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Now a protest on smoking in LEED buildings was not quite the sight I expected to see as a rocked up for the first day of Greenbuild! I believe the protesters were referring in particular to the newly certified ARIA resort and casino in Las Vegas which allows smoking on the casino floor.

On closer inspection and investigation however, it appears that the casino itself was excluded from the LEED submission, which only covers the hotel resort tower and convention center.

“The USGBC already has awarded LEED Gold certification to ARIA’s hotel tower, convention center and theater; as well as Vdara Hotel. CityCenter’s remaining venues are poised to receive a combination of Silver and Gold LEED ratings.” (For full article click here)

But even if it had been included smoking could be allowed in designated areas with measures taken to avoid second-hand smoke in other areas according to EQ Prerequisite 2: Environmental Tobacco Smoke (ETS) Control. See the blog and comments at Cooper Green Design for more detail.

I wonder if the protesters knew this or if it would make much difference to them? However, it does raise some interesting questions about what LEED should and can demand of facilities, and how boundaries are set. Though I believe the Minimum Program Requirements (MRP) in the latest version of LEED (2009) would now not allow this kind of exclusion.

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Tags:Greenbuild, LEED, Sustainability

Have you been trying to keep up with all the Greenbuild round-ups as much as me? This Reuters article gives a great overview of the event. And if you are tired of reading, these pictures at Greenbuild’s Flickr page and here at Treehugger also sum it up quite nicely.

However, even though all the excitement of the show is over, the topic of sustainability is here to stay.

The key to green or sustainable (depending on your preference or definition!) building is realizing that we need to engage in it so much it becomes the norm. This is not a fad, this is the new way of doing things! We’re getting there, but we’ve got a long way to go, and it’s going to require a lot more effort, integration, shake-up of today’s conventional design process, and most of all education, check out Greenbuild365. We were all worried about just how high the level of greenwashing would be at the show – but the theme of Greenbuild this year seems to be the lack of greenwashing, look at Greenbiz’s article on this. Which is an encouraging step forward – showing industry understanding is gradually maturing.  But I agree with Joel, that is not to say the show was a hype-free zone.

All in all, Greenbuild 2009 was a great show for us and, by the sounds of it, the vast majority of attendees. We’re looking forward to 2010 in Chicago. And for the next 364 days, will be working to get the message out that green building is here to stay, and that performance analysis has a key role to play.

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Tags:Building, Greenbuild, Sustainability

Any idea? Neither do I. Instead, I would like to blog about quantification because it’s been bothering me. For example, let’s take the Prius. Is it really that good for the environment after you take the batteries into account? The embodied energy..how much energy is required to process, manufacture and transport the batteries? What about the disposal of the batteries? How long do they even last? Does the reduction in emissions from fuel efficiency offset this enough? How do we know? Is keeping an old car that gets 25mpg better than buying a new one that gets 45mpg when you take that embodied energy into account? How long do the batteries last anyway? What about a Lexus hybrid? 6.0L car that comes in hybrid version. Is the hybrid actually worse for the environment?

I read an article saying that driving 2 miles to the store is actually better than walking because the energy required to process, manufacture and transport the food needed to provide the calories for the walk is greater than the emissions from the car. Ummm…what about the energy to extract, process and transport the fuel? What about the energy to manufacture the car? Did the walker get his lunch from the moon??

In the home, is it better to recycle junk mail or switch off your heater and burn the paper to keep you warm? How do you quantify this? What about paper towels vs hand drier vs cotton towels? Which one? Are the paper towels recycled? Is the hand drier hot or cold air? Is the water you use to wash the towels hot or cold, detergent natural or synthetic?

Oh btw, these are not rhetorical. Answers on my desk Monday morning please. Oh and bring me some cheese.

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Tags:Environment, recycle, recycling

This year at Greenbuild, we are excited to join the estimated 25,000+ exhibitors and attendees connecting Main St. to the world of green building, with the goal of bringing green building home to all people, boosting the quality of life on main streets across the country and around the world.

Our own Don McLean was at the booth last night, discussing what he hopes will come out of the show this year, including the need to start weeding out the greenwashing from years prior. Don said we’re all here for the most important reason: sustainability.

Check out more from Don below:

And for more news, live from the show floor, follow us on Twitter at @IESVE. You can also follow the official Twitter feed of #Greenbuild09 at @USGBC.

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Last week Greenbuild announced that Carol Browner, Director of the White House Office of Energy and Climate Change Policy in the Obama Administration, will be speaking at the Greenbuild 2009 closing plenary session on Friday, November 13th.  Browner previously served as Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency during the Clinton Administration and has been making strides throughout her career towards a more sustainable environment.

I am truly inspired by her hard work and accomplishments over the years.
 

To learn more about Carol Browner please visit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carol_Browner

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Tags:Carol Browner, climate change