction

LCA has quickly become a popular topic found at environmental

conferences and meetings at an international level. Environmental LCA, which

accounts for and evaluates environmental releases and energy use, is a rediscovered concept used to look at a product, process, or activity from

cradle to grave. While interest in this approach continues to grow, there

remain questions on the methodology and its applicability that must be

addressed before LCA is an effective evaluation tool.

What is LCA?

In August 1990, a model depicting the current state of LCA's was developed during a workshop sponsored by the Society of Environmental

Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC). The model arose from the realization that

existing approaches were only inventories of energy usage and pollutant

releases. Since that workshop, LCA has been commonly described as a threecomponent process consisting of: 1) an inventory of the inputs and outputs

associated with the full life cycle, 2) the translation of these inputs and

outputs into environmental impacts, and 3) the identification of opportunities

for lessening the total impact on the environment. A complete LCA would

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include conducting all three components.

This model is sometimes referred to as the "3 I's." A fourth "I" which

stands for "Initiation" was later added in further discussions among lifecycle experts. Initiation precedes the other three components and includes

defining the purpose and the scope of the study. The initiation step is

especially promoted within the European community and in Canada. More details

are given below.

SETAC has hosted three additional life-cycle workshops on impact

analysis, data quality issues, and Code of Practice. For information

regarding the proceedings, call the SETAC Foundation at 904/469-9777.

The stages that must be included in a complete life-cycle assessment are

1) Raw Material Acquisition, 2) Manufacturing (subdivided into Materials

Manufacture, Product Fabrication, and Filling/Packaging/Distribution),

3) Use/Reuse/Maintenance, and 4) Recycle/Waste Management. The labels for the

stages are flexible. The important consideration is that the study must be

comprehensive by accounting for activities from cradle to grave. The goal of

a complete, quantitative life-cycle inventory is to create a mass balance

which accounts for all the inputs and outputs to the overall system. Changes

made within the system, for example switching to non-toxic solvent, may result

in transferring pollutant between media or it may create upstream or downstream effects.

LCA is a useful tool for identifying such tradeoffs, however, current

applications of LCA have not been performed in consistent or easily understood

ways. This inconsistency has caused increased criticism of LCA. The EPA

recognized the need to develop an LCA framework which could be used to provide

consistent use across the board. Also, additional research is needed to

enhance the understanding about the steps in the performance of an LCA and its

appropriate usage. Research activities of the EPA's Pollution Prevention

Research Branch in Cincinnati, Ohio, are leading toward the development of an acceptable method for conducting LCA's. This research has resulted in the

development of a guidance manual for conducting life-cycle inventories. The

manual is intended to be a practical guide to conducting and interpreting a life-cycle inventory. The inventory guidance manual presents a nine-step

approach to performing a comprehensive life-cycle inventory along with the

general issues to be addressed.

1) Define the Purpose

2) Define the System Boundaries

3) Devise a Checkl ist

4) Conduct a Peer Review

5) Gather Data

6) Develop Stand-Alone Data

7) Construct a Model

8) Present the Results

9) Interpret and Communicate the Results

A copy of the manual can be obtained from the EPA's Center for

Environmental Research Information (CERI) by calling 513/569-7562 and asking

for EPA/600/R-92/245, or a photocopy can be purchased from the National

Technical Information Service (NTIS), PB#93-139681 , by calling 703/487-4650.

64
Decision Points

Within the life-cycle "community," there is general agreement on the

major elements that should be included in a life-cycle inventory. However,

decision points occur in the process of accounting for energy and

environmental releases which lead to apparent differences in methods. How

these decision rules are addressed can greatly affect the outcome of the

study.

An example of one of these decision rules can be seen in the allocation

of releases among co-products. For example, a typical process results in

multiple products. In this example, our process makes 1,000 lb of product A

and 500 lb of Product B. One simple way of allocating the environmental

releases from the process among the products is using weight basis.

Therefore, two-thirds of the releases would be attributed to A and one-third

to Product B. However, weight basis is not the only possibility. Allocation

could also be done by market share as well as other ways.

Other EPA Life-Cycle Activities

The best understood part of LCA is the inventory process. However,

without Impact Analysis, evaluation of the data is limited to a "less is best

approach, i.e., reduce the total releases and energy usage rates as much as possible. EPA's Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards is developing a document which addresses life-cycle impact assessment (LCIA).

Also, the EPA's Office of Solid Waste is investigating the issue of

life-cycle data quality and needs. They have prepared a draft framework for

evaluating LCA data quality and translating this information into a usable

format. The framework is still under development.

Life Cycle Design

The purpose of life-cycle design is to promote environmental impact and

risk reduction by incorporating the life-cycle concept into the design stage.

Together, the EPA's Risk Reduction Laboratory and the University of Michigan

produced a framework for life cycle design. The manual adopts a systemsoriented approach based on the product life cycle. A multilayer matrix is

proposed to balance environmental, performance, cost, cultural, and legal

requirements. The second phase of this project is underway. AT&T and Allied

Signal are working with the University to demonstrate two life-cycle designs.

Lessons learned from the demonstrations will be used to revise the guidance

manual

LCA Applications

The decision to perform an LCA is usually based on one of several

objectives. There is a strong interest by individuals in the private sector

to use LCA information to judge the "environmental goodness" of products

within categories or base a product labelling program.

Why are manufacturers interested in performing or sponsoring LCA's and

methodology refinement? There are many reasons that can be speculated about,

although no formal survey has been conducted. For discussion purposes, these

65
reasons are listed below from the most localized to the most global, those

benefiting society as well as the company bottom line:

• Product improvements analysis (DFE, P2, ZDM);

• Monetary savings by prioritizing investment activities;

• Analytical tool for implementing corporate quality initiatives (TQM);

« Supporting product market claims;

• Responding to competitor claims;

• Developing a broader understanding of product environmental

impl ications;

o Product stewardship program;

• Multi-national pressures (labelling/recycling).

Direct benefits to the company typically are associated with using LCA

as a tool to help implement other strategic programs. These include such

activities as Design for the Environment (DFE), Pollution Prevention (P2), and

Zero Discharge Manufacturing (ZDM), where a life-cycle inventory can be

employed to broadly benchmark a starting point as well as to track progress.

In conjunction with cost and finance analysis methods, life-cycle inventory

can be used to decide which projects represent the most cost-effective

investments. Moving into more external applications, life-cycle inventory is

being considered to support, in a factual way, product claims made by a company about their products and to evaluate environmental claims made against

a product by a competitor. Finally, companies are motivated to employ LCA

because front-end suppliers and downstream users are increasing their

inquiries about products wanting defensible information to pass along to their

customers and because, at least in Europe, U.S. manufacturers are being

required to supply information to support labelling or take-back of their

product. More companies are realizing that their operations are only on part

of a larger system, and that what seems to be a ready "fix" for them may cause unanticipated effects upstream (on suppliers) or downstream (on consumers).

(This is the "one man's ceiling is another man's floor" concept.) Companies

are also beginning to accept wider responsibility for their actions as they

relate to the environment. LCA offers the necessary information to ensure

that local improvements really are global improvements and not just shifting

burdens to someone else.

The Future of LCA

EPA will continue its research efforts to develop LCA as a useful tool

for industry to use in evaluating and improving products and processes. We

will continue to investigate possible approaches to carrying out the impact

analysis component, however, this appears to be a much longer-term research

area. A more immediate need is to identify the major methodological

differences within life-cycle inventories and begin developing consensus.

Continued research is also needed in the area of "streamlining" since

the LCA process can be very time consuming requiring thousands of data points.

Streamlining will possibly occur as more assessments are conducted and

"blocks" of data become available for future studies. For example,

information on the production of commodities, such as polyethylene, are being

developed. A somewhat more product-oriented version of this approach is also

feasible. A modular data set on a standard cardboard carton of specified

dimensions, obtained from a peer-reviewed publication or a quality-assured

66
data base, may be plugged into any system where such a carton is used.

A second approach to streamlining may exist in a type of "life-cycle

review" where environmental consequences are identified where they occur in

any of the life-cycle stages. The occurrences of these releases or impacts

can be identified and accounted for through available literature, industryspecific data or through the use of an expert panel. While this approach

appears to have merit, especially in product design activities, an exact

procedure for performing a life-cycle review which yields verifiable results

is yet to be developed.

References

1. Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, "A Technical Framework

for Life Cycle Assessments," December 1991.

2. EPA, "Life-Cycle Assessment: Inventory Guidelines and Principles," Risk

Reduction Engineering Laboratory, Cincinnati, Ohio (EPA/600/R-92/245)

.

3. EPA, "Life Cycle Design Manual: Environmental Requirements and the Product

System," Risk Reduction Engineering Laboratory, Cincinnati, Ohio (EPA/600/R92/226).

This material has been funded wholTy or in part by the United States

Environmental Protection Agency under contract 68-C0-0003 to Battel le. It has

been subject to peer and administrative review and it has been approved for

publication as an EPA document. Mention of trade names or commercial products

does not constitute endorsement or recommendation for use.

67
GREENING THE WHITE HOUSE

William D. Browning

Dianna LxDpez Bamett

Green Development Services

Rocky Mountain Institute

1739 Snowmass Creek Road

Snowmass CO 81644-9199

Abstract

The White House, which recently celebrated its 200th birthday, has had a long tradition of

demonstrating technological innovation. In keeping with that tradition, the Clinton

Administration has initiated a comprehensive analysis, design, and implementation program

to improve the energy and environmental performance of the White House and Old

Executive Office Building. The effort, led by an inter-govemmental-agency team, consists

of six components -- audit, feasibility study, early actions, demonstration spaces, long term

initiatives, and technology transfer/outreach. Some of these components have been

completed and others are being implemented to improve energy and water efficiency, make

appropriate use of renewable energy sources, reduce waste streams, improve indoor air

quality, and improve building cornfort and performance. All of the measures are to be

implemented without disrupting the facility's operations and in a way that respects the

historic and security concerns of America's most famous house. This paper provides a

general outline of the Greening the White House project.

Introduction

"For as long as I live in the White House, I want Americans to see it as a symbol of clean

government, but also a clean environment.... We're going to identify what it takes to make

the White House a modelfor efficiency and waste reduction, and then we're going to get

the job done."

President William Clinton, Earth Day Address, April 1993

The White House, which celebrated its 200th birthday in 1992, is frequently viewed as an unchanging symbol of America. While the symbolic value remains unchanged, the

building itself has actually undergone dramatic changes. The White House is one of a complex of buildings that has constantly evolved to meet the needs of the President, his

staff and the American people. The Greening of the White House builds on a long tradition

of installing state-of-the-art technologies into the fabric of the White House complex. From

the central heating installed during President Van Buren's term, to the water closets, gas

lighting, elevators, and air conditioning added later, the White House has frequently been a showcase for innovations.

68
The Greening of the White House project was announced as part of President Clinton's

Earth Day Address in April of 1993. The Office on Environmental Policy initiated the

project with the advice of eighteen environmental and energy organizations. An intergovernmental-agency team led by the Office on Environmental Policy, and the Department

of Energy's Federal Energy Management Program was charged with the task of analyzing

the energy and environmental performance of the buildings, studying feasible measures to improve performance, and then implementing recommendations for the White House and

Old Executive Office Building.

The Greening project is interesting and challenging because of the complex variety of uses

in the White House complex. The uses include roughly a half million square feet of office

space, a museum with 1.2 million visitors annually, three restaurants (two of which are fast

food, one four star), a conference center with several events daily, an 18 acre botanic

garden, a bed & breakfast, and finally a private residence. The White House complex

consists of the East and West Wings, Executive Residence, and tiie Old Executive Office

Building. It has four key agencies who manage aspects of the complex ~ the General

Services Administration, tiie National Park Service, the Office of Administration, and the

Executive Residence staff. There are a number of organizations housed in the complex. It is also the office of the Vice President, and tiie office and home of the President and his

family.

The age of the buildings in the White House complex varies. George Washington laid the

comer stone of the White House in 1792. The building was, however, not completed in

time for the first President to take occupancy. President John Adams became the first occupant of the house in 1800. The Wliite House was burned to a shell in 1814, and

rebuilt in 1815. In 1902, an area that had been greenhouses and stables became a temporary building for the West Wing. It was substantially expanded in a more permanent

form in 1909, and underwent a major renovation in 1934. The East Wing was built in

1902 and substantially expanded in 1941. The East Wing expansion was intended to serve

partially as a museum; however, the outbreak of World War H caused the area to become

offices, a use that continues today. In President Truman's term, the White House was

completely gutted down to the original sandstone walls because of structural instabilities,

and the interiors were rebuilt between 1948-1952.

The White House Executive Residence is the portion of the complex most people think of

when they think of the White House. The first family, of course, lives in the Executive

Residence. In addition, the Executive Residence contains the ceremonial spaces used for

visits and special events with dignitaries and officials. These are also the primary museum

spaces and the location of public tours. In addition, there are several meeting spaces and

rooms for special events. Finally, in order to support the operation of the building, there

are many service and maintenance spaces. These areas include kitchens, laundries, even a

paint shop.

The East Wing which is primarily office spaces, also includes a theater. The West Wing

has a combination of uses. The President's Oval Office is located in the West Wing. There

are also meeting spaces, offices, the White House media office and the Navy Dining Mess.

The grounds of the White House have many uses and functions. In addition to the wellknown Rose Garden, there is the First Ladies garden, which also serves as an organic

kitchen garden for the Executive Residence. Several President's have planted trees on the

grounds during their terms of office. The oldest of tiie existing trees was planted by

President Jackson. There are also tennis courts, a swimming pool, a running track, and

maintenance facilities, all screened from public view.

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The Old Executive Office Building is the former home of the departments of War, Navy

and State. Begun in 1871 and completed in 1888, it is the largest granite building in the

world. Built during a period of great concern about fires, the building fabric is predominantly stone, v/ith cast iron architectural detailing, both inside and out. The only

wood in the original construction are the doors, mahogany window frames, handrails, and

office floors. The building has two large internal courtyards and was originally designed to use daylighting and passive cooling to the extent possible then.

Any measures chosen to improve the energy and environmental performance of the White

House complex must respect the historic fabric and symbolic nature of the buildings, as well as meet the Secret Service's security concerns.

Energy and Environmental Audits

In June and July of 1993, the Inter-Govemmental-Agency Team conducted comprehensive

audits of the energy and environmental performance of the White House complex. The

energy audit team, led by the Department of Energy, included Lawrence Berkeley

Laboratories, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, and Rocky Mountain Institute

(serving both as a technical advisor and as the American Institute of Architects' public

liaison). The environmental audit team, led by the Environmental Protection Agency,

included the General Services Administration, District of Columbia, and the Institute for

Environmental Auditing. The audit process conducted detailed reviews of records and

billing, research on building histories, and investigation of site conditions.

The energy audit team gathered sufficient information on current energy and water use to assess the opportunities for efficient use of these resources. The audit team determined the

different types of energy supplying the complex, collected billing information, interviewed

facilities management staff, and inspected the site. The audit analysis and

recommendations focused on readily- achievable, cost-effective, innovative techniques that

could be transferred from the White House to other buildings. The energy audit studied the

main types of energy end-use, including the building shell or "envelope", lighting, plug

load and heating, ventilating and cooling (HVAC), walls, roof, windows, and doors, that

buffer the interior living and working areas from outside temperature extremes and

weather. Plug load refers to all items that are plugged into the electrical system, from office

equipment to refrigerators. Kitchen use of energy was addressed separately. The energy

team also studied the efficient use of water resources. The opportunities for reducing

energy loads, including improving the building envelope, were addressed before assessing

the mechanical system requirements or other means of meeting these energy loads. This was done because increased lighting efficiency and smaller plug loads would allow the

building to use smaller more cost effective HVAC systems, and would increase the

potential for cost-effective use of solar and renewables.

The in-depth audit conducted by the EPA examined the overall environmental performance

of the White House complex. The audit examined the complex's compliance with various

federal and local environmental acts and regulations. Opportunities for pollution prevention were also investigated. Materials flows, waste streams, and purchasing patterns were

studied, and procedures for conducting White House events were analyzed. A review of

the management systems examined the decision making process and chains of command.

The audit also recommended several areas for potential retrofits.

70
An audit report detailing the results of both audits was turned over to the White House

complex's facilities staff. The audit information was also used in the subsequent feasibility

study.

AIA Feasibility Study

One of the most unique aspects of the Greening of the White House was the Feasibility

Study, sponsored by the Ajnerican Institute of Architects. In particular, its process for

encouraging interaction among design professionals and holistic design significantly

contributed to the success of the project In July 1993, a comprehensive study of energy

and environmental measures for tiie White House complex was organized by the American

Institute of Architects, and was partially funded by the Corporate Conservation Council of

the National Wildlife Federation. Over ninety participants came together for this weekend

feasibility study in Washington DC. What emerged from this gathering was a model

design process and a report of the experts' recommendations that will lead to an integrated

design to improve the White House's efficiency, performance, and environmental

responsiveness.

The participants in the feasibility study were all recognized experts within their respective

fields, and were selected because they could contribute a unique approach to the study.

These experts were also charged to look outside their own fields of expertise and to examine everything about the project with an eye towards possible interactions and

interdisciplinary solutions. Each of these experts was assigned to one of twelve teams to address the challenges and opportunities presented by the White House. The topic areas included: building envelope & glazings, lighting, plug loads/equipment, heating &

coohng, materials/finishes/fixtures/fumishings, indoor air quality, water,

grounds/landscaping, operations/maintenance, procurement, materials/recycling, and

cultural change/human factors.

Teams were directed to work closely with other teams where the problems or solutions

identified by one would affect another. The teams were grouped into four main categories:

energy, building ecology, water and landscaping, and materials streams. Further

interaction among these groupings was encouraged by several individuals who "floated"

from team to team. As the three day workshop gathered steam, the individual participants

all quickly realized the value of understanding the issues evolving in other groups, and how

the recommendations their teams made affected all the other teams. The entire group met

periodically to convey findings to all the participants.

Following the weekend, a Feasibility Study Report was written by the participants of the

study and turned over to the Office of Environmental Policy. This report contains

recommendations for:

• Improving the performance of the White House and Old Executive Office building

• Capturing energy and resource efficiency opportunities

• Improving the building ecology and

• Improving the relationship to the outdoor environment

The recommendations had to emphasize cost-effectiveness and produce the best

performance using "state-of-the-shelf ' technologies.

The recommendations for improving energy efficiency focus on the building envelope's

thermal performance, lighting design, plug loads, space heating, and space cooling

systems. As an example of the scope of recommendations the report concluded that.

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improvements in glazing technologies may provide opportunities to improve the envelope's

thermal performance, while new lighting technologies can provide superior lighting levels

while using much less energy. Office equipment and appliances on the market today have

the potential to reduce plug-loads without reducing the level of service. Considering

efficiency technologies to address the heat gain from windows, lighting, and then plug

loads, can lead to opportunities to downsize coohng capacity. In addition, improvements

in the design and sizing of mechanical systems can increase human comfort and

productivity while reducing energy use and adverse environmental impacts.

Recommendations for improving the building ecology address materials issues and indoor

air quality. The recommendations emphasize using sustainable and environmentally

preferable products, materials and techniques, and providing for a healthy indoor

environment for the White House.

Recommendations for capturing resource savings and improving the environment focus on

the interaction between the buildings and the site. The recommendations recognize the

value of efficiency and of cascading, multiple uses for water and energy. They propose

restoring a native landscape characteristic of the region.

The recommendations addressing behavioral issues target procurement, operations and

maintenance. The recommendations include making changes in the procurement processes,

evolving operation and maintenance procedures, and reducing materials streams into and

out of the building complex. One theme that emerged from the feasibility study was the

issue of the use of the buildings over time, and how that use affects the use of resources

like water, energy, materials and air. Another theme was the recognition of the critical

importance human behavior will play in establishing change. Understanding the

importance of both themes can support technologic^ improvements that will

simultaneously provide for a high quality of life for building users and a positive

environmental impact.

