Green Building
NAHB members build more than 80% of the homes in this country, and it is estimated that half of those incorporate at least some green practices into their development, design, and construction. A recent McGraw-Hill study predicts that the green building marketplace is expected to be worth nearly $60 billion by 2010.
Building green means incorporating environmental considerations and resource efficiency into every step of the home building and land development process to minimize environmental impact. During the design, construction, and operation of a home, energy and water efficiency, lot development, resource efficient building design and materials, indoor environmental quality and homeowner maintenance should all be considered. Although builders cannot entirely avoid affecting the environment when a house is built, green building can work toward minimizing that environmental impact.
To see how homes become green, click here.
Current Topics and Resources:
The NAHB Green Building Program
NAHB's National Green Building Program offers builders, remodelers, developers, and other home building professionals a variety of services to learn, incorporate, and market green building. Specific program components include:
ICC Green Construction Code Released for Public Comment 
Initiated last year in cooperation with the American Institute of Architects and ASTM International, the first public version of the International Green Construction Code was released by the International Code Council (ICC) on March 15 for public comment.
The new model green building code is intended to be integrated with existing I-Codes - such as the International Building Code and International Energy Conservation Code - to create a new regulatory baseline for green construction that will "accelerate the construction of high-performance green buildings across the United States," according to an ICC press release.
In 2007, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) partnered with the ICC to write what eventually resulted in the first standard for residential green building to be approved by the American National Standards Institute: the National Green Building Standard (ICC 700).
Like the National Green Building Standard, the International Green Construction Code (IGCC) includes requirements for energy and water conservation and efficiency, land use and development, and a remodeling component.
The IGCC will apply to all buildings, including residential.
While its text is limited to specifying requirements for commercial and industrial buildings, its scoping provisions stipulate that the requirements of ICC 700 shall apply to all residential occupancies.
This means that if it is adopted by a jurisdiction as a mandatory green code, the International Green Construction Code will require all single-family and multifamily housing to comply with the National Green Building Standard. However, designers will have the option to use either ICC 700 or the provisions of the International Green Construction Code for high-rise multifamily buildings.
Additionally, the International Code Council announced that the ICC/AIA/ASTM team had joined forces with developers of the "ANSI/ASHRAE/USGBC/IES Standard 189.1-2009 for the Design of High-Performance Green Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings." This new standard will now be referenced within the IGCC as an alternative path for compliance.
The release of Public Version 1.0 of the International Green Construction Code marks the completion of the drafting process by the ICC Sustainable Building Technology Committee. The ICC is now seeking public comments on this first draft of the code. Interested parties are encouraged to submit comments by the May 14 deadline.
Hearings on the public comments are scheduled in Chicago for Aug. 14-22. The results will then be incorporated into a second draft - Public Version 2.0 of the IGCC - which will be posted by Nov. 3.
Following that, the IGCC will be subjected to a full cycle of code development hearings in 2011, which will culminate in the first published edition of the code in early 2012.
To download a copy of the draft code and related information go to the ICC Web site at www.iccsafe.org or click here.
For more information contact TAB staff or NAHB staff member Calli Schmidt at 800-368-5242 x8312.
This ANSI approved standard defines green building for single and multifamily homes, residential remodeling projects, and site development projects. It allows flexibility for regionally-appropriate best green practices.
Focusing on new single-family homes, the Guidelines were written to serve as a voluntary "baseline" so that NAHB members could easily develop local green building programs.
An expanded tour of green homes, advanced educational sessions and the National Green Building Awards Dinner will be highlights of the 12th annual NAHB National Green Building Conference in Raleigh, N.C., May 16-18.
Registration opened last month and so far is running slightly ahead of last year's figures. There were about 1,200 attendees at the conference in Dallas last May.
The annual Tour of Homes is being organized by the Green Home Builders of the Triangle, veterans of green home tours in the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill area.
The tour includes examples of affordable, production and high-end homes, both completed and under construction. Remodeling and multifamily projects are included as well.
The growing interest in green building and requests from long-time conference attendees and more experienced green builders convinced the conference working group, led by Maryland builder Mike Bell, to increase the selection of more advanced, in-depth educational sessions along with the introductory courses and seminars.
Among the new offerings:
-The Economics of Green Homes and Green Home Building. This session will examine real world case studies drawn from both single-family and multifamily new construction and weatherization projects to demonstrate the economics of green homes and identify opportunities to build a better, more salable product; reduce costs; deliver good investment returns and value to the customer; and differentiate green homes from the competition.
-The Latest in Appraising and Lending on Green Buildings. This program will provide an update on FHA, VA and conventional financing as well as the state of green appraising. Also covered will be the so-called "smart commute" and movement within the secondary market to create a true green mortgage.
-Green Renovation & Addition. A start-to-finish case study of an extensive renovation and addition project that turned a 15-year-old, 1,800-square-foot, inefficient home into an award-winning green project will review the decision-making process of the home owners as they worked with an experienced team of green builders.
In addition, there will be an all-day GreenTensive session on May 17 to encourage advanced and veteran green builders and remodelers to collaborate and share solutions to the challenges they have encountered.
There is also a two-day course, Advanced Green Building: Building Science, that will instruct builders and remodelers on proper building science techniques for constructing and remodeling high-performance homes. Course attendees can earn credit toward a Master CGP designation. The course will be held May14-15, prior to the conference.
NAHB members receive discounted conference registration. Visit the conference registration page for more details.
The NAHB Research Center accredits third-party verifiers and is the sole certifying body for the National Green Building Program.
Classwork leading to the designation provides a solid background in green building methods, as well as the tools to reach consumers, from the organization leading the charge to provide market-driven green building solutions to the home building industry.
Find products that the NAHB Research Center has approved as being eligible to contribute points toward certification under the National Green Building Standard™. Such products, when appropriately used, enable builders to earn points toward certification of the building.
Allows designers to score new homes, renovations, and land developments to the National Green Building Standard or the NAHB Model Green Home Building Guidelines. It is the tool to use for National Green Building Certification
The Hotline is available Monday-Friday from 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM Eastern time to answer questions, address comments, and provide resources to professionals looking to build green.
For more information and access to these services go to www.nahbgreen.org
Media Talking Points
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Links
Green Built Texas - www.greenbuilttexas.org
ENERGY STAR - www.energystar.gov
Austin Energy - www.austinenergy.com
