Thursday, September 18, 2008

News and Notes


Michigan Business Review - MLive.comGreen building: Here to stayMichigan Business Review - MLive.com - Ann Arbor,MI,USAThe United States Green Building Council, which administers LEED certification, says LEED buildings use 30 to 50 percent less energy and up to 40 percent ...
Raleigh's Convention Center Goes for LEEDBy Evelyn(Evelyn) It makes a lot of sense for municipalities and universities to pursue LEED certification because they will likely own and operate the building for decades - plenty of time for the energy savings to offset the upfront costs of LEED ...Springleaf Adventures - http://springleafstrategies.blogspot.com/

GREEN- Wind jammer: Should homeowner suit stymie Virginia's first ..."In West Virginia," explains Webb, "they've seen about 4000 of these dead bats at a 44-turbine project there, and they've recently determined it's not the blades, but the vortex their spinning creates that causes a pressure change ...Readthehook.com - Current Articles - http://www.readthehook.com

Are Green Buildings Really Losing Their Appeal?GreenerBuildings - USAFor the hard-headed naysayers in the real estate sector who might be pawing through the news for tidbits to confirm that green buildings are 'just a fad', ...See all stories on this topic

Portland's Green Building ProgramPowerPoint Presentation, 63134kb Category: Commercial Projects in Portland.PortlandOnline - http://www.portlandonline.com/index.cfm?c=25777

Federalism--Green Building Law Quagmire?By Shari Shapiro(Shari Shapiro) I wrote on the blog earlier this summer about a suit filed by HVAC indsutry associations challenging Albuquerque's green building code claiming that the energy requirements for the HVAC equipment was preempted (ie already regulated) by ...Green Building Law - http://greenlaw.blogspot.com/

Agencies Partner To Offer Green Development GrantsThe Chattanoogan - Chattanooga,TN,USA“Local officials are interested in meeting their stormwater management goals through green development practices,” said Environment and Conservation Deputy ...

VERSAR, INC. Joins US Green Building CouncilMarketWatch - USAannounced today that it has become a member of the US Green Building Council ("USGBC"), www.usgbc.org, the leader in green building and development. ...See all stories on this topic

Is It Time to Green Financial Services?By greenskeptic(greenskeptic) Green building has caught on in a major way over the past decade. Now, 14 percent of US municipalities over 50000 in population have programs promoting green development, according to Shari Shapiro, a lawyer with Obermayer, ...the green skeptic - http://greenskeptic.blogspot.com/

US Renewables Group Partners with Citi, Credit Suisse on $140MM ...Send2Press (press release) - Torrance,CA,USAThe financing was led by the renewable energy private equity group within Citi Alternative Investments, Sustainable Development Investments (SDI), ...

Skeptics turn the heat on LEED ‘green’ ratingsTwin Cities Finance and Commerce - Minneapolis,MN,USAAs a result, some buildings aren’t performing as advertised when it comes to the most important part of green building: saving energy. ...

California's Green Building StandardBy Womble Carlyle Construction Law Team(Womble Carlyle Construction Law Team) California's Green Building Standard, adopted by the California Building Standards Commission on July 18, 2008, appears to remain the only state-wide green building standard in existence --- which is somewhat surprising, ...

Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Top 10 Green Building Blogs

From http://www.jetsongreen.com/2007/07/the-top-ten-gre.html

1. Building Green TV
On the one hand, Building Green TV is a television show on PBS, but on the other hand, it's behind the interactive social website of the same name. Building Green TV's mission is to provide homeowners with a glimpse of just how easy, cost-effective, and healthy it is to go green, while dispelling the myth that an environmentally conscious lifestyle means doing without. The television show's host is Kevin Contreras and season two is already in the works. Also check out the website's share feature, which allows readers to interact, publish stories, and find new ways to live green.
2. Green Buildings NYC
This website is the product and passion of Stephen Del Percio, a LEED AP and attorney in New York and New Jersey. He started the website in March 2006 and has been pumping out good green business, real estate, and law information ever since. Although the content is fairly local in nature (sites for New York, LA, DC, and Miami), much of it is relevant in any geography.
3. MetaEfficient
MetaEfficient is a blog written by Justin Thomas covering the latest and coolest green products and technologies. Importantly, MetaEfficient highlights tons of tech that could help buildings with energy or water efficiency. Also, this blog is quick to feature some of the newest, most innovative green skyscrapers, so if you want to get in early, get with MetaEfficient.
4. Equity Green
Equity Green is an excellent source of green building information with a financial/tax perspective. The author, who also happens to be my brother, regularly features the newest YouTube videos and LEED projects right as they come out. As the tag line says, Equity Green is about finding equity in green buildings.
5. Treehugger - Lloyd Alter
You probably already know Treehugger, but do you know Lloyd Alter? Lloyd is an architect, developer, and all around green prefab expert. He tells it like it is and takes a beating for it. He's genuine and approachable, too. Here's a quote from his bio: "Lloyd became convinced that we just use too much of everything- too much space, too much land, too much food, too much fuel, too much money, and that the key to sustainability is to simply use less. And, the key to happily using less is to design things better."
6. Apartment Therapy: Green Home
This new channel within the big-time Apartment Therapy blog system is about "saving the planet, one apartment at a time." AT Green Home publishes tons of new articles every day and helps readers go green in a stylish way. I'm a big fan of the new channel and eagerly dive into each story popping up on my feed reader.
7. Green Key Real Estate Blog
Green Key Real Estate is the first and only green real estate company in San Francisco. Its focus is on incorporating environmentally responsible and socially just principles and practices into all aspects of its business. What's cool about their blog is that it's not just some corporate blog promoting the interests of the company. This is a legitimate blog talking about what's going on in the world of green real estate. These bloggers don't just know real estate, they know green real estate...precisely the kind of people you want to do business with.
8. Verde Vista - Jay Hasbrouck
Jay's blog focuses on bright green environmentalism, which emphasizes the use of new technology and improved design to achieve gains in ecological sustainability without reducing the potential for economic growth. Verde Vista is a compilation of interesting news and events in the genre of environmentalism and much of it pertains to advances in green living.
9. Inhabitat
We all know Inhabitat. It's the forerunner in green design, or "future-forward design for the world you inhabit." With a talented team of writers, designers, architects, and environmental consultants, it's clear that Inhabitat will continue to influence the future of green building. Inhabitat keeps a pulse on innovations in technology, practices, and materials that are pushing home design towards a smarter, greener future.
10. Building Seattle Green
This is the green building blog section under the umbrella of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Like some of the other green building blogs, this one is fairly local in scope, but there's a lot to learn from the writing of these professionals. Building Seattle Green aims to move beyond the common perception that green building is more expensive and wants to help create a more sustainable urban environment in Seattle.
Just as an added bonus, for those that are interested, I've created these crazy little badges to strut your stuff. Feel free to post one on your blog...just right click and save (and then add it in to your blog as you like). And from Jetson Green, thanks for your excellent work in green building.

Sunday, September 14, 2008

Carbon Neutral and Sustainable

Welcome, this blog hopes to provide updates on the sustainable development movement in the US