Many of the opportunities identified in the feasibility study involve an interaction among

systems. To ensure an appropriate use of technology, there must be an integrated design

and implementation process that includes:

• Implementing a comprehensive planning process

• Addressing environmental issues and improving quality of life

• Monitoring and reducing consumption

• Improving human health in the indoor environment

• Evaluating and improving the process

Many technological initiatives intended to improve the energy efficiency and environmental

performance of the White House were identified and recommended. Final decisions about

the use of new technologies will follow guidelines suggested by the comprehensive design

initiatives. The individual technologies would then be used as tools, and not as the end

themselves. They would be chosen because they can best move the buildings toward

efficiency and sustainabUity.

Some of the recommendations from the feasibility study urge the use of demonstrations of

technology. Most of the recommended improvements, however, will have little or no

impact on the visual appearance of the buildings. The primary, visible change might be

improvements in the quality of hghting that will make affected spaces more pleasant and

will promote user productivity. In addition, the recommended changes will achieve the

greatest long-term value and effectiveness if the people of the White House, from long-term

faciUty maintenance staff to recent political appointees, are involved in the process, are

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supportive of the implemented changes, and are well-informed about how to use and

maintain the new technologies.

If the recommendations from the Feasibility Study report were implemented it would result

in an environmentally sustainable White House, one that can significantiy decrease resource consumption over the long term.

Early Actions

A number of early actions are already in progress, or wiU soon be implemented in the

White House and Old Executive Office Building. These actions must result in

environmental improvements and energy efficiency and meet one of three requirements:

they are easily and quickly done, they have no or low cost to implement, and they are required for regulatory compliance. The categories for these actions include: lighting

retrofits, water efficiency measures, installation of energy-efficient appliances, and

measures to improve the building's thermal performance.

Many specific actions are possible to improve energy or environmental performance. As an example, the windows at the Old Executive Office Building are currently being replaced.

Before the Greening of the White House project began, those windows were going to be

single-paned windows. Changing the specification from single-paned glazings to double

glazings in the retrofit will significantiy increase the thermal performance of the building.

Another example of the type of early action possible would be the replacement of the

refrigerator in the White House with a "Golden Carrot" refrigerator. The term "Golden

Carrot" refers to the design competition that resulted in the commercial production of superefficient refrigerators that have been designed to use 25-50% of the energy used by existing

models. In addition, they do not use chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) in the refrigeration cycle or in the foam insulation. Replacing the White House refrigerators is in line with the call by the Administration's Global Climate Change Action Plan to eliminate CFCs and reduce

energy use.

The process of implementing the early actions has begun. The changes made are, in

general, based on the recommendations of the energy audit, the environmental audit, and

the feasibility study, although some are being made by staff initiatives.

Demonstration Spaces

Several spaces within the White House and the Old Executive Office Building were chosen

to serve as demonstrations of the possible improvements that would result from a comprehensive energy and environmental retrofit. The designs for the retrofits in these

spaces integrate daylighting, efficient systems for Ughting and cooUng, efficient equipment,

improved indoor air quality, the use of environmentally responsive building materials, and

in some cases, reemphasizing the original, historic design intent.

The demonstration spaces allow the recommendations for Greening the White House to be

tried and evaluated before full scale implementation of the recommendations in the entire

complex begins. The scope of these demonstration spaces will allow the complex's tenants

and the public to see what is possible and what the Greening project can accomplish. The

improvements in these spaces should also serve to increase interest in the project, and act as a catalyst to begin the important changes possible through the Greening project. The type

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of spaces under consideration are office suites, bathrooms, and other spaces that allow for

comprehensive demonstrations. '

Preliminary design work on the demonstration spaces has been completed by a design team

coordinated by the Department of Energy and the American Institute of Architects.

Budgeting and scheduling decisions for these spaces are pending. The schedule for

construction is likely to link completion of some spaces and "ground-breaking" events for

others to activities for Earth Day 1994.

Long Term Initiatives

Long term initiatives focus on goals rather than specific actions. The importance of the

long-term initiatives is to ensure that the measures that can move the White House to

sustainability become ingrained and permanent. Many of these goals are aimed at directly

involving all the players and users within the White House complex in the Greening project

and process. Operations, maintenance, and procurement practices are a few areas in which

change can occur through increasing environmental awareness. As an example, the use of

low or no-volatile organic compound paints was an issue considered by several of the

feasibility study teams. Recommendations were made to phase-in these paints. This is a

short-term action that can be implemented quickly in some areas, although there are

historical and special usage concerns. If procurement practices are also changed over the

long-term, and the maintenance staff and other personnel are educated about the reasons for

using these paints, then the search for sustainable designs can become ingrained.

One of the long-term goals is to educate all of the staff to increase their knowledge about

the implications of choices and decision processes. To further the idea of the "participatory

process" most of the retrofit work is to be done by facilities staff. This will help in many

ways. The facilities staff may come to accept the new environmental standards as normal

operating procedure. In addition, they will have the opportunity to learn new techniques,

enhance their current skills, and understand new technologies through their direct

involvement in the design, installation, and operation of the new systems. It is important to note that it is the people who work in the White House complex who are really in a position

to identify and make changes, and who are key to the long-term success of the project.

The National Park Service is charged with developing a comprehensive plan to manage and

operate the White House complex and the adjacent President's Park. The plan will

consider many of the long-term initiatives addressed by the feasibility study, and, when

completed, should serve to protect the historic nature of the site while making its operations

more sustainable.

Technology Transfer and Outreach

"/ want to make the White House a modelfor otherfederal agencies, for state and local

governments, for business, andforfamilies in their homes."

President Wilham Clinton, Earth Day Address, April 1993

Several steps are being initiated to communicate the results of the Greening of the White

House Project to the public, and to encourage its replication in federal, state and private

buildings. The inter-govemmental-agency team will continue to work with National Park

Service staff on mechanisms for telHng White House visitors about the implementation of

measures. The Federal Energy Management Program of the Department of Energy is

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looking at such other sites as San Francisco's Presidio as transfer sites for the process.

The AIA is assembling a design tool called, "Workshop in a Box" that can be used to replicate the audit and feasibility study for other buildings. A component of this project

will be an interactive CD ROM disk that would allow viewers to "tour" the White House

and zoom in on its windows, or lights, or any other interesting feature, and to get

explanations of the technology geared to their interest level and education. Communicating

the lessons learned from Greening of the White House and transferring the information to the public is crucial to the long term success of the project.

Conclusion

The White House has, in the past, served as a showcase for events in our country's life. With the Greening of the White House, it will once again serve as an important symbol,

this time as the showcase of environmental responsibility.

The integrated design process that led to the recommendations for Greening the White

House is itself an important tool that can easily be employed in considering how to improve

the performance of any facility. Interactive design is fostered by assembling all the relevant

players in the design field (architects, lighting designers, mechanical engineers, utilities,

interior designers, water efficiency experts, etc.) along with on-site managers and the

people responsible for the on-going maintenance for the buildings, at the outset of a

project, to discuss and design across boundaries. Having all the experts work together can

lead to serendipitous discoveries that are often overlooked in a more conventional and linear

design process.

The Greening of the White House can potentially decrease the White House's resource consumption by 50% or more. It also strongly supports the current Administration's

leadership role in environmental protection. The Greening of the White House project

should create an environmentally sustainable, model White House, and a world-class

environmental showcase.

"Before I ask you to do the best you can in your house, I ought to make sure I'm doing the

best I can in my house."

President William Clinton, Earth Day Address, April 1993

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Our Future and the Making of Things

16 February 1994

William McDonough

Hello, everyone. I think I know about half of the people in this room. I'm very honored to be

invited to come and speak with you; the Green Building Council is something of which I am very

fond. I remember meeting David Gottfried who was working with the contractor when they built

my firm's design for the Environmental Defense Fund offices in Washington. I suppose this is when he got the environmental bug, and started thinking about the issues this meeting is addressing. If so I'd love to take credit for his splendid contributions to the cause since that time.

And I would also like to thank everyone, especially David, Mike Italiano, Lynn Simon and the

Herman Miller company for their courtesy and sponsorship.

I notice Molly Olson from the President's Council for Sustainable Development is here; this is a

signal of how important the issues we're talking about really are. It is a signal of their

importance to our country, their importance to our industries, and their importance to our

children.

Tonight I'd like to talk to all of you as heroes, as leaders, and as designers. I approach

environmental matters from the perspective of design and I'd like to think of all of you as our

colleagues in design. So tonight's talk is about design from my perspective. I'd like to talk about

design as the first signal of our intentions, because I think a lot of people don't quite realize what

design is, and that we are designing all the time.

Thomas Jefferson was a designer. He designed the Declaration of Independence. In designing

the Declaration of Independence he was concerned about his seventh generation. We are,

literally, Thomas Jefferson's seventh generation. We can remember Kennedy's remark at his first cabinet meeting when he said, "There hasn't been a greater assembly of minds and intellects in

the White House since Thomas Jefferson dined alone." If Thomas Jefferson were alive today,

given his interests and proclivities, he would be calling for a Declaration of Interdependence. I called for a Declaration of Interdependence in a speech I gave at Jefferson's Rotunda at the

University of Virginia about three years ago, and was subsequently picked up by the World

Congress of Architects for their 1 993 convention. It was very clear to me that this is what he

would be doing, given his interests in natural history in human history and social history.

If we look at the history of rights, as Roderick Nash has done, we can see, going back in western

culture, the Magna Carta in 1215, the rights of white, noble males; we go to the Declaration of

Independence and we have white, land-owning males; we have emancipation; we have suffrage;

we have the Civil Rights Act; and then in 1 973 the Endangered Species Act. The first time in our history that something which is not human is recognized as having the right to exist. There

are now discussions about an Endangered Ecosystem Act. We have to respect human rights, and

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we have to respect the rights of nature. I would Hke to look at how we can design with these

rights in mind, in a way that is profitable and propitious for us all.

People who have heard me speak before will forgive me, I hope, but they know I can't resist

talking about Emerson and his trip to Europe after his wife died in the 1930's. He went over on a

sailboat and returned on a steamship, and remarked upon the return voyage that he missed what

he called the "Aeolian kinetic". If we abstract this for effect, he went over on a solar-powered,

recyclable vehicle, operated by craftpersons working in the open air practicing ancient arts, and

returned in a steel rustbucket putting oil on the water, smoke in the sky, operated by people

working in the darkness shoveling fossil fuels into the face of a boiler. Now, these ships are designed objects. Who designed these things? We designed these things. We're still designing

steamships. We need what I'm calling "A Boat for Thoreau." I don't know what it looks like

either, and it's especially complicated because Thoreau really didn't travel that much. When

asked why he didn't travel often, he said, "I have traveled widely in Concord."

In 1936, Emerson was writing a series of essays for Harvard on "Nature." He was trying to discover what is "natural." If human beings are natural, therefore are all things that we make

natural? His conclusion was that nature is all those things that are immutable; things that are unchangeable by human intervention, the oceans, the mountains, the leaves. That was then, this

is now. We now recognize that we are in a position to mutate the oceans, the mountains, and the

leaves. I think Thoreau knew this. So our mindset is now different than at the beginning of the

Industrial Revolution. In order to solve these problems we have to reflect on a thought attributed

to Albert Einstein: "No problem can be solved by the same consciousness that created it." We

are going to require a shifting and changed consciousness, and we must design our solutions

based on this new consciousness.

To begin we must take the information we have today and look at each other and every field of

human endeavor and adopt an attitude of unconditioned mutual respect. We must say

"Negligence starts tomorrow, here we are now, and this is what are we going to do to redesign

this." Where do we begin? Can you imagine asking somebody or some organization to design an industrial system for your country that produces four billion pounds of toxic waste and puts

them into the air, the soil, and the water every year? Can you imagine designing a system with

that as a criteria? This is what we have. We have to redesign almost everything.

Yes, we have to reduce; yes, we have to reuse; and yes, we have to recycle. But first we have to redesign. We have a design emergency, and not enough people who know what to do. Herein

lies the major opportunity for the next industrial revolution. You have to be the leaders of this

revolution.

As I mentioned we must start the redesign by getting our information on the table. What kind of

information are we getting? We're getting information about persistent toxification of a planet.

Our industrial system is essentially poisoning the very place in which we live. We're finding

endocrine system disruptions: disruptions in reproductive systems documented by scientists.

They are seeing that estrogen-like substances, for example, are locking into our reproductive

systems and sending mixed signals, or the wrong signals and creating mutations. They're

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finding fish in the Great Lakes that don't reproduce, developing into masculinized females,

feminized males, or hermaphrodites. The Danes have reported male sperm counts have dropped

50% worldwide since 1940. We're now recognizing that our energy systems and chemicals are creating threats to global climate, et cetera, et cetera.

Well we must take this kind of information, examine its implications, and become serious about

developing a vision, while working with this information in a more positive way, I'd like to look

at that working design structure. What is the work we need to be doing? A lot of the great work

that's going on in the environmental field really has to be looked at as transitional now, because

"end of the pipe" philosophy just begins to minimize the damage. This is valuable, but we

should really be working toward the vision of a place where we can design effectively within

nature, not against nature. So I'd like to look at that.

Fortunately, nature is here as a model and a mentor. We can actually look at nature and see its own design principles and characteristics and use them to guide us. There are three fundamental

characteristics of natural design. First, waste equals food. There is no such thing as waste in nature. The concept of waste does not exist. Don't just minimize waste; eliminate the entire

concept of waste.

Second, nature does not borrow from the future. It uses current income. I certainly don't know

how many of your businesses can work off of capital reserves; I don't know many architects who

can. We need to work from current income. Nature works with current solar income, our

buildings, our processes have to start to look at how they can work from current solar income and

natural energy flows.

Third, nature loves diversity. The characteristic of nature that allows us not to go into complete

chaos is this highly complex, interactive, diverse system where no two things are alike, including

us.

How do we start to integrate these principals into human designs? I will mention a few processes

in a minute and show how we start to look at that, but before I do, I'd like to bring up something

important to the conceptual framework of our future and the making of things. This is a new

way of looking at products. Because if waste equals food and there is no such thing as waste,

then all you have are products. One thing's waste is actually a product, all "things" are seen as products. What kinds of products are we going to have? There are three essential types of

products, according to my firiend Michael Braungart of the EPEA in Hamburg, Germany. There

are consumable, there are service products, and there are unmarketables, unsellables.

A consumer product is something you can literally consume, it's shoe polish, it's toothpaste, it's food, it's natural fibers. It's something that goes back to the soil without persistent toxins,

without endocrine disruption, without mutogens, carcinogens, or heavy metals. It's something

that becomes soil. We need more of these products. We need to replenish our soil. So consumer

products should be literally consumable, and they should be healthy.

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When I came to this country from the Far East the one thing that shocked me the most was that

we didn't seem to have people with hves in America any more; we had consumers with lifestyles.

I'm always shocked to hear on television the consumers this, the consumers that.

How do you consume a television? One can't consume a television set. We want the service of a

television set. It's a service product. It provides astonishing service, but if we look at the thing

itself, it's essentially hazardous waste. If I covered up a standard television set here and said I've got this great item but before I tell you what it can do for you, let me tell you what it is and you

tell me if you want this in your house. It has 4300 chemicals, it has 9 to 18 grams of highly toxic

mercury, it has an explosive glass tube and we think you ought to put it at eye level with children

and encourage them to play with it. That's what a television set is.

Now, whose food is this waste? Well, it's the food of the electronics industry, whose food is a

chair? It's the food of the furniture industry. These products need to go into closed life cycles.

A life cycle has to be considered not as a cradle to grave, which is the typical protocol. The very

terminology "cradle to grave" portrays our current misunderstanding of the life cycle concept. It should be "cradle to cradle." That's what we're looking for. We need to change lifecycle

protocols, all analyses for life cycle form "cradle to grave" to "cradle to cradle." Otherwise we

wind up with life cycle analyses that don't help us, because either they're irrelevant, unfocused or

useless as design tools. When industries researched the plastic bag versus the paper bag, they

conducted life cycle analyses from either side. The plastic bag people said, well, they're better

because when they go into landfills, they take less space; the paper industry said, we're solar

driver fiber, and how do you evaluate and compare carcinogenic health risks from dioxins with

petrochemicals anyway? Talk about cradle to grave analysis! Have we answered the

"consumer's" question "which is better?" yet? The answer is you don't need either of them. You

use a string bag, you design something that is reuseable, or truly compostable without danger.

We should be using life cycle analysis as a design tool. We need to develop an industrial system

that designs products that go back into a closed loop. When you finish with your TV you should

take it back to the store where you bought it and say, "thanks for the service." We have to design

for disassembly. Paul tells me when Hewlett Packard designed for disassembly, their original

product assembly times improved dramatically. If ninety-three percent of the resources we use to make things is "waste" then only seven percent ends up in the products. So our system is 93

percent inefficient. As Amory Lovins points out, "Any system that doesn't use feedback is stupid."

Unsellables are things that are poisonous, that we can't recycle, we can't reuse. These include

heavy metals, toxins, mutagens, carcinogens, radioactive waste. These things should be stored,

not made, until we figure out what to do with them. Why would you make a product no one would buy? That should be the question.

So what do we do now? We should use life cycle and risk assessment as design tools, with

"knock out" criteria when danger is found, not as simple palliatives. We need real design

criteria. We see the plastics industry recycling plastics into park benches, which is good news

for the homeless, but bad news for the rest of us, because this is essentially what is known as

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downcycling. We're taking these products and reducing them to their lowest common

denominator. They have unknown effects in fire. We start to see them in famous "green"

buildings as countertops, which are used basically to apologize for disposability. The

percentages of recycling are not high enough in many cases. We need to look at new materials

that can be infinitely recycled and studied very carefully for their chemical composition and

environmental impacts.

We're working with a fabric design company to design and develop fabrics from compostable

fibers with no persistent toxins or bioaccumulatives. One of the first questions we were asked

about making environmental fabric was whether we should consider a mix of PET fibers and

cotton; a recycled material and a natural material. Nineteen percent of the world's pesticides are going into cotton; it's typically irrigated; and there are also a lot of social and soil problems

associated with cotton. So if you combine recycled fibers with a natural fiber, do you have a

truly consumable product? No. Do you have service product? No. You've ended up in a

hybrid state. So we're designing a compostable fabric with natural fire retardancy. It's proposed

composition includes natural and high tech fibers which are all safe in the compost heap. The

result is a very high tech fabric that wicks moisture away from your body, keeps you cool, and is completely non-toxic. Completely. Natural indigo is toxic, but the chemical industry has only

recently developed an indigo which is safe for humans. This is the kind of thinking and industry

that we need to see.

If you look at the standard product, you get what Michael Braungart calls "products plus." You

get the product, which is what you want, plus something else you don't want. Take, for example,

a nickel. It's currency plus. Michael tells me that twenty to thirty percent of the women in

Germany are evidencing nickel allergies; 2 to 3% of the men. They don't know the reason for the

disparity. One thing we know about nickel is that it's an allergen, and a lot of people are

sensitive to it. It's also a mutagen. It alters your genes. Nickel was in blue jeans. Companies

are taking it out. They got the message, change your jeans, not your genes. So we have to look

at this and say, here's a product, but it's a product plus. What you want is the currency. You're

getting the currency plus allergies, plus mutated genes. Do we need the pluses? No. Give us the

product, not the pluses.

We helped navigate the design of a store for WalMart in Kansas. We worked with the Andersen

Corporation and with WalMart to develop a skylighting system which allows natural light into

their retail space. We calculated that if large retailers skylit all their stores it would require

approximately half a mile of skylights in production per day. That's a new industry. This store's roof is made of wood which comes from sustainable forestry in Virginia and in Oregon from

forestry projects which we identified as supporting what Roy Keene calls "a complex and diverse

vegetative association dominated by large trees." Another of the problems with current large

scale retail projects is after five years they get abandoned. We set up the concept that generic

building types should be designed to be converted into housing in the future. We need to take

the "embodied energy" and human effort in these generic buildings and design them to be reused

in the future. We raised the height of the building's ceilings, and set it up so it could take second

floors and include housing in the future. This is something that the WalMart Corporation

actually liked when they heard it. We were told that by the design team that we'd lose the whole

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project on this idea, but WalMart's reviewers were intrigued because they didn't know what to do

with these dead buildings and this presented a potential real value added.

The question really is, couldn't we be doing these things inside our towns, and use this massive

distribution system to better affect making products, things, communities and cities? That's the

real question, and here we're looking at the very powerful steamroller of retail circumstances that

is affecting massive change. Shouldn't it be interested in looking at the way products themselves

are made? Their own people are recognizing what a disaster our packaging systems are because

they're now allowing packaging to be removed at the store. They see it, it's there every day, so they have 20 unit recycling separation. They see mounds and mounds of garbage show up every

hour. The paybacks from our work were real; for example, there have been significant sales

improvements and energy savings attributed to the daylighting.

At the Heinz Family Office and the Rodale Press building we're having fresh air delivered to everyone's breathing zone. The cost turns out to be minimal when you consider the amortized

cost in terms of increase in productivity, benefits in health and reduction in owner liability for the

building owners. The economics are actually quite astonishing. These are real clients with nuts

and bolts companies. WalMart is certainly not known for being a wild spender, and these kinds

of interventions are making dollars and sense.

In Chattanooga, we're moving the city to develop zero emissions industrial zones. Zero

emissions. Amazing things happen when you start to consider the concept of zero emissions

industry. It means that you could have solvents in closed loops, for example. We've been told

Dow Chemical in Europe is moving effectively to solvent leasing. They don't sell cheap solvents

that would just be evaporated into the atmosphere. They actually sell a high quality solvent

service and close their own loops inside the factories. Zero emissions. Pitney Bowes Company

has pledged to become a zero discharge company by 1995. We wish them well and have great

hopes...

Zero emissions is a fantastic idea, because it allows business to get on with business within a simple regulatory imperative. It also means you can locate industries next to housing, people can walk to work, people can live next door, because we aren't poisoning things. Once you start to look at zero emissions, you realize that because you have no downstream effect, you have no

upstream effect. You start to look upstream to see what other people are doing to you instead of

what you're doing to someone else, and it creates a fantastic change in the way we can plan our

cities and towns, and it will affect every characteristic of our life and work.

In Pittsburgh, with Carnegie Mellon University, we're exploring the concept of a window factory

to produce super efficient windows and weatherization services for the citizens sponsored by the

City itself, the banking community, the industrial community, and the local work force.

Essentially we're talking about freezing taxes, not people, and using the economic vehicles that are available to a city to actually produce zero emissions plants which recycle the windows of the

tovm into new windows that are highly efficient. The energy efficiency in this system pays for

the program, creates local industry, provides local jobs. Essentially we're mining our present

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inefficiencies, so our citizens and our cities stop exporting capital for fossil fuels which creating

meaningful employment of all kinds in their own community.

These are just a few examples, and there are people in this room that are obviously major heroes

in this kind of work. There are a lot of people here who have been dealing with these types of

things for a long time, and the fact that you're all gathered here together, that you're supporting

the Green Building Council, is really terrific, and most important. Because we do need to set a

vision and an ethic if we are to find a way for human beings to discover their appropriate place in

the natural world. Because, unfortunately, the present system of production and design will not

allow us to pass on a place that our children deserve.

Thank you.

82
Audubon House

Jan Beyea

Chief Scientist & Vice President

National Audubon Society

New York, NY

Audubon's 100,000 sq. ft. Headquarters renovation in New York City offers an exciting example

of green design. It was designed for 60% energy savings as compared to a code-compliant

building calculated over a 3-5 yr. period. Building materials were chosen to reduce impacts to occupants, as well as to reduce upstream and downstream impacts. A goal was set of 80%

diversion of trash to recycling and composting, A high premium was put on good air quality and

developing a pleasant work environment.

Lots of information is available on this case study, including 2 videos, a book published by John

Wiley, brochures, and magazine articles.

I have been asked to speak from the point of view of the enlightened owner or "client." Even

though Audubon is non-profit, our perspective as a client was more traditional than people might

anticipate. We wanted to own our headquarters, instead of renting; we wanted to reduce costs; and we wanted to generate interest in the project. We were impressed with the rebate

possibilities the local electric utility company was offering. Ironically, we failed to anticipate one of the most compelling reasons for green design, namely improved worker productivity ~ a

benefit we never expected.

Like other clients we had a number of constraints. We had financial constraints and we had to maintain a corporate image. They led us to make certain threshold choices.

First, a decision was made to renovate, rather than build a new structure. The reasons were

partly financial, partly related to our desire to be good environmentalists. The most far-reaching

decision we made was to make cost criteria a major factor in our choices of green products. We

decided we would act as if we were an enlightened profit making institution— with a focus on the

bottom line. We would try to make decisions that could serve as a model for nonenvironmentalists.

And so our goal became a "competitive" renovation, one that could come in at a market price.

We wanted our headquarters to be aesthetically pleasing, functional, and as green as possible,

while still meeting financial criteria

Ironically, people can't believe that we worried about costs. This lesson has taught me that, until

real profit-making organizations follow our lead, few will believe that green design can be done

cost-effectively. But there is a catch. If a profit-making company says it is building "green",

who will believe it?

83
Perhaps, a partnership between a green organization and a profit-making corporation is the best

way to avoid such suspicion. In fact, Audubon is looking for appropriate partners who will work

with us to improve the structures they build or renovate. We think this cooperative approach will

be persuasive to the many who lack an understanding of the potential that green buildings have to bring financial returns in reduced energy costs and benefits to employees.

To return to the story of Audubon House: After looking at lots of possible buildings for our

renovation, we found one that had been neglected for decades, but had a rich architectural

history.

The next steps were to choose an architect and then an engineering firm. Audubon's CEO, Peter

A.A. Berle, conducted a number of interviews, finding that most candidates had no idea of what

it might mean to build green. The Croxton Collaborative, on the other hand, had an intriguing

vision and got the job to direct the renovation. ^

If you analyze the words I use to describe the building, you will realize that the Croxton firm was

able to inspire the client with its philosophy of integrated, off-the-shelf design.

Flack and Kurtz had the right engineering background, and agreed to participate, even though

this was a relatively small job for them.

Specifications were written by the Architect, designer and engineers, and the job was put out to competitive bid. Once the winning bid was accepted, the team was broadened to include the

contractor.

Obviously, green design is going to require a team. Normally, building professionals keep to

their own separate domain, which blocks the opportunity to find synergisms between lighting,

interior design, energy, and air quality. To get our professionals to work synergistically, we

found it helpful to bring the members together early and constantly repeat our goals as the client.

We like to think we built a holistic, completely integrated team. Led by the Croxton firm, the

group involved architects, interior designers, engineers, environmental consultants, a recycling

expert, a project manager, and an owner's representative.

Holistic design to the team meant attention to a number of factors:

In Energy, we considered both fuel source and energy efficiency options, choosing:

o natural gas as both a heating and cooling source o a high efficiency gas heater/chiller o high insulation in walls and roof o heat mirror windows *

o efficient use of outside light (daylighting) o task lighting with high efficiency fixtures to minimize energy waste

0 motion sensors to control lights

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We examined materials for

0 toxic components

0 impacts during manufacture

0 impacts upon ultimate disposal

and narrowed down our choices to

0 use of natural materials for rugs and padding, when it made practical sense. o domestic hardwoods and rain-forest woods approved by the Rain-Forest Alliance.

When it came to indoor air quality, we chose to

0 eliminate glues and adhesives, unless absolutely necessary

0 use paints with no VOCs

o minimize formaldehyde (formaldehyde served as our "indicator" chemical)

o bring in significantly more outside air

0 install extra air filtering o locate input air ducts away from pollution sources o design ducts to minimize bacterial growth

We also considered other employee comfort measures

0 making maximal use of natural light

0 reducing lighting glare o using solid state ballasts to reduce light flicker o installing operable windows

As for recycling and source reduction, we chose to

o "Reuse" the building by choosing to renovate, rather than build a new structure. 0 Recycle removed steel & concrete o make use of recycled content in building materials o require multiple separations of trash for recycling o install recycling chutes to give us flexibility for the future o design for in-building composting (which has not yet been installed) o install water-saving devices

When it came to cost, we

o set environmental priorities to help maximize our environmental return within cost

guidelines. o used some of the dollar savings projected from energy measures to offset other green costs

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All in all, holistic design meant an integrated attention to hundreds of details not usually part of

the design process.

The team effort went pretty smoothly, although pitched battles developed over some issues.

Green design raised new tensions that needed to be resolved by the team or as a last resort by the owner. For example, the architect & designer continuously identified new technologies and

products that became available after the specifications had been bid. To bring some discipline to the process, the team established a 10% excess cost threshold that had to be met before

modifications to the design would even be considered.

Subcontractors were initially resistant to the special requirements contained in the specifications

and kept presenting substitutes that would have saved them money and with which they were

familiar. After holding a wine and cheese party at which the goals of the project were explained,

the atmosphere brightened. Although subcontractors still put substitutes forward, they had

learned that the substitutes had to meet environmental performance goals.

The end result was a renovation that came in at market rates for New York City: $120/sq foot.

We did learn, however, that City regulations required additional expenses. The cost of

strengthening the street in front of our building raised the total cost to about $140/sq foot.

Over all, there was only a few percentage point increase in first cost. To keep first cost down,

some of the traditional glitz that would go into a renovation was dropped and more resources were put into items that couldn't be seen, like devices and products to provide better indoor air

quality.

So far, the building has been a splendid success. It looks great. Employees and visitors love it. Our extraordinary efforts to eliminate volatile organic compounds (VOCs) have contributed to the feelings of well-being that the building generates. I first realized we were successful in this

regard, 2 months before we moved in. Workers were painting and laying the rug, when I suddenly noticed that couldn't smell anything, even in the midst of construction. A few days

later I came back to the site and was furious to detect a single odor. "What is that smell?" I demanded. It turned out to be coming from adhesive for bathroom tiles, which although the

lowest emitter we could find in its class, was still noticeably out-gassing.

We are learning that the luxury of a healthy environment makes one very sensitive to odors.

Employees become conscious of smells and irritations previously ignored. It's much like the

U.S. experience with smoking, which people no longer tolerate as willingly as they did when it was allowed everywhere.

To me the most important lesson of Audubon House is that Homo Sapiens doesn't need to tolerate an indoor environment filled with toxic chemicals.

It's great to work in a green building. In our former offices, I would feel tired at the end of every

day, a fact I attributed to my advancing age. Fortunately, that was not the reason. In our renovated headquarters, I feel just as productive at the end of the day, as I did at the beginning.

86
A combination of factors may be involved: low background lighting, which cuts glare,

elimination of 60 cycle flicker in lights, elimination of odorous chemicals, higher than normal

exchange with outside air, higher than normal internal air changes, and higher filtration. We do

not have the data to disentangle the relative contributions to the improved workplace quality.

Although it is too early to tell by examining employee records, my own personal increase in

productivity is notable and the phenomenon is confirmed by ample anecdotes from other

employees.

As one begins to play with the numbers it begins to look like productivity increases are going to be the prime economic driver for green buildings, not the promise of energy savings. We may

see engineers recommending solid state ballasts primarily to cut annoying flicker, and

recommending more efficient devices, such as fans, primarily to reduce distracting workplace

noise.

At Audubon House, recycling is right on target. We expect no trouble in meeting our 80%

diversion goal, as we complete our gradual phase-in of the planned 12-category sort. One

important learning is that it is generally more convenient to have one location at the workspace

that can hold all recyclables temporarily before they are moved to a centralized location.

As for composting, we have engineers from different disciplines fighting over the wisdom of

installing the planned basement composting system. Our (traditionalist) HVAC engineers sent a formal letter expressing their opposition, because the "gases are uncharacterized" and might

compromise the high level of indoor air quality. In a rather testy response, I pointed out that

there would be more composting going on in the stomachs of our employees. We would be in

deep trouble, if the HVAC system couldn't handle that level of gases.

I now have composting engineers talking to HVAC engineers, and am hopeful that the

negotiations will be successful. If not, we can fall back on vermicomposting (worm

composting).

We have had a difficult time figuring out how to smoothly integrate bicycle riders into the life of

the building. It seems that those hardy individuals who like to bike to work do not like

traditional hours, making it difficult to provide the level of security we need in New York City

for off-hour access to bike-storage locations.

Our gas heater/chiller has worked very well. We have proved that a non-cfc coolant can handle

the hottest days in New York City without a problem. Our energy evaluation has just started. However, we recognize that energy savings are probably irrelevant, when compared with the

likely savings in worker productivity that we are getting from the improved quality of the

environment.

87
Some advice based on our learnings:

Recognize that you can't do everything.

Realize that there is limited information on what is really green, so you have to do best you

can.

Cut the green design problem down to size by prioritizing.

Learnfrom trusted environmental sources what are national, regional and local

environmental priorities. Focus on the environmental priorities. For example, based on

regional concerns with proposed hydropower mega-projects in the Canadian wilderness, we

put a high priority on minimizing low electricity use, therebyfavoring on-site cooling with

natural gas.

Be practical, settle for a 90% solution, rather than squandering resources to achieve

perfection.

Bear in mind that green management is as important as green design.

Once a building is built or renovated, new challenges arise, like finding green methodsfor

cleaning rugs and removal ofgraffiti.

We have learned that green technologies, like traditional technologies, can be installed

incorrectly and must be monitored.

Clearly, there is a need to develop educational strategies appropriate for the green building

manager

Where do we go from here?

It is Audubon's goal to get others to copy our lead. We want to work with corporate partners in a

visible way to demonstrate that profit-making companies can benefit fi*om green design. As we

work with these companies, we will be sure to help them get credit for the work they end up

doing. After all, if an improved public image is a motivator for green design, then all of us involved in promoting the philosophy have to develop ways to ensure that green clients receive

public attention.

As we and others, try to persuade companies or clients to embrace greener designs, we should

emphasize potential productivity improvement. The fact is that we've been poisoning ourselves

in our buildings. EPA estimates that $60 billion is lost per year from sick building syndrome,

which translates to $600/yr. per employee. In fact, there's more at stake here than just, "Sick

Building Syndrome." There's a "Tired Building Syndrome," as well, with a total impact that has

not yet been estimated.

88
Finally, as we promote green design, we will tell all who will listen about the bottom line of our

case study: An enlightened client can profit from a green design, if the client picks a good team,

gets them together early, sets clear priorities as to what the company is willing to do, gets

professional environmental guidance or uses a respected building assessment protocol, makes

sure a plan is in place to capitalize from the leadership role being taken, and recognizes that

green management is as important as green design.

As we all know, we're living at a critical time for the planet. We have become so technologically

powerful that we are altering the entire climate system. Designing and constructing greener

buildings is a key response to the challenge of climate change. Of course, we're inventing the

rules as we go along, but that's what makes it an exciting time to live.

The green building approach provides a way to help both the environment and the economy.

These win-win situations are particularly important in tough economic times. Builders can do

the "right thing" environmentally and still save dollars.

We all need to work together to find more enlightened clients and help them to be successful.

89
DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION OF A SUSTAINABLE UNIVERSITY STUDENT

LIVING LABORATORY

Sharon R. Stine

College of Environmental Design

California State Polytechnic University

3801 W. Temple Ave.

Pomona, CA 91768-4048

Abstract, A major student learning/living facility for the

interdisciplinary study of regenerative practices opened January

1, 1994 on the campus of California State Polytechnic University

(Cal Poly) in Pomona, California. Known as the Center for

Regenerative Studies, students work, live and learn about

regenerative technologies as integral parts of their daily lives.

The Center incorporates opportunities to practice and study

technologies dealing with energy, water, shelter, food production

and waste disposal. The physical order and visible form of the

Center's buildings and the landscape are important to its success.

The interactive relationship between the physical facilities, and

the environment, the technological design and human behavior are

all part of the education, demonstration and research purposes of

the Center.

Etackground

Many of the practices that establish the physical and biological

support for modern civilization—that provide food and shelter and

dispose of waste—were developed during a time when supplies of

energy and material seemed unlimited. The result is a

technological base that requires immense inputs of energy, water,

nutrients and a range of other materials. Regenerative practices

are concerned with the means for supporting and nurturing human

life within the limits of available renewable resources and

without environmental degradation. The technologies are largely

small in scale, self-renewing in their basic operation making use

of on-site resources, internal recycling, solar energy and

biologically based processes and provide immediate feedback to

permit human interaction.

There has been a separation of disciplines that makes it difficult

to engage in joint exploration of the many potential interactions,

for example housing is separated from agriculture and both are

separated from waste disposal. The Center, as a university-based

setting for education, demonstration and research in regenerative

technologies, is a multidisciplinary program where activities that

traditionally belong to various disciplines are integrated. The

academic curriculum is designed to develop broad conceptual

understanding along with applied working knowledge of the

practices and technologies involved. An undergraduate minor is

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currently offered with joint majors and degree programs under

development. These emphasize creative thinking in the use and

development of regenerative practices and exploration of their

far-reaching social, ethical and economic applications.

The Site

Adjacent to the Cal Poly campus, the Center encompasses a 16 acre

site on land previously used for livestock grazing. North of the

site just beyond the campus is Interstate 10, eight lanes of

thousands of cars burning irreplaceable fuel and increasing

pollutants in this smoggiest region in the nation. To the east is

Pomona, one of many cities in the most rapid growing area of

Southern California known as the Inland Valley. Directly to the

south and adjacent to the Center is one of Los Angeles Counties

large landfills, a mountain of trash that grows daily until its

expected closure within the next five years. To the west are the

lands of a local community college and its adjacent 'bedroom*

community residents of which commute daily to jobs as far as fifty

miles away.

Fig. 1 CEMTER FOR RECZNERATIVE LAND USE

The Center's 16 acres include a narrow valley that runs through

its length in the east-west direction and forms a defined spine.

Land slopes up to four rounded knolls on its north and south

sides. The only drainage received in this valley is from the

hills that rise from its edges. These north or south facing

slopes are between five and thirty percent grade. Southern

California black walnut trees (Juglans californica) are scattered

91
on the slopes. Hawks, squirrels, snakes, and rabbits are part of

the living systems in this valley.

Wind is usually low in velocity with a typical peak at 12 miles

per hour in the afternoon. The prevailing breezes are from the

southwest in the summer and northwest in the winter. The average

insolation measured during the summer of 1993 was 6.8 kWh/m2/day.

Rainfall is typical of this region, dry during spring, summer and

fall months with most moisture occurring during January and

February and not exceeding 20 inches per year. Many years

recordings are less than 10 inches of precipitation. During the

summer of 1993 daily high temperatures averaged 30 degrees Celsius

while during the winter months low temperatures were recorded at 3

degrees Celsius. Relative humidity recorded during the summer of

1993 averaged 60%.

Village Design

It is the design of the community village and its landscape that

gives visible form to the ecological approach and values of the

Regenerative Studies program. The Center can be viewed as an

ecosystem through which energy, water, nutrients and other

WATER

ENERGY

NUTRIENTS

SEWAGE TREATMENT

FRUIT AND

VEGETABLE

PRODUCTION AOUACULTURE

FARM

ANIMALS 3^

MICRO- ORGANISMS

LNDERGFOUND

STORAGE

TREATED> SEWAGE

VEFFLUENlV

METHANE

DIGESTION

COMPOSTING

j

gFig. 2 FLOW OF EMERGT, MIJTRIEIITS AHD HATER

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materials flow in continuous and consistent paths. These flows

provide each community member with basic life-support

requirements. The Center's design attempts to make optimum use of

energy and materials available on the site and minimize the use of

off site imports. It also seeks to provide maximum recycling of

water and nutrients. Collecting material in any amounts that

might be damaging is avoided.

The Center currently houses the first group of twenty students who

represent majors from all six of the University colleges. In this

first phase, the village area provides approximately 14,000 square

feet of student and faculty housing, kitchen and dining commons

area, seminar classrooms and dry laboratory space. In future

phases, the village area will eventually include housing for 80

students, visiting faculty and guests, as well as additional

classroom areas, administrative and faculty office space, and

greenhouse and laboratory facilities.

In addition to sheltering the Center's resident students, three

purposes combine in shaping the village form. These include the

relationship of the buildings and the land, the optimal use of

available solar energy and the reinforcement of social

interactions.

Buildings and the Land

In order to fit the buildings to existing land forms, they are

clustered in linear forms that either nestle into the hillside or

edge the aquaculture ponds. Overall, the design attempts to

rig. 3 VILLAGE PLAN

93
reflect a close relationship to the earth as these structures

follow existing contours. The buildings step up the slopes like

the agriculture terraces that will surround them. When possible,

grading has been minimized and solar orientation maximized.

All of the buildings are designed to be responsive to their

environment. A raised structure known as the Riverfront Building

FIG. 4 RIVERFRONT BUILDING

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is located on the valley bottom at the edge of aquaculture growout

ponds. Supported on piers, this building has very little thermal

mass. Its form takes advantage of the potential cooling effect of

the ponds surface evaporation and the cool ground air circulation

underneath.

In contrast, the earth-sheltered Commons and Sunspace buildings

have heavy thermal mass and are tucked into the hillside. The

Fig. 5 SUNSPACE BUILDING

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upper portions of these earth-sheltered structures are above grade

in order to allow for cross-ventilation. The roofs on all

buildings are designed to support the functions of the land

surface they now replace. For example, on these roofs, water is

collected and guided into infiltration basins, gardens provide

food, and solar panels heat all of the domestic water.

The Systems

Energy . The major sources of energy input into the community will

be primarily active and passive solar, biomass and some wind. All

of the buildings incorporate both passive and active solar

systems. Solar energy will provide space heating, electricity,

domestic hot water and will be used to heat aquaculture ponds, a

methane digester and a crop dryer.

Initially, a conventional electrical source services the site,

however, a Solar Park is being developed as a part of the overall

regenerative design of the Center. Electricity will be supplied

from a 3kW two-axis tracking concentrating photovoltaic collector

and two 5 kW dish/Stirling collectors used as student /faculty

research tools. Additional flat plate photovoltaic s and a wind

generator will satisfy the remaining electrical demand which

includes pumping irrigation water and power for electric vehicles.

Also, incorporated into the energy design will be electric and

digester gas-fueled farm machinery and vehicles for limited

transportation between areas of campus.

Fig. 6 SOLAR PARK

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The buildings are designed to take advantage of the natural

heating and cooling conditions that exist on site. The living

spaces are heated by direct solar gain and all have crossventilation. Air flow can be directed by using operable awning

windows at the bottom, transfer grills and high operable

clerestory windows. Towers on the north side are raised above the

roof level to draw air through the building using the chimney

effect. Floors are exposed concrete slabs and roof /wall

insulation exceeds California Title 24 requirements. Outdoor

trellises will be covered with deciduous food producing vines to

shade the windows from summer sun but allow insolation to pass

through and warm the buildings during the winter. Conservation

and monitoring will be important components of the overall energy

component of the Center.

Water

.

Rain water, domestic water and treated effluent are the

three sources of water. The valley functions as a highly

controlled manmade river that includes a reservoir of reclaimed

water that feeds a series of aquaculture ponds. These ponds

nurture initial Carp and Tilapia culture. This system produces

large amounts of protein in a small area. The waste processing

and recycling functions of the ponds are also important since

animal wastes and feed plants will be used to produce organisms

eaten by the fish. The use of potable water is minimized by

efficient fixtures and the use of reclaimed water in toilets,

rooftop drip irrigation systems and agricultural irrigation.

Food. Particular attention will be given to agricultural

practices that protect and enhance the soil, reduce energy

consumption in the use of fertilizers and chemicals, and maximize

multiple use and recycling. Plants adapted to the climatic and

topographic site conditions will be used. Diversity of plants

will be optimized rather than reduced. A few animals will be on

site for milk, eggs and some meat. As part of the entire system,

recycling of nutrients in animal wastes and feeding animals with

various crops and crop residues is an important part of research

and demonstration. Plant selection will emphasize growing food

for consumption by the residents. The kitchen will include

emerging technology in relation to food preparation and storage.

Energy use will be continually monitored in this shared cooking

and dining area. In general, food production will function in the

self-renewing ways of our natural ecosystems.

Waste. Residents will recycle or reuse materials. There is no

trash service to the site. An outdoor recycling area is located

behind the Commons Building. If not reused on site, glass,

plastic and aluminum are collected here, weighed and then recycled

by the City of Pomona's program. A compost pile is used for

organic green waste from food preparation. This product then

enriches soils on site. Currently residents are trying to reduce

packaging they bring on site by bulk and selective purchases.

97
The selection of building materials and products included

considerations of toxicity in production and use; recycled and/or

recyclable components; the impact on non-renewable resources;

support of renewable industries, and capabilities of long-term low

maintenance and sustained life. Natural products such as cedar,

Douglas fir, and copper roofing were carefully chosen as

appropriate enduring building materials. Interior materials were

selected to protect indoor air quality and reduce processing. The

contractor used as much scrap as possible even recycling aluminum

cans from work crew lunches.

Human Interactions

Student residents in this community are expected to carry out the

tasks necessary for their day-to-day living. Learning

regenerative practices and technologies is a part of maintaining

the community. An often overlooked factor is that technologies

can be successful only to the extent that the people involved are

willing to adopt them. Implementation of any sustainable system

typically requires personal acceptance and changes in lifestyle.

In some situations, the changes may run counter to years of

accepted cultural practices. For example, here in Southern

California automobiles are an important part of our culture. Not

having cars available on site at the Center was one of the first

problems related to energy use, regenerative practices and lifestyle that residents faced immediately after moving in.

A design goal of this program is to involve residents in a

continuous process of making choices that impact their life style,

such as gasoline vehicle use. Direct human interaction is

required rather than automatic controls. For example, to heat and

cool buildings, switches can't simply be on timers and thermostats

in remote locations, accessible only to designated campus

maintenance workers. The Center's buildings are to be 'worked' by

the residents. Windows at many different heights have to be

systematically used to provide climatic comfort. Washing clothes

means weighing the load, measuring the amount of water and energy

used in order to better evaluate the total process. Living in a

more regenerative way becomes a process of knowing what to do, of

making choices based on feedback from systems and from the other

residents. It is a continuous evolutionary process that builds on

the complexity of people-their needs, the environment-it's

potential degradation, and the technologies appropriate in scale

for the tasks.

Decisions, although frequently made by individuals, are also

embedded within a community who share in the results of the

choices being made. The seemingly simple decision of what kind of

soap to purchase becomes complicated by issues of cleanliness

standards, potential pollution caused by product production, or

ability to recycle used soapy dishwater in the community garden.

Gathering spaces to accommodate groups of various sizes are

98
designed to facilitate this kind of social interaction and

decision making processes.

Fig. 7 CENTER RESIDENT STUDENTS

The overall design attempts to facilitate attachment to the Center

as a built form. Although individual privacy and personalization

is accommodated in the double occupancy the sleeping areas, it is

hoped that the Center as a whole begins to feel like 'home' to the

community. The selection of exterior building materials was based

on warm, humanistic and low-maintenance features. The interiors

were left unfurnished and without equipnent. Students are

currently a part of the selection process for furnishings and

kitchen equipment. In this way, they are learning about emerging

regenerative technology, empowered to make important decisions

about their own living area and ultimately may develop a sense of

ownership and attachment to the buildings and their environment.

At the core of any change we attempt is the most important factor,

ourselves . Without learning in a ' hands-on ' way how to live with

systems that are regenerative, we are missing a critical lesson.

It will be in the day-to-day collective tasks and responsibilities

of the people at the Center where the design of the physical and

human features are integrated. Through this integration of all

systems, we begin to understand what is involved in designing and

building regenerative environments. It is hoped that these

lessons will be carried forward into the future careers of our

students.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

Lyle, J. T. Regenerative Design for Sustainable Development.

NY: John Wiley and Sons, 1994.

Lyle, J. T. et. al. Design for the Institute for Regenerative

Studies-A LandLab Project . California State Polytechnic

University; Pomona, CA. 1987.

Stine, S. R. and W. B. Stine. Sustainable Energy Practices and

Design for a University Living Laboratory. American Solar Energy

Society Conference Solar '93 . Washington, D. C. 1993.

Stine, W. B. and Lyle, J. T. Energy Use and Conservation

Practices At the Institute for Regenerative Studies. California

State Polytechnic University, Pomona Report IRS 92-001, 1992.

100
Sustainable Design Options for the

U.S. Fish & Wildlife Prairie Learning Center

Susan Reilly, P.E.

Enermodal Engineering

1554 Emerson St.

• Denver, Colorado 80218

Abstract. U.S. Fish & Wildlife received a grant from the National Institute for Science and

Technology to demonstrate sustainable design at the Walnut Creek Wildlife Refuge and

Prairie Learning Center in Prairie City, Iowa. Nine different options were investigated. In reviewing the options, U.S. Fish & Wildlife chose those solutions that demonstrated the

practice of sustainable design at this facility, rather than opting for solutions which served

primarily as demonstrations. A combination of four of the options were recommended for

the grant. The options combine daylighting, specification of more sustainable building

materials, energy-efficient system design, and the use of biofuels.

Introduction

The vision for the Prairie Learning Center was already one with a strong emphasis on

sustainable design: The prairie will dominate the site, not the structures being built on the

site. The Learning Center itself is a one-story, 35,000 sqft, earth-bermed building. Half of

the facility is designed for office space, the other half is an exhibit area with some laboratory

space. Also on site are research quarters and a maintenance shop. Daylighting, groundsource heat pumps, high-performance windows, an energy management system, and a gray

water system have been incorporated into the design.

Enermodal explored nine options for the grant money:

1 . Daylighting the Exhibit Area

2. Demonstration of Renewable Resources: Wind, Solar, and Biofuels

3. Biofuels: Vehicle Fuel and Stand-by Generator

4. Cogeneration

5. Sustainable Building Materials

6. Energy Efficiency

7. Integration of Mechanical System with Fire Protection Water Storage

8. Solar: Photovoltaics

9. Electricity from Methane at Metro Solid Waste Landfill

Our initial analysis of the options showed that options 4 and 8, cogeneration and

photovoltaics, are cost prohibitive. Option 2, the demonstration of wind, solar, and biofuel

technology, was eliminated because of the relatively high operation and maintenance

requirements. With option 7, the coupling of the air conditioning system to the fire water

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storage, two different systems would have been necessary rather than one for the Learning

Center which rendered this option impractical. Presently, the land fill site is producing

electricity from methane (option 9). The utility is currently paying the producer slightly

more than what electricity costs the facility so it does not make sense to buy electricity from

the landfill. However, collaboration opportunities are being discussed although they will

more than likely not affect the grant.

Our final recommendation combines the strongest features of options 1, 3, 5, and 6 covering

daylighting, biofuels, sustainable building materials, and energy efficiency. One of the

driving factors in pursuing these options is their practicality as compared to the other

options. The following discusses these options in more detail. Also included is an overview

of the selection process undertaken on the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning system.

Option 1 - Daylighting the Exhibit Area

Daylighting is the introduction of natural light into a building to provide lighting, comfort,

and a reduction in electric lighting and cooling requirements. Daylighting has been shown to increase productivity and reduce absenteeism. All buildings have glass through which

sunlight penetrates. If the lights are dimmed at the windows and the incoming sunlight does

not cause the person at the window discomfort then you would have a daylit building. But

today less than 5% of all buildings employ daylighting.

Approximately 48% of the electricity consumed by the Learning Center is attributable to

electric lighting. Through a comprehensive daylighting design, this electricity consumption

could be reduced by over 50%. The energy savings translates into dollar savings ($11,000

per year), peak demand savings, down-sizing of the HVAC equipment, and a reduction in air

pollution. The significance in reducing peak demand is the avoidance of having to build

another power plant. The electric utilities in Iowa have been mandated to offer demand-side

management (DSM) programs to reduce peak electricity demand to delay building new power

plants.

Clerestories, selective glazings, and controls will be used to daylight the open office area, the resource center and the multi-purpose room. Daylighting the exhibit area presents a greater

challenge. Originally, the lighting and equipment or receptacle (plug load) power density for

this area was specified as 10 W/sqft. ASHRAE Standard 90.1-1989 prescribes a lighting

power density of 2.6 W/sqft for exhibit space and a receptacle power load of 0.75 W/sqft.

We have recommended a combined power density of 2.5 W/sqft. This goal does not account

for the daylighting potential in this space. In addition, occupancy sensors and daylighting

controls will be installed. Some of the costs for this system will be offset by lighting rebates

from Midwest Power and downsizing of the heating and air conditioning system.

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Option 3 - Biofuels

Biofuels include soydiesel, methanol, and ethanol. The biofuels are typically combined with

diesel or gasoline to produce cleaner burning fuels for the transportation sector. Currently

there is a considerable amount of research and development work on new technologies to use

biofuels in Iowa. Anaerobic digestors produce methane which can be burned in any internal

combustion engine, such as stand-by generators. At Iowa State University work is underway

to study the burning of sweet sorghum and switch grass to produce energy. Gasifier

technology is another technology being developed in Iowa that holds some promise. Almost

all of this work is in the research stage and does not have enough of a track record to qualify

it for use on this project.

Biofuels could be used to run the site vehicles and the stand-by generator. Biodiesel and

ethanol are the first choices. Biodiesel is a mixture of diesel and soydiesel (methylsoyate).

Biodiesel does not require that any modifications be made to equipment unless it is running on 100% soydiesel. A blend of 20% soydiesel and 80% diesel has been recommended,

although soydiesel has been used in much higher proportions (40/60; 100%). This has been

shown to reduce particulate, hydrocarbon, nitrogen oxide, and carbon monoxide emissions.

A timing change needs to be made to the engines to realize a reduction in nitrogen oxides,

otherwise there will be a 5% increase in the NOx emissions. The present cost is $1.50/'gallon for the 20% biodiesel blend.

Iowa is the second largest producer of ethanol in the United States. Presently the buses in

Des Moines, Iowa and Cedar Rapids, Iowa run on mixtures of ethanol and diesel. Engines

running off of ethanol and diesel could just as easily run on ethanol and biodiesel. With

16% methylsoyate (soydiesel), 20% ethanol, and 64% diesel, you would have vehicles

running off of almost 40% renewable energy. This fuel combination would also cut

emissions down to 1998 levels. To run diesel engines off of ethanol there are modifications

that need to be made. The modifications cost between $5,000 to $10,000 depending on the

vehicle.

Soydiesel could also be used for the stand-by generator and/or the fire pumping. Soydiesel

costs around $3.00/gallon, but when mixed with diesel this cost can be brought down to around $1.50/gallon. As for storage, there are no additional requirements as compared with

storing diesel. Research continues on the shelf life of these fuels, and more information will

be available within the year.

Of the biofuel options - biodiesel, ethanol, and methanol - biodiesel appears to be the most

practical of the three. Biodiesel is a mixture of diesel and soydiesel, and does not require

that any modifications be made to equipment unless it is running on 100% soydiesel. The

approach we would take with this option is to run all diesel vehicles on the 20% biodiesel

blend and based on performance possibly go to the higher soydiesel blends in the future. In addition, the stand-by generator would run on the biodiesel when necessary. There is also

potential for heating the Maintenance Shop and Research Quarters with the biodiesel.

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Option 5 - Sustainable Building Materials

One criteria for specifying sustainable materials is avoidance, reuse, then recycle. Our

recommendations covered shell construction, interior finishes, equipment specification, and

material specification. Here are a few examples of our recommendations concerning specific

building elements. We also strongly recommend the development and implementation of a plan for disposal of construction waste and a plan for operation of the building.

We proposed designing the roof to accommodate soft insulation and recommended an EPDM

membrane roof rather than modified bitumen. ASHRAE 90. 1 prescribes insulation levels at the roof of R-22 for this region and U.S. Fish & Wildlife recommended R-30. If this

insulation is rigid board EPS, 945 MBtu of energy will be consumed to produce the

insulation. If this insulation is cellulose, 32 MBm of energy will be consumed. And if this

insulation is fiberglass, 240 Mbtu of energy will be consumed (see Figure 1). It will take 30

times as long to recover the energy used to make the rigid board insulation in building

energy savings than it does for cellulose insulation. Quick calculations show that with

cellulose insulation the embodied

energy is recovered by this building

in less than 1 year. With rigid

board insulation the embodied

energy will not be recovered for

more than 9 years. In addition, the

rigid board insulation materials are

all petroleum based and use environmentally detrimental blowing

agents.

The architects spent a few days on

the design of this flat roof for soft

insulation. The major concern was

the potential for condensation on the

inside of the roof and thermal

gradients within the steel deck. The

final design shows 6 inches of semi-rigid fiberglass insulation above the steel deck. Sprayon cellulose with borax fire retardants will be used for the walls.

For the floors, finished concrete slab is specified everywhere possible. We also recommend

using tile made from recycled glass as a baseboard. As for the wall studs, neither steel or wood are fabulous options given their production processes and steel is difficult to effectively

insulate. Alternatives such as honeycomb products and plastic studs were investigated;

however, the honeycomb product costs 3 to 4 times wood studs and the plastic costs 5 to 6

times the wood. We recommend specifying wood from sustainably managed forests, using

recycled wood and wood products made from wood wastes and fast-growing softwoods (e.g.

OSB), and specifying engineered wood products for structural applications (LVL, Parallam,

I-Joists with an OSB web. Finger-Jointed Lumber-Glulams).

Roof Insulation Assumes 35,000 Square Ft

1000

Cellulose Fiberglass

Type of Insulation

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The above discussion does not address water use at the facility because of the grey water

system being designed for the facility. Nevertheless low-water consumption fixtures should

be specified. Toilets account for the largest portion of water use at the facility and toilets

which require no more than 1.6 gallons of water per flush are recommended.

Option 6 - Energy Efficiency

Our recommendations concerning energy efficiency focused on the equipment and controls

for lighting, and supplying and conditioning the air for the building. In the design phase of

the project ground-coupled heat pumps were selected to meet the Refuge's cooling and

heating loads. The ground-coupled heat pumps competed with other mechanical system

options on the basis of life-cycle costs, operations and maintenance, fuel availability,

aesthetics, and environmental factors. The choice came down to either gas absorption or the

heat pumps (see Table 1).

Table 1 - HVAC System Comparison

Alternative Life-Cycle CostFuel (Natural

Resources)'

Elec. Gas

PoUution-

(See

Attached)

Greenhouse

Gases / Ozone

Depletion

(CFC,

HCFC)

Impact on

Surroundings

Gas

Absorption

$1,382,153 521,619

kWh

150 kW

49,258

Therms

Less

Detrimental

None

(Cooling tower water

treatment)

Excavation

for Gas Line

Heat Pumps $1,297,237 893,656

kWh

374 kW

Worst of

the Alternatives

Yes (CFC or HCFC)

Excavation

for Ground

Coil

1 Shows gas and electricity use for HVAC systems without heat recovery. Source: Gordon Gumeson Report

2 Air Pollution from burning the fuels is given in the attached tables. For all air pollution types, except for the hydrocarbons (HC), the all-electric heat pump alternative has higher emissions. This assumes coal-fired

electricity.

Relative to life-cycle costs, the heat pumps cost $85,000 less than the gas absorption system

over a 20-year life. The first cost for the heat pumps is also $70,000 less than for the gas

absorption system. In terms of fuel use, Iowa is actively promoting programs to delay the

need for new generating capacity through the reduction of kW demand. The peak demand

for the gas absorption system is less than half that of the heat pumps. Both alternatives use

fossil fuels and their are trade-offs between mining and the abundance of each of the fuels.

The air pollution emissions for the heat pumps are higher in all categories, except for the

hydrocarbons. The heat pumps also require the use of CFC's or HCFC's which are greenhouse gases and deplete the ozone. There may be some concern with the chemicals

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used to treat the cooling tower water, but they do not compare with the problems with CFC's

and HCFC's. As to the impact on the surroundings, both alternatives require excavation.

The gas absorption system is preferable from an environmental standpoint. At a 7% discount

rate, the annual worth of the $85,000 difference in life-cycle costs is $8,000. U.S. Fish &

Wildlife agreed that the environmental impact is worth $8,000 annually. However, given the

$70,000 first cost differential between the two alternatives it was decided that the heat pumps

would be acceptable environmentally if more money and effort was put into improving the

energy efficiency of the building shell and systems.

Ventilation and lighting consume over 60% of the energy used by the Learning Center.

ASHRAE Standard 62-1989 sets the ventilation requirements for acceptable indoor air quality

for commercial buildings. A system is designed for the maximum number of people in a

space, although it does not need to provide this volume of outdoor air at all times. The

control of the outdoor air intake and operation of the supply and return air fans need to be

optimized. There are a few alternatives (e.g. CO2 sensors) for controlling the percentage of

outdoor-air intake which could be readily incorporated into the energy management system.

Additional design effort is warranted for control of the HVAC system in the exhibit area so

that nighttime loads are reduced and so that the fans are not running at 100% all of the time.

The proposed lighting design specifies some of the most efficient lighting available on the

market along with controls for dimming and turning on and off lights. While this is <in important first step the lighting should be designed to below 1 W/sqft in the administrative area and to less than 2.5 W/sqft in the exhibit area. We also recommend the use of high

pressure sodium lights for outdoor lighting and that more attention be given to the outdoor

lighting.

Finally we strongly recommend commissioning this building. Commissioning is the process

of verifying that the building is built to specifications and that all systems are working as agreed upon. This means verifying the operation of all controls and assuring that the indoor

air quality is acceptable. Many of the larger utilities are using this tool to verify energy

savings and so there may be another collaborative opportunity with Midwest Power.

Conclusions

Implementation of most of the recommendations appears to be straight-forward. Many of the

concepts were adopted early on, such as daylighting. What became clear though is that

daylighting is a design tool that is not commonly practiced. Along the same line, existing

equipment can be modified to burn biofuels; however, it is not widely available nor proven.

Because this is a federal project, problems also arise in locating at least three U.S. sources of

a product. We are seeing the market for products which are more environmentally sensitive

grow, and with this we expect to see the availability of products grow. Reliability is also an

issue and the market will slowly weed-out the less durable products. These examples show

that there is additional time and money involved in providing alternatives that afford the

same level of confidence.

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This is an educational process. The design teams involved in these projects have all begun to question their design solutions and discover alternatives that are more environmentally

benign. Perfect solutions do not exist, although sustainability is nurturing new ideas and

pushing us to re-evaluate conventional design practices.

Acknowledgements

Enermodal wishes to thank U.S. Fish & Wildlife and OZ Architecture for bringing them

onto this project, and for their cooperation and assistance in evaluating the options. We also

wish to thank the National Institute for Science and Technology for their support of this

project.

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ARCHITECTURE, ETHICS & THE ENVIRONMENT

An Exploration of Nature & The Human Spirit

John A. Clark

The John A. Clark Company

4315 50th Street N.W.

Washington, DC 20016

Neal I. Payton, AIA

School of Architecture and Planning

The Catholic University of America

Washington, DC 20064

David Tice, President

Post Office 6777

North American Resource Management, Inc.

Charlottesville, VA.

ABSTRACT. Haymount is a new town planned with the behef that Sustainable Development is based upon a Trilogy of: ecology, sociology and economics. The design embodies a holistic

approach to the healing of nature and the human spirit. When complete, the town will contain

4000 homes, 250,000 square feet of retail space and a half-million square feet of

office/commercial space. At the same time, Haymount will employ state of the art techniques in

wastewater, stormwater and wildlife management, utilize non-toxic building materials and

techniques, practice energy and water conservation, and accomplish all of this in a manner that

discourages use of the automobile while encouraging pedestrian life and community vitality.

Yet, Haymount is not a philanthropic exercise. Rather it is a sound business proposition with

excellent profit returns to the investors.

INTRODUCTION

Located on Virginia's Rappahannock River, 50 miles south of Washington D.C. in Caroline

County, Virginia, Haymount is a new town planned with the belief that Sustainable Development

is a Trilogy; of ecology; sociology and economics. Its design represents a holistic approach to the mending of nature and the human spirit.

Haymount replaces a pesticide and herbicide intensive farming operation with a model of

sustainable community resulting in lower total pollutant loadings to the river. It combines a program for natural resource protection and pollution prevention with a transportation program

and a strategy for promoting a vital community life.

The developed area of Haymount is compact, preserving over two-thirds of the 1 700 acre site as perpetual forest and wildlife habitat while allowing pedestrian access to basic needs in town

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within a five-minute walk. The project also includes state of the art facilities and techniques in

wildlife, stormwater and forest management, wastewater treatment, organic farming and

landscape gardening.

fflSTORICAL CONTEXT

In preceding decades planners and sociologists have identified the human toll exacted by our

culture's reliance on technological progress. Though great strides have been made in science and

its application, even to the point of prolonging and enhancing human life, the increasing

specialization required by a technologically based society has had the effect of fragmenting our

civilization. Social solutions were attempted as remediation in the early 60's followed soon after

by an environmental response. However, neither has proven successful on its own. There is neither an exclusively environmental nor social strategy to our problems, and thus, to balance

nature and the himian spirit in one place and form, a holistic solution must be sought. It is a

vision that embraces both an environmental and social contract.

For example. North American land use zoning requirements typically promote low density

suburban sprawl across large areas of undeveloped land, destroying natural habitat and

necessitating automobile transport to fulfill every human need. The environmental costs

associated with this pattern, in terms of emissions and non-point source pollution, are obvious.

Less apparent, but equally destructive however, this is a pattern that undermines the social fabric

of the nation by isolating families from one another, grown children from their parents,

employees from employment and economic classes from one another.

At the same time, the micro-pattern represented by the housing and workplaces within these

environments are equally damaged both by the use of materials and by their techniques of

assembly that are potentially toxic to inhabitants. For example outgassing of urea formaldehyde,

volatile organic compounds (v.o.c.'s) in paints and stains, and resins and chemicals used in the

manufacture of plywoods and subsidings are known toxins. Coupled with advances in building

envelope technology, the result is a severely degraded indoor air quality (i.a.q).

ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL GOALS

The environmental goals embodied in Haymount are stated as follows:

*Design with Humility & Acknowledge the complexity of Nature.

*Accept Environmental Responsibility for our work.

*Nurture the connection between nature & the human spirit.

*Design with sustainable objectives as a requisite.

* Design with flexibility to allow for environmental technology advancements.

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The social goals stated the following:

*Respect & Involve current citizens.

* Provide Sites for spiritual life in design.

*Provide Sites for Civic Life of Community.

* Avoid Privatization of Public Amenities.

* Provide Affordable Housing & Avoid economic segregation.

* Preserve Cultural Heritage & provide access to Archaeological Information.

These goals gave the project its founding principles and allowed for a clarity of thought in the

assembly of the design team.

PROCESS

The architecture and town planning firm of Duany & Plater-Zyberk was engaged to create the

master plan of the town. Employing an innovative design technique known as a design

Charrette, the team, and all parties to the project gathered on site and worked intensely for a

period of a week to ten days. Assembled there were design professionals as well as practitioners

from the fields of science that have input to the project. Both opponents and proponents from the

local citizenry were also on-hand. This efficient process avoids the problem of missing data or input and gives all parties a voice in the process.

The team members had the task of assembling the base information.

*Boundary Survey & Topographic mapping

* Forestry mapping of all trees and plant life. * Wildlife identification

* Wetlands delineation

*Archaeology

* Water Quality

* Waste Water Treatment

* Stormwater Treatment

* Potable Water

* Recycling

* Traffic Studies & Mass Transit Alternatives

* Fiscal Impact

The final result was a plan that addresses all identified concerns as described below.

NATURAL RESOURCE PROTECTION AND POLLUTION PREVENTION

The wildlife conservation component of Haymount is illustrative of the extent to which

ecological planning in integrally webbed to all aspects and features of the town's design. Before

the first street was planned, consultants evaluated the potential presence of endangered and

threatened species, including ones considered by biologists to be sensitive, but not legally

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protected, such as species at the edge of their native range. 302 such species were identified and,

in keeping with the holistic approach of the development, all life requisites for these were

considered, including , where relevant, breeding cover, foraging and perching habitat, escape

cover, food sources (and their respective habitat requirements) water and related factors.

For example, an American Bald Eagle was located and a leading raptor expert designed a management plan for not only the nest, but for the entire eagle habitat. Habitat is also provided

for a whole range of animal species. The project's developed areas will contain an additional

50,000 planted trees and shrubs of native vegetation, improving and increasing habitat for most

species and providing shelter for migrating song birds.

The design of Haymount not only protects these species, but will, in some cases actually increase

habitat suitabilit>'. It accomplishes this in a number of manners. An inventory of all trees 18" or

larger in diameter was made in the ares suitable for development. This data was mapped and

analyzed with forest growth models to project future changes that could be expected in diameter

growth, tree density, and mortality - factors which affect the future landscape for homes as well

as wildlife. This information was incorporated into site development plans to protect as many

specimen trees as possible. Additional measures to improve habitat suitability include:

protection of key wildlife corridors, wetlands and other sites; the design of green spaces as connections between habitats; planting specifications that establish extensive canopies of native

species chosen for their utility to wildlife; stormwater management designs to create additional

wetland habitats; water quality protection measures, including controls over fertilizers and

pesticides; and an environmental education area and program to build a strong community

commitment to conserv^ation and habitat improvement.

Haymount employs biotechnical stormwater control measures that employ vegetation as primary

and / or secondar>' structural elements to manage run-off, secure soil, and protect water quality.

These techniques capture and treat non-point source pollutants allowing natural aquifer recharge

and eliminating ground or surface water impairment. Wildlife benefits of these techniques are exceptionally adding important cover and food habitat. The full range of Best Management

Practices (BMPs) employed include: constructed wetlands, porous pavement, fascines, grass and

block parking areas, grassed swales and biotechnical slope protection techniques. Considered as a whole, they represent a strategy that has seen considerable refinement in the last decade, but

has been used successfully for over one hundred years and has proven effective not only for

erosion control, but also for nutrient reduction, soil infiltration, stream or river restoration and

wetland creation.

Ecological considerations govern the delivery of Haymount's potable water. The intake system

consists of a shallow vertical well with a series of horizontal fingers which extend under the

riverbed. It is an advanced technology that avoids disturbance the aquifer, the river bottom and

the riverbank, thereby preserving groundwater, aquatic vegetation and fish.

The wastewater treatment is also "state of the art." Combining sequence batch technology,

advanced tertiary treatment and constructed wetlands, discharged water will be cleaner than that

which is withdrawn from the river! The treatment plant was designed to create additional wildlife

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habitat, function as an educational tool for wildlife and environmental awareness, and even serve

as a civic park.

The Haymount Organic Farm is more than a memory of agriculture. It replaces the destructive

pattern of chemical agriculture that has occurred here for the last 40-years. The crops produced

will provided sustainable, regionally produced agriculture for residents of Haymount and the

surrounding area.

The regulation of public and private plantings is crucial to the making of place, the nurturing of

wildlife and the preservation of environmental integrity. Thus, Haymount's form is governed by a landscape code that encompasses a number of components. These include: a tree program that

requires the use of mostly native species of trees and shrubs for landscaping, reducing both the

need for watering as well as fertilizer and pesticide application. A program of organic and

natural predators is to be implemented as part of an integrated pest management program.

Recognizing that wildlife, atmospheric conditions and hydrologic influences do not follow

property boundaries, Haymount's environmental program is without borders. The Haymount

Environmental Manager, employed by the developer will, among other things, provide technical

assistance to all landowners in the broad ecological region around the project. This professional

assistance, mandated in the proffers offered voluntarily by the developer to the county, includes:

on-site stewardship advice, as well as workshops for technology transfer. It is noteworthy that,

before ground was even turned at Haymount, the environmental management team secured over

1 000 acres of conservation easements, was successful in designating several historic districts and

assisted in the development of numerous land stewardship plans.

Standards governing the energy performance of buildings, as well as construction and

conventional materials recycling, hazardous materials disposal and the use of non-toxic building

materials complete the effort in natural resource protection and enhancement. These standards,

issued as a set of guidelines and regulations will be administered by the environmental manager

will also provide yearly lawn soil tests, garden consultations and manage the public grounds and

open space.

TRANSPORTATION

Haymount's transportation system assures environmental, economic and social sustainability

through a design aimed at congestion mitigation and programs aimed at reducing vehicle miles

traveled (VMT) per household and vehicle household trips (VHT). These goals will be met by

establishment of: a pedestrian and bicycle friendly environment supplemented by a timed transfer

shuttle bus system; a mixed-use pattern of land development that includes major employment

opportunities; reduced commercial parking requirements; and programs to encourage employers

to institute transportation demand management (TDM) programs.

The creation of the pedestrian friendly environment, critical to the success of this development, is made possible by Haymount's town plan which centers on the paradigm of the "five-minute

walk." In essence, no residence is greater than 1350 feet (or 1/4 of a mile) from a town or village

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center and a shuttle bus stop. This allows residents the choice of walking for some their trips

reducing both VMTs, but more importantly, "cold starts," the greatest component of auto source

pollution. Yet another important element of the plan is that it allows for congestion mitigation

(limiting air pollution still further by reducing idling time) and for reduced road width by

adopting a configuration typical of prewar North American towns and villages. It is a model that

eschews the "modem" cul-de-sac pattern of development which isolates one community or

institution form another and makes pedestrian access to major thoroughfares circuitous and

difficult while forcing all vehicular traffic onto oversized, overcrowded connector roads and

arterials. Haymount, instead, employs a street layout characterized by a series of linked grids.

This allows a more even distribution of traffic by providing alternatives for pedestrian, bicyclist

and driver alike.

A viable pedestrian constituency is made feasible by such large scale plan considerations, but it

is assured in the details. For example, working within Virginia DOT regulations, streets and

roads, described in a one-page drawing of possible street types that specify carriage widths

throughout the project, are less then normal in standard subdivisions. This creates, in effect, streets that feel better to the pedestrian because of their greater degree of spatial enclosure. The

proportion of building height to street width is specified as is the alignment and spacing of trees. Curb radii, also described in this drawing, have been minimized, further enhancing pedestrian

safety by shortening the distance a pedestrian must walk to cross an intersection. The

introduction of alleys reduces the need for curb cuts thus minimizing opportunities for

automobiles to cross sidewalks while, at the same time, enhancing on-street parking

opportunities. All of these characteristics help to produce an environment of reduced vehicle

speed, enhanced pedestrian comfort and, coincidentally, auto safety, by reducing the principle cause of traffic mishaps: excessive speed. It is not that inadequate facilities are allowed for the

car, merely the pedestrian and bicyclist are given equal opportunity as the automobile operator to

feel comfortable on the street. An added benefit of reduced road widths is the reduced storm

water runoff that results from decreasing the amount of impervious surfaces.

The resident whose transportation needs encompass an area greater then 1/4-mile radius has

access, at the end of a short walk to a shuttle bus system that will connect and provide timed

transfers to the Virginia Railway Express commuter line into Washington D.C. at the nearby

Fredericksburg station. This business will also provide regular intra-community transport for the

elderly, the young and those who choose not to own an automobile. Bus stops have been

carefully designed to be commodious and safe. Located in village centers adjacent to convenience stores, as well as at employment centers, schools and civic institutions, their design

has been considered as part of an extensive program of "civic art," a place where one may

actually enjoy the wait for the bus.

The transportation issue cannot be solved solely by reducing car trips with mass transit. The

commuter rail and shuttle bus will capture half of the car trips for work related travel. A serious

effort to provide workplace jobs is the most important aspect of traffic capture. A goal of 1 .2 jobs per household has been set to reduce the number of vehicle miles travelled (VMT). An

economic development plan with advanced communications is being implemented. Fiberoptic

capabilities have been planned for the project with satellite downlink. The buildings are

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designed to be the workplace of the 21st century. The inclusion of interactive media, a digital

office communication system and a design for high worker productivity is underway. An active

recruitment effort of companies is being undertaken to meet these employment goals.

A VITAL COMMUNITY LIFE

The post-war North American suburb is a model of social and economic segregation.

Enforcement is assured by several means. Zoning Laws, which mandate large-lot subdivisions

and separate low-income pod developments while simultaneously prohibiting accessory housing,

and a mixture of land uses and lot sizes are primarily culpable. Segregating uses by great

distances, for example, these ordinances increase land and development costs while virtually

mandating the use of automobile for every errand, increasing the separation of individuals from

one another. This isolation is further assured by the "common wisdom" of the market, which

assumes that, despite two hundred years of development history to the contrary, citizens today

will only live in neighborhoods composed of nearly identical families. An obvious and tragic

result of such enforced homogeneity is that changes in one's own family, such as children

growing up, and parents growing old, simply cannot be accommodated within the existing

suburban framework.

Haymount addresses these fundamental shortcomings through its housing and land use mix, its pedestrian friendly environment and its provision for a range of civic institutions and amenities

which nurture community life. For example, affordable housing is to be constructed in every

section of the development, and available in a range of forms, thus recognizing the diverse

constituency for affordable housing: elderly residents, young people, single parents, couples and

families of limited incomes. Achieving this throughout the development is to be accomplished

with the provision of housing sizes and types that range from 440-square foot apartments over shops and offices, through detached cottage units, to duplexes, apartments buildings, townhouses

and single family housing. Twenty-two different housing types are available and, recognizing

the vitality created by diversity, they range in price from entry level to luxury. Across the price

spectrum, this housing is offered for sale or rent.

The affordable housing in the community will not, however, serve the need of housing for the

whole county. Thus the developer has instituted a community land trust to own, develop, lease

and sell housing for residents in all areas of the county. This trust will work also with groups

from religious institutions or other civic organizations to repair substandard housing. This

foundation will provide the solution to the provision of decent affordable housing county wide.

The first three years operation will be funded by the developer. This philanthropic endeavor will

set a precedent that residents will expect fiiture developments in the county to follow.

Another component of its social sustainability(and a key to its environmental sustainability as well) is its pedestrian friendly environment. Not only does this promote less intensive use of the

automobile, it encourages a sense of community by providing for the establishment of

relationships through chance and repeated encounters of individuals, as well as enhancing a sense of security by encouraging "many eyes on the street."

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Such an environment is assured through mechanisms described above and by urban and

architectural codes, appHcable throughout the project. Simply placing transit and mixed-use

development in proximity to housing is not enough to assure that citizens will elect to leave their

automobile at home, or even chose not to own a second car. The five or ten-minute walk must be

a pleasant one that is visually and socially stimulating.

Principle among the codes that accompany the plan of Haymount are the Urban Regulations

which set out, in a matrix of plan and section diagrams, the rules that govern those aspects of the

private building t>'pes that are adjacent to and help shape the space of public life. In essence, this

code is concerned with those characteristics that determine the "walls of the urban room." For

example, (depending on lot and building type) they specify the percentage of a private building's

street facade that must adhere to a common frontage line. Generally, they prescribe building use, placement, height, permitted encroachments (such as front porches, which are encouraged), and

the location of parking for each of the eight different lot types and sizes.

Another matrix of codes intended to enhance urban coherence and pedestrian friendliness

regulates configurations, materials and techniques of construction. The Architectural

Regulations acknowledge the characteristics of the region that have developed over time as a

result of climate, tradition and available materials, labor and technology and that have given the

region its particular identity. It represents an effort at assuring the regionality, and sense of

"place" that engenders long term commitments without prescribing a particular style or limiting a

designer's creativity.

To further encourage sustainability, the spirit of community must be nurtured to form a web of

connectedness between peoples and place. To achieve that end a number of programs are provided. Religious Institutions have been encouraged to locate in Haymount and their sites

selected for their prominence within the plan. These locations will be donated to congregations

of various religions and denominations as they come into the community. The sites must always

be used for spiritual purposes or revert to a board comprised of all the leaders of these

institutions. The town architect will complete the preliminary design at no charge to the

congregation.

Parks also play a role in allowing for these bonds of community to grow. They will be designed

and constructed by funds provided by the developer to accommodate a range of public uses:

sports, leisure and public congregation. Civic space is critical to the reconnection of citizens in

the public realm. One of these, a river park comprises 12% of the total river frontage. The rest of the frontage will be protected in its natural form and none will be privatized. It is for all county residents. Quarterly public festivals and concerts may take place in this riverfront park.

The space is designed to encourage both planned gathering and spontaneous recreation. The park

will be lined with restaurants, cafes, ice cream shops and small retail establishments.

Haymount will deed one elementary school to the citizens of Caroline County as well as an

additional 13-acre school site. An 80-acre college campus has also been set aside. A Charrette

process will involve local citizens, students, school board members, teachers, the board of

supervisors, and nationally recognized educators in, not only the design of the school building,

115
but a reordering of the curriculum of the school system. An education endowment will be

funded by a percentage of the sale price of each new home in the community and will be

administered by the Caroline County citizens. A library will also be provided by the developer

to enhance educational opportunities.

SUSTAINABILITY

Haymount represents a holistic approach to sustainable design, reaching beyond the project

borders and into the direct and indirect impacts of the community on the environment. Perhaps

the most far reaching environmental component of the project is the sustainabilty program being

developed. Using sophisticated ecologic and economic modeling developed by the management

team, the floe of resources and transactions among all the major economic sectors and the

commodity groups will be evaluated. This will include not only direct effects (for example the

impact of healthy building materials), but indirect ones as well (including household

expenditures). With the size of Haymount's economic contribution as a powerful leverage, the

team will work with suppliers and other businesses to effect environmentally responsible

voluntary agreements, and identify funding sources to assist businesses in the region to meet

strict environmental standards.

Such a strategy is consistent with Haymount's overall environmental ethic described throughout

the body of this paper. It is an ethic that accepts responsibility for the imprint and impact of its development on the landscape and the environment. The efforts outlined above: at programming, design, construction and management of the project, represent a commitment to control the total resource and energy flows that result from this development,-to design and

manage the "project ecology," so to speak. The authors, acknowledge previous efforts in

sustainable design, believe that Haymount is unprecedented in the extent to which it is far

reaching. It is the first major effort to include such a holistic approach accounting for even the

indirect effects of a project, and embracing an entire spectrum of environmental, social,

economic and urbanistic concerns.

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THE RESOURCE CONSERVATION RESEARCH HOUSE

Liza K. Bowles, President

NAHB Research Center, Inc.

400 Prince George's Boulevard

Upper Marlboro, MD 20772-8731

Abstract . The Resource Conservation Research House, built by the

NAHB Research Center and opened in 1992, was constructed with

materials that conserve the nation's resources. The house is

designed to stimulate interest in resource conservation in home

building among home builders, home buyers, public officials,

civic groups, and the media. In addition to products made from

recycled materials, products and systems used to build the house

are made from less costly materials, more durable materials, and

materials that contribute to energy conservation during the

lifetime of the house. A principal purpose of building the house

was to test and demonstrate resource-conserving products and

systems that now exist only in prototype or that are on the

fringes of the market, and to help to move useful, cost-effective

products of this type toward the marketplace mainstream.

Introduction

Home building, and the operation of homes after they are built,

involve substantial use of important resources. The National

Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and its wholly-owned

subsidiary, the NAHB Research Center, are giving increasing study

and priority to the relationship of home building and home usage

to a sustainable environment.

This interest led to planning, design, and construction of the

Resource Conservation Research House by the Research Center.

Products selected for the house met resource-conservation

criteria in one or more of three areas.

• Materials:

Includes recycled content, utilization of lower-value

resources, and durability.

• Installation:

Includes environmental, energy, and waste-generating

features of installation.

• Operation:

Includes conservation of resources in operation, life cycle

costs, reliability, and maintenance.

117
Products and Systems

Products and systems used in building the house are described in

the Research Center's publication, Resource Conservation Research

House Information Guide. '^^ They included the following:

Concrete Foundation Forming System

The house's foundation utilizes a stay-in-lace insulated concrete

foundation forming system. The system consists of inner and

outer panels that contain 10 percent post-consumer recycled

polystyrene from such products as fast food "clamshell"

containers. The forms are held together with forming ties made

of reprocessed polypropylene from industrial and consumer

sources.

Cement is poured into the cavity between the inner and outer

panels, creating a poured-in-place foundation with integral

interior and exterior insulation.

Steel Framing, Reconstituted Sliding

The house is steel-framed, which reduces the requirement for

wood. Two-thirds of the steel used for framing is recycled from

scrap sources such as old cars. All steel scrap created in the

construction process was recovered.

The house's hardboard siding is composed of recovered wood fiber

and roundwood that are byproducts of sawmill operation.

Floor and Ceiling Products

The vinyl flooring material does not require underlayment . In

addition, a 3-inch band of adhesive is applied around the

perimeter of the room and under the seams, rather than the

conventional full spreading of adhesive, resulting in substantial

reduction in adhesive use.

Ceiling tiles or panels are made with wood fiber containing

22 percent recycled newsprint. Other tiles and panels contain

22 percent recycled newsprint and 2 5 percent recycled mineral

wool

Insulation

Spray-applied wall insulation and loose-fill attic insulation are

made from recovered newsprint. Insulated wall sheathing, as well

as foundation form panels, contains 10 percent post-consumer

recycled polystyrene, and utilize CFC replacements which reduce

ozone depletion potential 94 percent.

118
Copper Tubing and Other Products

Copper is used in the water supply, drain, waste, and vent lines;

the roof flashing; the gutters and downspouts; and in a fire

sprinkler system. Over 70 percent of copper tubing and fittings

is made of recycled copper.

Copper is also used in a direct expansion earth-coupled heat

pump. Such heat pumps take advantage of the stability of earth

temperatures as opposed to air temperatures, to operate at lower

energy cost.

Wallboard ; Roofing

Wallboard is made from gypsum, perlite, and about 15 percent by

weight recycled waste paper. This stouter board is designed to

eliminate the need for taping joints in the finishing process.

The roofing panels contain 52 percent plastic resin from

recycling of old computer housings. The panels combine an

irregular appearance, similar to cedar shakes, with a Class A

flame protection rating. They can be installed more quickly than

shakes and are claimed to be virtually maintenance-free.

Energy-Efficient Windows

Energy-efficient windows have a frame and sash made from a composite material of polyester resin reinforced with fiberglass

and finished with a polyurethane coating. The inner core of the

frame and sash is filled with high-density fiberglass insulation.

The windows have a low-E coating, and the space between the dual

panes is filled with argon. The windows provide an R-value of

3.39 in double-hung units and 3.22 in casement or awning units.

Deck, Railings , Trim

A wood substitute material, made of 50 percent wood fiber and 50

percent post-consumer recycled polyethylene, was used for deck

materials, railings, landscape timbers, and trim. The wood fiber

comes from industrial sources such as old pallets, the

polyethylene from consumer sources including recycled grocery

bags. The materials, designed for nonstructural uses, can be

sawed, planed, sanded, and milled; can be attached with nails,

screws, or glue; and can be painted, stained, or coasted. It is

resistant to ultraviolet damage, water damage, soil acidity, and

insect infestation.

Solar Products ^ Solar products include a solar hot water system, photovoltaic

systems for energy-efficient lighting and electric power, and a

liquid radiant barrier spray-applied to the underside of the roof

sheathing which is designed to reduce cooling loads.

119
Garage. Landscaping

The garage is built on a frost-protected shallow foundation

insulated with extruded polystyrene board containing 10 percent

post-consumer recycle. Frost-protected shallow foundations offer

substantial savings over conventional foundations employing

footings that extend below the frost line.

The lawn was seeded with grass seed mixed with mulch manufactured

from post-consumer waste paper.

Recycling

A kitchen recycling center provides for convenient separation of

recyclable waste products at their point of use. The system,

based on a new design developed by the Research Center, features

recycling bins located under half of the kitchen sink, which can

be opened and closed without the use of hands. The location of

the bins provides convenient access from the sink, stove, and

refrigerator, where most waste is generated. The system is

designed for easy adaption to both new and existing homes.

Construction Site Waste

A study of construction site waste that was conducted while the

house was being built produced recommendations to manufacturers

and distributors for reducing packaging, possible on-site reuse

and recycling of certain types of waste, and improved pickup and

recycling of cardboard and lumber. Information from the study

was incorporated into an NAHB Research Center publication

entitled. Builders Guide to Residential Construction Waste

Management .^^^

References

1. NAHB Research Center, Resource Conservation Research House

Information Guide, Upper Marlboro, MD, 1993.

2. NAHB Research Center, Builders Guide to Residential

Construction Waste Management, Upper Marlboro, MD, 1993.

120
Performance of Building Envelopes

New Materials and Research Findings

J.D. Ned Nisson, Editor

Energy Design Update

235 West 102 St., Suite 7J

New York, NY 10025

Abstract: Research over the past five years has led to an increased practical understanding

of the performance of building thermal envelope systems, particularly for residential

construction. For example, engineers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the University

of Illinois demonstrated that the temperature differential across a ceiling can significantly

affect the performance of certain low-density loose-fill insulation. Researchers at the

National Research Council Canada demonstrated a similar affect in walls insulated with

fiberglass and rockwool batts. NRCC scientists also demonstrated the impact of steel

framing on wall thermal performance. Armed with this enhanced understanding,

manufacturers, designers and builders have developed new products and building techniques

for optimizing the performance of building thermal envelopes.

Introduction

The following excerpts from Energy Design Update describe several research projects

that document the effects of environmental variables on the in-service performance of wall

and ceiling insulation systems.

October, 1991

BUILDING SCIENTISTS AND REGULATORS CALL FOR MORE REALISTIC

INSULATION TESTING

The small-scale laboratory methods now used to test insulation are not good indicators

of actual in-service performance says research scientist Ken Wilkes of Oak Ridge National

Laboratory. Speaking to a technical audience at the ASTM Symposium on Insulation

Materials in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, Wilkes was one of several presenters to stress the need

for more realistic testing of insulation materials and systems. Wilkes' remarks referred to his recent research which demonstrated the effect of air convection on the performance of

loose-fill insulation in attics. Similar pleas came from other sectors of the building community at the ASTM

meeting. David McCaa of CertainTeed Corporation, presenting a paper on the effect of air

intrusion into fiberglass insulation, called for new or modified test methods to evaluate whole

insulation systems under simulated field conditions. CertainTeed is currently sponsoring a

full-scale attic research program at the University of Illinois.

George Tsongas, professor of Mechanical Engineering at Portland State University,

voiced strong concern that laboratory test results for reflective insulation which were

presented at the symposium should not be adopted into handbooks without qualifying

statements about field performance. Tsongas explained that his research shows poor field

performance for reflective floor insulation because of air leakage.

121
The most outspoken recognition of environmental influence on insulation performance

came from the regulatory community. Bruce Nelson of the Minnesota Department of Public

Service described how the Minnesota building code is being revised to include specific and

stringent requirements to prevent air intrusion and thermal bridging in insulation systems.

August, 1990

MEASURED PERFORMANCE OF LOOSE-FILL FIBERGLASS ATTIC INSULATION - THE OAK RIDGE TESTS

The preliminary results of a series of tests at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL)

on cubed fiberglass attic insulation suggest that air circulation within the insulation may

significantly reduce the apparent R-value under cold attic conditions. At very low

temperature (-18F), the measured R-value was 50% lower than the material's nominal Rvalue. These sensational results, now under peer review, could have serious implications

concerning the relative effectiveness of loose-fill attic insulation in very cold climates.

The tests were performed in ORNL's new Large Scale Climatic Simulator (LSCS) ~

a full-scale test facility, capable of simulating a wide range of climatic conditions. The

simulator is actually two chambers: an upper chamber in which outdoor weather conditions are simulated, and a lower chamber which simulates the indoor space beneath the attic. Each

chamber can be individually controlled and heat flow can be accurately measured in either

direction.

For the attic insulation tests, a full-scale house roof was constructed and placed in the

upper chamber. Cubed loose-fill insulation was blown into the attic space to create a nominal R-20 installation. The R-value of the ceiling system was measured as the air

temperature was varied from -18F to 145F. The attic ventilation rate was also varied in

some of the tests. Theoretically, when the temperature in an attic falls below a certain critical point, air

begins to circulate within the insulation, causing a decrease in effective R-value. Once that

critical temperature point is passed, further decrease in attic temperature theoretically causes

progressive decrease in R-value. The temperature at which this convection begins depends on several properties of the insulation including density and thickness.

Infrared scans at Oak Ridge showed indications of air circulation within the fiberglass

insulation in the LSCS. The effect of the air circulation was that the effective R-value of the

R-20 installation was reduced by 40% at 20F attic air temperature and by 50% at -18F attic

air temperature.

The Oak Ridge results imply that in very cold climates where attic temperature falls below 20F for a significant portion of the winter, some types of attic insulation may perform

poorly. It's important to note, however, that the decrease in R-value only occurs below a

certain temperature which will vary depending on material properties and insulation

thickness. There should be no convective effect during moderate winter or summer weather

conditions.

122
June, 1993

THE EFFECT OF "MINOR" INSTALLATION DEFECTS ON BATT THERMAL

PERFORMANCE

A research project at the National Research Council Canada has clearly demonstrated

that if fiberglass batts are not properly installed, air circulation in and around the insulation can degrade the overall wall R-value as much as 14% at moderately cold (23F) temperature,

and up to 35% at extremely cold (-3 IF) temperature, apparently due to air convection in the

batts. Although the study report still leaves some unanswered questions about the practical

meaning of these results, the data definitely underscores the importance of installation quality on performance for walls insulated with fiberglass and other types of batt insulation.

Past research studies have shown that major installation defects, such as full continuous airspaces on both sides of the insulation batt, can degrade thermal performance as much as 34%. Partly in response to those studies, the Canadian National Building Code

stipulates that unfaced batts "...shall be installed so that at least one face is in full and

continuous contact with cladding, sheathing or other air-impermeable membrane." (Section

9.25.4.2).

But what about relatively minor installation defects? What if unfaced batts are

installed so that they are in good contact with exterior and interior surfaces, except for small

vertical gaps at the corners of the stud cavity? To answer that question, NRC researchers

tested full-scale (8' x 8') 2x6 walls with three different types of batt insulation and various

size comer gaps. They then measured the actual R-value of the assemblies when exposed to varying temperature conditions using a "guarded hot box" (ASTM C236 test method).

The results showed that when the batts were installed perfectly, with no gaps at the

comers of the stud cavities, the insulation system performed perfectly. The R-value of the

wall with R-19 batts was R-16.8, which is what would be expected, taking into account the

effect of the studs and other wall components. Even at -3 IF, there was no evidence of air

convection. In fact, the measured R-value actually increased slightly as the temperature

dropped, which is expected since the R-value of all materials increases with decreasing

temperature.

But when 3/4" vertical gaps were installed at the stud cavity corners, the R-value of

the walls dropped considerably, apparently due to air circulation around and through the

batts. At 23F "outdoor" temperature, air circulation caused the effective R-value of the wall

to drop 14% to R-14.4. At -31F, there was a 32% drop to R-11.4.

The final report on the NRC tests states that there is no doubt that the observed loss

of R-value is due to air convection. One of the surprising observations was that although air

convection apparently begins to occur between the inner and outer pairs of air gaps, it then

spreads through the rest of the insulation.

The R-19 batts used in the NRCC tests were typical U.S. product with relatively low

density (0.56 pounds per cubic foot average). To test whether higher density insulation

would be less susceptible to convection, NRCC researchers also tested "medium density" R20 batts (0.85 lb/ft3) (Canadian product) and rockwool batts (2.2 lb/ft3 density).

The surprising results showed that even the high density rockwool batt suffered

convection when corner gaps were introduced. The installation defects caused a 6% drop in

R-value at 23F and 17% at -31F. The medium density fiberglass also allowed convection,

with 26% loss of R-value at -31F.

123
The NRC test results prove that sloppy batt installation causes poor performance and

the study report stresses the need for installation quality control. The report suggests that

instead of selecting insulation materials solely on R-value, contractors should also consider

ease of handling and the ability to completely fill stud cavities. The new medium density

batts, (3.5" R-15 and 5.5" R-21), sold by all the major manufacturers, may be a partial

solution since they are stiffer and tend to fill the stud cavity better than the lower density R11 and R-19 products.

The bottom line question about these tests is to what extent do they reflect real world

conditions and performance? The test walls had vertical air gaps in all four comers of the

stud cavities. How common is that? And how would the results compare if there were gaps

only in the outer two comers? Unfortunately there are no definitive answers to either

question.

When designing their experiment, NRC researchers tried to simulate typical

installation defects, based on field studies performed in Canada and Sweden. However, Bill

Brown at NRC, who supervised the project, explains that its very difficult to characterize

"typical" installation quality. There are obviously many instances where batts are installed so that there are gaps at only one or two corners. Brown thinks that as long as one side of

the batt is in complete contact with sheathing or drywall, air convection will most likely not occur ~ at least not to the extent observed in these tests. He also notes that there should be no problem with kraft-faced batts.

Despite the uncertainty, these test results do provide insight on the importance of

proper installation of batt insulation;

—When perfectly installed, fiberglass and rockwool batts perform perfectly.

—Sloppy installation can allow air convection, which will reduce performance as much

as 14% at moderately cold (23F) temperature and up to 35% at extremely cold (-3 IF)

temperature.

—Higher density batts, such as the new "high performance" R-15 or R-21 fiberglass

batts or rockwool batts, are less prone to convection, but they too will suffer from

sloppy installation.

February, 1993

STEEL STUDS: THERMAL PERFORMANCE

Steel framing systems for homes are enjoying a surge in popularity in some regions of

the country. Manufacturers tout several benefits including stable materials cost and ease of

construction (once crews adjust to screwdrivers rather than nailguns).

The bad news is that research studies show that steel framing can be a thermal

disaster. The conductivity of steel is about 400 times the conductivity of wood. Don Larson,

director of research at the Center for Insulation Technology at Drexel University, estimates

that the effective R-value of a 3-1/2-inch steel stud is R-0.0128, compared to R-4.5 for a wood 2x4. When installed in a 4-inch wall, steel studs reduce the overall R-value by 30%

to 50%.

124
The good news is that there are ways to overcome the thermal bridging problem with

steel studs. At least one manufacturer of metal framing systems uses a configuration that

reduces thermal bridging. And research results from Canada and New Zealand show that

thermal breaks and modified stud design could also improve performance.

Bill Brown is a senior researcher with the Institute for Research in Construction at the

National Research Council Canada. Using a full scale wall testing apparatus (ASTM C236

test method), Brown measured the actual R-value of three different walls built with steel

studs and compared the measured R-value with the theoretical ideal R-value (no thermal

bridging) for each wall.

In a 4-inch wall insulated with R-12 batts, gypsum board interior, and stucco exterior,

the steel studs degraded the overall R-value from R-13 to less than R-7 ~ a 49% reduction

from the theoretical R-value of the wall without thermal bridging. The two other walls,

which had brick and concrete facades, showed similar poor performance.

Brown's results are consistent with other published test results. J.R. Sasaki of the

National Research Council Canada compared the performance of walls built with 2x4 wood

studs against walls built with 4-inch metal studs. Both walls were insulated with 2 inches of

polystyrene foam (R-8). The measured R-value of the steel-framed wall was R-7.1 with

light-gauge studs, compared to R-10.1 for the wood-framed wall — an R-value loss of 30%.

With heavy-gauge studs, the loss in R-value was even higher.

Don Larson at Drexel University measured the wall R-value of a steel-framed campus

building using a large heat flow meter. Larson found that the average measured R-value of

the whole wall was only R-6.6 ~ 43% lower than the R-value of the insulation alone (R11.7).

Adding thermal breaks should improve performance of walls with steel studs. Hans

Trethowen, Senior Research Engineer at the Building Research Association of New Zealand,

ran a series of laboratory tests to evaluate the effects of small thermal breaks on overall

steel-stud wall performance. Trethowen found that by reducing the contact area between stud

and gypsum board, the overall performance was considerably enhanced.

At least one manufacturer produces a steel framing system that reduces thermal

contact between studs and sheathing. Advanced Framing Systems of Atlanta, Georgia uses

horizontal "hat sections" on both sides of the studs. Since the hat sections have relatively

small contact area with the metal studs and with the sheathing, thermal transmission should

be reduced considerably. This has not been confirmed through laboratory or field testing.

One problem with the Advanced system and others like it is their unconventional

design. Whereas most steel framing is built "stick for stick" so that crews can easily make

the transition from wood to metal, the Advanced system is completely different and

unfamiliar.

A simpler solution is to use rigid foam sheathing over the studs. Researchers are not

in full agreement as to how effective this technique may be. Don Larson at Drexel told

EDU that 1-inch extruded polystyrene, (R-5), installed over the studs, would probably add

more than R-5 to the overall wall. By eliminating airect contact between studs and

sheathing, the foam first "fixes" the thermal bridge problem, and then also adds to the

overall R-value. Researchers at NRC Canada disagree, claiming that the steel studs degrade

performance just as much with or without the foam and that R-5 foam simply adds R-5 to the

wall.

125
Finally, one approach (o the problem (hat has not yet been tried for residential

NRC

systems .s to modify the stud web to remove some of the metal. For exampfe Sas^ at compared

C^ada found that an "expanded channel" design reduced thermal bridgL by 50% to regular steel studs.

i^iAugmg uy ju/o

126
ENVIRONMENTAL BUILDING MATERIALS:

What are they? Where are they?

Paul Bierman-Lytle/ President

The Masters Corporation

Environmental Architect-are and Construction Resource

Management

New Canaan, CT 06840

Abstract. During the 1970 's the building industry witnessed

a focus on energy-conserving building materials sparked by

oil-price increases; during the 1980 *s attention to building

materials that reduced or omitted pollutants became important

as a result of the "Sick Building Syndrome" or indoor air

pollution. Now, in the 1990 's, we are engaged with a more

comprehensive definition of "environmental" materials and

technologies. This definition encompasses both energyconserving products and so-called "non-toxic" or healthy

products. But more importantly, it defines a new component,

which I will call "resource management". As the world enters

the 21st Century, we are more aware that the world's

resources are dwindling at rapid speed, and the need to

conserve, to recycle, and to sustainably manage these

resources is vital. The building industry has a primary

role to play in this management. This role begins in the

selection of materials and technologies used in building

itself

Introduction

As we near the year 2000 we will witness a change in the way

our buildings look and in the materials they are built with.

This change will probably occur not due to choice, but rather

due to lack of choice. The inventory of conventional

materials is running out; many in the building industry from

architects to tradesmen are not aware of this phenomenon,

therefore the conventional mode of design and construction

still prevails. However, in ever subtle ways, the change is

occurring. Wood products are reaching astronomical prices

month by month; shortages are apparent in particular species.

Products are required to show their chemical ingredients and

show warning labels regarding toxic or hazardous potentials;

standards to control toxicity are forcing some conventional

products to shut down production. Materials made from

recycled content or which demonstrate recyclability are

entering the market-place with public support and media- -

127
endorsements. Regulations and building codes are requiring

higher energy performance standards. Water drought

conditions demand water-conserving fixtures and are accepting

grey water uses. It is estimated that the world will be

depleted of accessible and affordable petroleum within 35

years. Model homes are being constructed to demonstrate

resource management; in other words, how to get the most from

as little as possible.

Environmental building materials and

technologies make up this new inventory. Some are age-old,

some are conventional, off-the-shelf, some are recycled and

some are new. Environmental materials address at least

one, but usually all, of the following:

• energy conservation, either in performance or

in manufacturing

• health, reduces health hazards to the

manufacturer, to the installer, to the end-user

• resource management, conserves existing

inventory of raw ingredients, follows sustainable harvesting,

reduces global environmental hazards, including pollution,

global warming, ozone depletion, conserves and renews water

quality

• waste management, uses recycled content, is

recylcable, minimizes waste, is biodegradable

This seminar will explore these different

categories of environmental materials and demonstrate what

they replace, why they replace current materials, where they

can be found, and what is ahead as we near the year 2000.

Evaluation Methods of Environmental Materials

There are many ways to evaluate whether a particular material

is "environmental". In fact, a number of efforts are

underway by certification companies to rate products

according to specific environmental characteristics; other

certification efforts attempt to verify the environmental

claims of the specific manufacturer. The most important

evaluation, however, is a study of a product's "cradle-tocradle" profile. Unfortunately, the ability to arrive at

this profile is still in its infancy. Several university

professionals and professional organizations, such as the AIA

Committee On The Environment are pioneering this approach.

The profile begins with a review of a product's origin, what

raw materials are required to make it, where these come from,

how much energy is consumed to make this acquisition, etc.

The profile continues through the life of the product until

it is either disposed of in the ground, in fire, in water, or

is recycled. This profile is represented in a matrix of

environmental criteria, including Natural Resources, Energy,

Pollution, Health, Waste, Recycling, Life-Cycle Cost,

Availability, Durabili ty /Maintainability , to mention a few.

It becomes obvious after seeing this matrix spread out that

the answers required to fill it out are very hard to obtain.

128
For example, most manufacturers are unaware of where some of

their constituent ingredients come from, much less how much

energy is consumed to acquire them. If a product is

imported from overseas, enormous quantities of fuel are

required to get it to its final installation. A product can

demonstrate high environmental marks on the matrix in one

category and be extremely poor in another category. For

example, aluminum is an excellent building material due to

its light weight, rust-resistance, conductivity, and

recyclability ; also, it is inert and therefore does not

offgass toxic or noxious chemicals nor can it absorb smells

or odors. However, it consumes enormous quantities of

energy to make and its main constituent ingredient is

bauxite, which is typically strip-mined from the rain

forests. Despite the infancy and struggle of establishing

these environmental profiles on building products, progress

is being made rapidly, and the results are being published

for use more quickly than ever before. Satellite photography

offers us information about our global inventory of raw

materials just as it shows us information about the pollution

and environmental changes resulting from human's activities.

These insights into our planet's stock and health will help

us better prepare us for our role as "resource managers" as

we near the 21st Century. Until these environmental

profiles, or report cards, on products are widespread, those

in the building industry can become better environmental

consumers and purchasers without a suitcase of data on their

side

To assist the buyer in sorting out the thousands of products,

we can create a "menu" of building and decorating products

and technologies and divide this "menu" into four major

categories; any building or decorating product or technology

will fall into these four:

1. Salvaged

2. Conventional

3 . Green

4. Recycled

In addition, under each of these four

categories materials are sorted into 7 divisions, which

further assists in distinguishing components in the menu.

These divisions are derived from the construction sequencing.

They are

1. Site

2. Structure

3 . Finishes

4. Furniture

5. Mechanicals

6. Equipment and Technologies

7 . Maintenance

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site would include natural resources existing on the building

site, solar access, water resources and quality, radon

levels, electromagnetic radiation sources, etc. Structure

would include building structural products, such as wood,

metal, concrete, roofing products, insulation, windows and

doors. Finishes consists of flooring materials, paints,

wallpaper, caulks and mastics. Furniture includes window

treatment products, decorating materials, cabinetry, and

furnishings. Mechanicals include plumbing, electrical,

heating, air conditioning, and ventilation. Equipment and

Technologies consist of appliances, fixtures, solar

technologies, filtration equipment, etc. Maintenance covers

filter and lamp replacements, cleaning products, landscape

care, pesticide/insecticides, and air/water quality testing.

As noted above, a product, material, or technology to be

considered as an environmental alternative must satisfy at

least one, if not all, of the following: energy

conservation, health, resource management, and waste

management. To rate one selection over another reqQires

more detailed "matrix" analysis. These analyses can be

obtained today from several sources. And although each

source may be flawed in areas, they are most helpful in

allowing one to draw his or her own conclusions. We

recommend Environmental Construction Outfitter's (ECO)

Guidebook to Materials and Technologies, Volumes I-VI,

available by calling 800-238-5008 or 212-334-9659 and AIA's

Environmental Resource Guide, at 800-3 65-ARCH.

Salvaged: Reusing the Old in the same Use

The starting point in good resource management or

environmental material selection is to reuse what has already

been made and used. This reuse saves enormous amounts of

energy not required to mine, harvest, or otherwise acquire

the virgin resource, fabricate, manufacture, or ship long

distances; this, in turn, reduces air and water pollution

which would have resulted in acquisition and production.

In many cases, salvaged materials are very well made, both

from craftsmanship to the quality of the materials used.

Examples include salvaged slate for roofing, bricks,

cobblestones, wood planking, timber, copper, steel,

furniture, and all the myriad materials or products found in

antique shops or salvage yards. Selection from these sources

are excellent environmental choices and carry with them

history and quality not available with new products. In

most cases, salvaged materials are either inert (stone,

slate, copper) and offgass no pollutants, or the materials

are so old that the pollutant sources have already emitted

their noxious gases.

Not all antiques or salvaged materials are environmental.

Salvaged products to avoid include any products made with

130
lead, mercury, or asbestos; products containing large

quantities of petroleum by-products which could offgass or

antiques which have been refinished with high VOC (volatile

organic compounds) finishes; products which are made from

endangered animal skins or bones might indirectly encourage

current illegal trade and animal destruction; products which

are unsafe and therefore cause injury.

Conventional: Using What is on the Shel£

Unknown to many vendors or manufacturers, several products

already are used by the building trades which are very

environmental. The producers or sellers are not aware of

the environmental characteristics; therefore, they are not

marketing these advantages. However, more recently, in the

last 3-5 years, some recognition of these characteristics is

being seen.

These products include natural linoleum, first made in

1894 in Scotland, which preceded vinyl or asbestos sheet

flooring. Natural linoleum is made without petroleum byproducts, is long lasting, resilient, insect proof, moisture

proof, and emits no harmful gases. Other products include

Medite I and II, exterior and interior fiberboard panels made

without formaldehyde. For many years, Medite panels were

sold for use as highway signs. When the manufacturer

discovered that there was a new market for non- formaldehyde

panels, they began advertising this special characteristic

and, in fact, created Medite II, as an interior formaldehydefree alternative. Products frequently used and very

environmental include: marble and other stone tiles,

ceramic tiles, earthen pavers, adobe, plaster, and glass.

In particular, are glazing products made with low-E, Heat

Mirror, and argon-filled, raising their R-values to 8 and

above. In furnishings and floor coverings, carpets made

from 100% wool, cotton, and jute have always been available,

though hard to find without synthetic blends or latex

backings. Natural untreated grass fibers, such as cocomat,

bamboo, sisal, or coir, have always made excellent floor

coverings

The majority of conventional building and decorating

products on the market today do not meet many of the

environmental criteria. They either deplete endangered

natural resources flagrantly, they pollute indoor air with

hazardous chemicals or compounds, they utilize too much

energy in production, they frequently are not durable and

when their time is up they are not recyclable or

biodegradable. As a result of increased awareness from many

different viewpoints regarding this mismanagement of building

resources, many newer products and technologies are being

invented and created to offer alternatives to their

conventional counterparts.

131
Green: Solving Environmental Problems and Challenges

Green materials and technologies are creations attempting to

solve environmental problems and challenges today and in the

future. In many cases, the manufacturer is out to solve only

one or two of the environmental criteria; and in so doing,

often accomplishes more benefits for the environment and

application. For example. Air Krete, a f oamed-in-place

insulation, was invented to make insulations more energy

conserving and free of toxic chemicals, specifically ureaformaldehyde. Yet, in addition, it is non-combustible,

insect resistant, uses little natural resources and is an

excellent acoustical material. Xeroflor, a live,

plant/flower blanket used as a roofing material instead of

sod, was developed to solve maintenance, herbicide use, and

water consumption. Yet, it also retains 60% of the water

falling on its surface; therefore, reduced runoff, and it

also tempers indoor thermal climates and noise through its

added insulation, and its plant-life absorbs air pollution

and emits oxygen. Their are a multitude of "green" products

entering the market each year, some with better results and

credibility than others. The most highly regarded are

satisfying all of the environmental criteria. In addition

to those mentioned above, lightweight concrete technologies

are advancing to offer builders and designers more

environmental solutions to construction using concrete, which

conventionally produced is not very environmental. ACC,

autoclaved cellular concrete, made from cement, water,

magnesite, and alumina pioneers new ways of utilizing managed

resources for construction. 70% of its composition is made

with either sand or fly ash. The fly ash is obtained from

coal-fired electric generating plants, which today, is not

used for anything. ACC can be engineered for almost all uses

in a building from foundations, to walls, roof, floors,

furniture, ornament, etc. It is noncombustible,

lightweight, insect-resistant, contains and emits no harmful

gases, and is recyclable. It also reduces demands for wood

products and finishes. Sustainable wood management is also

a source for "green" products. Rather than deplete existing

old-growth forests, both temperate and tropical, or encourage

mono-species forestry, these newer forestry practices are

being spawned throughout the planet. The harvesting or

cutting methods are being monitored and certified by

independent organizations so that the consumer can be assured

of the vendor's claims. Furniture, window and door

materials, flooring, fencing, decking, and other wood product

uses are being supplied by these sources.

Other "green" products include energy efficient lighting,

daylighting technologies, computer management systems for

energy and air quality, solar technologies, and water

technologies. Water has become a dwindling resource,

despite our planet's abundance of water. This depletion

132
includes poorer water quality as a result of pollution and

reduced water quantity as a result of over-use,

deforestation, farming, ranching, and population. "Green"

water technologies entering the market include ultra lowflush toilets of 1.5 gallons per flush, and grey and black

water treatment systems which clean and then recycle the

water back for reuse. These water systems unfold new

plumbing techniques, new designs for "green" kitchens where

food production, hydroponic gardening, and aquaculture enters

the kitchen environment, indoor and outdoor landscapes begin

to flourish with plants, birds and increased microbiodiversity.

Before the year 2000, all building and decorating materials

will be "green" by market pressure, by choice, or by

regulation.

Recycled; Making New Uses for Old Materials

When we take an existing material or product that has been

used for one purpose, disassemble it, shred it, melt it down,

and then form it into a new product or combine it with other

materials to make a new product for a new use, we have

recycled it. This is different from salvaging a material and

reusing it the same way, even though this could be considered

recycling too. Recycling is a 90 's word; it has become

fashionable to demonstrate that a product is recycled,

contains recycled content, or is recyclable. And, of course,

this is a desirable goal. Throughout history, people with

limited resources will always salvage and recycle whenever

the opportunity presents itself. Now, too, modern

civilizations are finding it necessary to do the same. On

first glance, it would appear that anything recycled would be

an environmental solution. However, it is not as black and

white as this. For example, if we were to review the

environmental matrix which identifies a product's full life

cycle, we could discover that many renewable and

biodegradable resources require more energy to recycle than

to break them down into compost or fill. We might even

discover that some non-renewable and non-biodegradable

products add negative environmental impact by recycling,

since energy consumption with fossil fuels used in the

recycling process contributes to resource depletion, air and

water pollution, and even indoor air hazards. A good

example of the complex recycling issue was uncovered during

the debate to use paper bags versus plastic bags. At first,

the gut reaction was to use paper, sourced from wood, a

renewable and biodegradable resource. Then data was

accummulated showing that plastic bags required less energy

(i.e. less pollution and resource depletion) than paper bags.

And finally, the obvious solution was first to "salvage" one

133
sturdy bag and reuse it, then recycle plastic bags, if

necessary; then finally paper bags. This is an important

lesson. First, investigate what the job requires and select

a product that will do it with the least environmental

impact, when possible and reasonable. If we made more

decisions based on this premise we would have less inventory

to recycle.

As stated earlier, recycling is an important marketing tool

for most manufacturers today, and the public supports it.

Too often, however, the product demonstrating recycled

content or recyclability has failed to solve many of the

environmental criteria. Synthetic plastics, for example, are

petroleum-derived and are non-biodegradable. Once we make

these plastics they are here to stay, regardless of where we

put them. Two of their major environmental drawbacks is that

they deplete the planet's fossil fuel reservoirs and they

emit hazardous VOC ' s to indoor air. To recycle synthetic

plastics reduces the first, but does not stop the emissions

created by the second. The indoor air problems still remain.

Also, many recycled products contain less than 50% recycled

content, the remaining 50% or more is therefore derived from

a virgin resource.

Some recycled products benefit society by reducing the

demands on conventional products that are either endangered,

such as plastic woods or recycled metal studs replacing real

woods, or they maximize a product's usefulness for a longer

time, such as wool or cotton clothing recycled for use in

building insulation. Some recycling efforts create all new

products, such as recycling light bulbs to make floor tiles

or computer parts to make roofing shingles. We seem to

always be creating new markets for new goods for new uses.

We have offered the consumer 70 varieties of breakfast

cereal, when only 10-20% of them are actually nutritional at

best. We do the same thing in the building industry.

Recycling is vital if we use it prudently. There is little

solice in recycling millions and millions of product

inventory to make millions and millions more products that do

not satisfy the environmental criteria. A wasteful virgin

product recycled might only be 10-50% less wasteful--it is

still wasteful.

Conclusion

The world's resources throughout history have been taken for

granted. We now understand that these resources cannot be

assumed limitless. As we appear to take 10 steps forward

with successive generations through progress in technologies,

communications, education, health and recreation, we are also

becoming more aware that these are small, baby steps. Our

progress has not ended global strife, lifestyles are in

134
disarray, cancer is increasing among our young, imbalance of

resources is growing, we recreate not for fun or leisure but

to escape. Our children today are recognizing this at the

same time we, as adults, are. They will, their children

will, demand more responsible decisions and directions.

Perhaps as the world community celebrates this new century,

we will be stewarding our position on the planet for the

first time asking the right questions. If we are capable of

knowing and uncovering the problems and challenges, then we

are capable of solving them. And since humans will always

build buildings, this is a critical arena in which to face

this challenge and enact a new sensitivity to the world's

resources. This arena spans the globe, yet it allows the

single homeowner or apartment dweller to make the first step.

135
Green Buildings;

DOE'S Historical Role and New Directions

John P. Millhone

Deputy Assistant Secretary

Building Technologies

U.S. Department of Energy

ABSTRACT

The Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of Building Technologies

(OBT) has traditionally played a major role in the development of

"green buildings" technologies. OBT's mission is to reduce the

amount of fossil-based energy consumed by new and existing

buildings, and improved energy efficiency is a critical factor

in the green movement. A number of OBT's programs also address

other, non-energy facets of green technology, including the

development of CFC-free insulation and appliances, indoor air

quality research, and the development of standards for water - consuming appliances. This paper describes OBT's stategy for

enhancing the energy efficiency of the buildings sector, and

outlines new directions in the area of green buildings technology

resulting from recent Congressional legislation and

administration initiatives.

INTRODUCTION

As a direct result of concerns arising from petroleum supply

disruptions in the early and late 1970's, the nation's buildings

are now substantially more energy efficient than they were twenty

years ago. The U.S. Department of Energy's activities have

contributed measurably to this improvement in building energy

efficiency through the development and demonstration of advanced

technologies, improved building design tools, and the promotion

of minimum energy efficiency standards and guidelines for

buildings and appliances.

Numerous studies have established that energy consumption within

the U.S. buildings sector can be reduced by a substantial

additional amount without deleterious impacts on occupant comfort

or productivity. For example, a wide array of technically proven

building technologies are available that are highly energy

efficient, life-cycle cost effective, could reduce energy use by

up to 45 percent, but are currently underutilized by the building

industry and consumers due to economic and institutional

barriers. In addition, a number of highly advanced energy

technologies, in the research stages or under development, have

the potential to double the energy performance of today's

technologies

It is the Department's vision that buildings constructed thirty

136
years from now will minimize the use of non-renewable energy

resources; that occupant needs for comfort and productivity will

be met through dynamic building envelopes that selectively

collect and release energy between the building and the external

environment, and convert solar energy directly to appropriate

forms for end-use application including heating, cooling,

lighting, and electricity production for appliance operation.

The mission of OBT is to increase building energy efficiency and

expand the use of renewable energy resources by supporting

research and development of advanced technology and promoting the

expanded use of currently available energy efficient technology

and practices. Specific goals include improving the efficiency

of buildings sector energy use by 3 0 percent by the year 2010,

increasing the use of renewables by 75 percent over current

levels by the year 2010, and complete elimination of the use of

chlorof luorocarbons in building products by the year 2000.

BARRIERS TO IMPROVED ENERGY PERFORMANCE

The Department faces several significant and long-standing

barriers, both technical and institutional, in carrying out its

mission to improve building energy performance; barriers that inturn define and shape the research, development, and market

conditioning and regulation programs that OBT pursues. These

barriers include:

Building Complexity — A typical building is made up of

thousands of individual components and assemblies of

subsystems, predominantly site-erected under variable and

uncontrollable ambient conditions. As a result, there are

numerous sources for unwanted energy losses and gains as

these components are assembled, and integrated into a

complete building system.

Building Longevity — When compared to other

energy-consuming elements in the U.S. economy, buildings are

among the most long-lived. Typically, buildings last an

average of fifty years, with some having useful lives of

more than double that. A large percentage of the existing

building stock therefore reflects design and construction

practice from a period in time when energy and the

environment was of a lower priority than today. And,

decisions now being made with regard to the performance of

new buildings will also impact energy use for a long period

into the future.

Lack of Integration of Building Technologies — Building

energy use is dependent on a wide variety of interacting

features which define the performance of the total building

system. "Energy use is determined by decisions about

equipment selection and operation, and these decisions are

137
made to satisfy a number of constraints."' It is important

that research encompassing technology design, construction

and operation be conducted across a wide range of

appropriate technologies to ensure that as broad an array of

building technologies as possible reach commercialization,

and achieve important benefits quickly.

Highly Diverse Industry — The building industry encompasses

literally thousands of different businesses and millions of

individual decisionmakers. The resulting fragmentation of

the building industry separates developers, designers,

builders, utilities, engineers, and occupants from one

another as they pursue objectives which are often at crosspurposes. In addition the building industry adopts changes

very slowly, which inhibits the adoption of advanced, energy

efficient technologies and practices.

Lack of Past Support — During the 1980s, national policy

de-emphasized the role of energy efficiency and government

funding support for research and deployment activities was

minimal. At the same time, because of characteristically

low profit margins and pressure for short term results,

private industry also cut back on investment in R&D.

Building development efforts are only now recovering from

past policies with the Clinton Administration's increasing

support for this effort.

Lack of Information and Experience — Many consumers and

building owners are not aware of the range of energy

efficient products that are available. Further, because

these products are often new in the marketplace, consumers

have not experienced their benefits. Efficiency choices are

only a small part of the numerous considerations in

selecting end-use technologies. The benefits of reducing

energy consumption while enhancing comfort or productivity

is often seen as uncertain, very small, or too far away in

the future. Better information regarding efficiency

improvements on cost, maintenance, and performance is needed

to improve the expectations for market adoption. This, inturn will improve the perceived risk/reward ratio, which

must be more attractive to consumers in order to expand

implementation of cost effective new energy saving

technologies

First Cost Hurdle — The adoption of high efficiency

equipment is often inhibited by its correspondingly higher

first cost. "Over one-third of household and one-quarter of

commercial building floor space is rented or leased rather

than owner occupied, in these buildings, there is a reduced

incentive both to invest in efficient equipment and operate

'U.S.Congress, Office of Technology Assessment, Building Energy Efficiency. 0TA-E-BI8, May. 1992. at p. 73.

138
equipment efficiently."^ The new high efficiency

opportunities are judged according to the risk of realizing

financial returns of investments in efficiency measures

through productivity gains or energy savings. The

opportunity for efficiency gains is lost when the building

designer, or construction contractor installs the least

first cost feature or equipment, (usually the least energy

efficient) , which results in higher consumption and costs

for the occupants.

STRATEGY AND PROGRAMS

The Department's goal is to move the distribution of the nation's

energy consuming appliances, equipment, and buildings, as

illustrated by the curve in Figure I. below, to the right, in the

direction of increasing energy efficiency. A combination of

three coordinated strategies is carried out in pursuit of this

goal.

Codes &

Standards

Strategy

Market

Conditioning

Strategy

R&D

Strategy

Level

of Deployment

Energy Performance

Figure 1 . Office of Building Technologies Program Strategy

'Ibid. U.S. Congrasa. OTA.

139
First, the adoption and implementation of appliance and building

codes and standards eliminates energy-wasteful products. The

usual statutory guidance is that standards should achieve the

maximum energy efficiency that is technologically feasible and

economically justified.

Second, market conditioning strategies are used to encourage

buyers to select products that are more energy efficient than

required by the standards. We acheive this by creating metrics,

or yardsticks, to measure energy efficiency; by encouraging

partnerships with industry and utilities to accelerate the

commercialization of new, energy-saving technologies; and by

educating consumers and buyers on the benefits of energy value in

new products.

Third, we support research that leads to the development of new,

energy efficient and solar building appliances, equipment, and

whole buildings.

The Department also applies these three strategies to Federal

buildings through the Federal Energy Management Program. All new

Federal buildings must meet energy efficiency standards. Federal

procurement practices are being revised to accelerate the

acquisition of energy-efficient products, and Federal buildings

and facilities are serving as "test beds" for new technologies.

The Department is pursuing this strategy simultaneously through

three separate program management offices: The Office of

Buildings Energy Research; The Office of Codes and Standards; and

The Office of Federal Energy Management Programs. The activities

of each of these offices is described below.

Office of Buildings Energy Research

OBT's Office of Buildings Energy Research incorporates three

primary themes into all of its activities, reflecting the complex

nature of building design, construction, ownership, occupancy,

and the need to break down the above identified barriers and help

to make new technology available. Most importantly, the office

looks at buildings from a total systems perspective as well as

addressing the building envelope and equipment that is utilized

within. The office also responds to the uncertainty inherent in

predicting future trends in energy availability, environmental

concerns, and national policy by pursuing a broad number of R&D

initiatives representing a range of risk/reward levels. Lastly,

it recognizes the substantial level of fragmentation that exists

within the buildings sector and the need to reflect consumer

decision processes and other non-energy variables in R&D program

design and deployment.

These programs include basic and applied research to prove the

feasibility of new, high-risk technologies, and industry cost140
shared development and demonstration designed to move

technologies into the market. Buildings research activities are

grouped within three subprograms, summarized as follows:

Building Equipment: Building equipment research addresses

the energy performance of heating and cooling systems,

refrigeration, lighting, and major appliances. Current

activities focus on thermally-activated technologies that

utilize natural gas as an alternative to electricity-driven

heating and cooling, advanced light sources that are

potentially twice as efficient as current fluorescent

technology, and new refrigerant mixtures that do not contain

ozone-depleting chemicals.

Building Envelope: This subprogram conducts research on the

components that comprise a typical building shell: walls,

roofs, and foundations; insulating materials; and windows.

It also addresses building tightening and ventilation

strategies that optimize building energy while maintaining

acceptable indoor air quality. Major activities being

conducted within this subprogram include research on high Rvalue wall insulation, spectrally selective windows, and

dynamic envelope technology capable of responding to

changing ambient conditions and building internal

requirements for light, ventilation, and heating/cooling.

Building Systems: Building systems research integrates all

of the various aspects of building design, component

construction, and equipment operation into a "whole

buildings" approach to energy performance. Activities within

this subprogram address industrialized housing processes,

computer-based software to support commercial building

design/build/operate strategies that optimize life-cycle

energy performance, and technologies to effectively retrofit

existing buildings.

Office of Codes and Standards

OBT's Office of Codes and Standards implements legislatively

mandated programs to develop energy conservation standards for

buildings and appliances. The Energy Policy and Conservation Act

(as amended) prescribes energy conservation standards for twelve

major building appliances, and requires the Department to

administer an energy conservation program for these appliances

consisting of testing, labeling, and mandatory minimum energy

efficiency standards.

OBT also carries out a legislatively mandated effort to encourage

the implementation, by state and local government, of building

energy efficiency codes and standards. In consultation with the

building industry, government, and public interest groups, the

Department is building on current voluntary codes and standards,

state codes and standards, and emerging building research results

141
to promote and support the upgrading of state and federal

building energy codes. It is also developing programs to train

building designers in ways to meet code compliance, and to train

building code officials in enforcement.

OBT is also supporting the development of a nationally-recognized

method for rating residential energy performance, which would inturn support the acceptance of energy-efficient mortgages. The

Home Energy Rating Systems (HERS) Council is developing technical

guidelines acceptable to the current infrastructure of ratings

providers, utilities, and the mortgage banking industry.

Office of Federal Energy Management Programs

The Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP) implements statutes

and Executive Orders that direct the Federal government to use

energy efficiently. The goal is a 20% decrease in energy use in

Federal buildings from 1985 to 2000, as measured by energy use

per gross square foot of building floor space. (President

Clinton subsequently, on March 8, 1994, increased this goal to a

30% decrease in energy use from 1985 to 2005.)

Program activities being carried out by OBT include: providing

guidance to agencies in the development of strategies for

financing energy conservation projects and working with utilities

on demand-side management projects; training federal facilities

managers; providing project design assistance; providing site

audits of energy-savings potential; and promoting industry costshared test bed projects at federal facilities.

MEW DIRECTIONS

As stated earlier, two recent legislative and administration

initiatives have altered the direction of Federal energy

programs, greatly expanding the Department of Energy's funding

and role in promoting energy and resource efficiency and "green

buildings." The Energy Policy Act of 1992 and the President's

Climate Change Action Plan both place substantial emphasis on

accelerating the commercialization of energy-efficient and

renewable energy technology into the marketplace, in cooperation

with industry. They^also ask the Department to pursue research

and development and establish standards and regulations in areas

outside of the traditional focus of DOE's energy programs. A

brief summary of these two initiatives follows

Energy Policy Act of 1992

The Energy Policy Act (EPAct) contains thirty separate actions

designed to improve the energy efficiency and use of renewable

energy resources within the buildings sector and reduce levels of

greenhouse gas emissions. General target goals established for

142
these actions include increasing the energy efficiency of the

buildings sector by 3 0% by the year 2 010, and increasing the

percentage of building sector energy derived from renewable

resources by 75% over 1988 levels by the year 2005.

EPAct places increased emphasis on several market-pull strategies

designed to increase the rate of commercialization of advanced,

energy efficient building technologies. Cost-shared development

and demonstration of new heating and cooling concepts, and small

scale cogeneration systems are targeted for expanded activity,

as is the development of a "systems" approach to the design,

construction and delivery of residential and commercial

buildings. EPAct also requires support for a voluntary energy

performance rating and labeling system for window products.

EPAct expands the Department's existing appliance and lighting

regulatory program to include commercial and industrial

equipment, lamps, motors, plumbing products, and commercial

office equipment. Initial energy conservation standards, test

procedures and labeling requirements are being established for

several categories of products and, for the first time, water

flow rate standards are being established for certain plumbing

products

.

In the area of building standards and guidelines, the Department

is providing technical assistance to states in the upgrading of

building energy codes, and providing financial incentives to

states demonstrating exemplary code programs. The department is

also developing new energy performance standards for Federal

buildings, including improvements to indoor air quality

standards.

The Federal Energy Management Program acquires substantial

additional responsibility under EPAct. New programs create a

Federal energy efficiency fund to provide capital for energy

efficiency improvements, provide incentives for utility

participation in efficiency improvements for Federal facilities,

establish requirements for Federal facility water conservation,

and initiate demonstration programs for new technologies. EPAct

also expands the Department's role in federal agency training,

cash awards to Agency energy managers, energy audits, surveys,

and performance contracting activities.

Climate Change Action Plan

The Administration's Climate Change Action Plan (CCAP) , announced

in October of 1993, responds to the threat of global warming by

promoting nearly 50 new and expanded initiatives to reduce the

nation's emmissions of greenhouse gases. Eleven of these new

initiatives target residential and commercial buildings, and

represent a substantial increase in OBT's scope of activity in

143
several areas.

In the residential buildings area the Department is:

-Working with the Environmental Protection Agency to form

new "Golden Carrot" programs designed to accelerate the

commercialization of advanced, energy efficient appliances

through financial "market pull" incentives;

-Developing new energy efficiency standards for 14

categories of heating and cooling equipment and appliances;

-Assisting state governments in upgrading and enforcing

their building energy codes and standards;

-Creating residential energy efficiency programs and housing

technology centers with the aim of promoting exemplary home

building by industry;

-Working with the Department of Housing and Urban

Development and other Federal agencies to promote and expand

the availability of home energy rating systems and energyefficient mortgages; and

-Expanding the Federal government's "Cool Communities"

program through research and demonstration of technologies

and practices that reduce cooling requirements in urban

areas

In the commercial buildings area the Department is:

-Working with the Environmental Protection Agency on two new

programs, Energy Star Buildings and Rebuild America, which

are designed to provide commercial building designers and

developers with the latest information on energy efficient

design and equipment selection;

-Establishing a state revolving fund that will provide seed

funding for energy management programs targeted to public

buildings;

-Expanding industry-cost-shared demonstration of emerging,

more energy efficient building technologies as a means of

validating their performance, thus reducing barriers their

acceptance; and

-Expanding DOE-sponsored energy efficiency and renewable

energy information dissemination and training programs.

144
Funding

The Energy Policy Act and the Climate Change Action Plan require

substantial additional funding over and above the Department's

baseline research and development budget, as illustrated in the

table below. As a result of EPAct requirements, FY 1994

Congressional funding for buildings programs increased 57% over

the previous year. The President's FY 1995 Budget, driven by

CCAP requirements, requests an additional increase of 115% above

the FY 1994 funding level, primarily to support market-pull

action items.

Table 1: DOE office of Building Technologies

Program Funding by Activity

FY 1993

($ million)

FY 1994

($ million)

FY 1995

($ million)

Research and Development 34.8 43.5 45.5

Codes and Standards 7.8 15. 3 31.1

Federal Energy Management 4 . 6 15.7 37.

Market Pull Activities 0.8 1.7 57.8

Management & Planning 5.3 7 . 9 10. 3

Capital Equipment 1.8 2 . 3 2.2

Total Buildings Program 55.

86.4 184 . 0

"U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 1994-300-633/12-685

145

NISTTechnical Publications

Periodical

Journal of Research of the National Institute of Standards and Technology -Reports NIST

research and development in those disciplines of the physical and engineering sciences in which

the Institute is active. These include physics, chemistry, engineering, mathematics, and computer

sciences. Papers cover a broad range of subjects, with major emphasis on measurement

methodology and the basic technology underlying standardization. Also included from time to time

are survey articles on topics closely related to the Institute's technical and scientific programs.

Issued six times a year.

Nonperiodicals

Monographs — Major contributions to the technical literature on various subjects related to the

Institute's scientific and technical activities. Handbooks — Recommended codes of engineering and industrial practice (including safety codes)

developed in cooperation with interested industries, professional organizations, and regulatory

bodies.

Special Publications — Include proceedings of conferences sponsored by NIST, NIST annual

reports, and other special publications appropriate to this grouping such as wall charts, pocket

cards, and bibliographies.

Applied Mathematics Series — Mathematical tables, manuals, and studies of special interest to

physicists, engineers, chemists, biologists, mathematicians, computer programmers, and others

engaged in scientific and technical work.

National Standard Reference Data Series — Provides quantitative data on the physical and chemical

properties of materials, compiled from the world's literature and critically evaluated. Developed

under a worldwide program coordinated by NIST under the authority of the National Standard

Data Act (Public Law 90-396). NOTE: The Journal of Physical and Chemical Reference Data

(JPCRD) is published bimonthly for NIST by the American Chemical Society (ACS) and the

American Institute of Physics (AIP). Subscriptions, reprints, and supplements are available from

ACS, 1155 Sixteenth St., NW, Washington, DC 20056.

Building Science Series — Disseminates technical information developed at the Institute on building

materials, components, systems, and whole structures. The series presents research results, test methods, and performance criteria related to the structural and environmental functions and the

durability and safety characteristics of building elements and systems.

Technical Notes — Studies or reports which are complete in themselves but restrictive in their treatment of a subject. Analogous to monographs but not so comprehensive in scope or definitive

in treatment of the subject area. Often serve as a vehicle for final reports of work performed at NIST under the sponsorship of other government agencies.

Voluntary Product Standards — Developed under procedures published by the Department of

Commerce in Part 10, Title 15, of the Code of Federal Regulations. The standards establish

nationally recognized requirements for products, and provide all concerned interests with a basis

for common understanding of the characteristics of the products. NIST administers this program

in support of the efforts of private-sector standardizing organizations.

Consumer Information Series — Practical information, based on NIST research and experience,

covering areas of interest to the consumer. Easily understandable language and illustrations provide useful background knowledge for shopping in today's technological marketplace.

Order the above NIST publications from: Superintendent of Documents, Government Printing Office,

Washington, DC 20402.

Order the following NIST publications — FIPS and NISTIRs—from the National Technical Information

Service, Springfield, VA 22161.

Federal Information Processing Standards Publications (FIPS PUB) — Publications in this series

collectively constitute the Federal Information Processing Standards Register. The Register serves

as the official source of information in the Federal Government regarding standards issued by

NIST pursuant to the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 as amended.

Public Law 89-306 (79 Stat. 1127), and as implemented by Executive Order 11717 (38 FR 12315,

dated May 11, 1973) and Part 6 of Title 15 CFR (Code of Federal Regulations).

NIST Interagency Reports (NISTIR)— A special series of interim or final reports on work

performed by NIST for outside sponsors (both government and non-government). In general,

mitial distribution is handled by the sponsor; public distribution is by the National Technical

Information Service, Springfield, VA 22161, in paper copy or microfiche form.
U.S. Department of Commerce

National Institute of Standards and Technology

Gaithersburg, MD 20899

Official Business

Penalty for Private Use $300