William & Mary Law School Symposium on Green Building

In January, 2009, I attended the “It’s Not Easy Building Green” Symposium sponsored by the William and Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review. A panel of speakers from across the country discussed issues relating to Green Building Standards and Sustainable Development Legislation.

Speakers included Prof. Patricia Salkin, Albany Law School, and Prof. John Nolan, Pace Law School, who together discussed how to accomplish reductions in green house gas emissions through local government controls (comprehensive plans, zoning and subdivision regulations, environmental ordinances, etc.). Prof. Salkin urged local governments to conduct "green audits" and to incorporate green zoning into local comprehensive plans.

Prof. Timothy Beatley, University of Virginia School of Architecture, spoke on the topic of "biophilic" urban design, which incorporates nature into traditional infrastructures in projects. Some examples include the use of bike and walking trails instead of concrete sidewalks, and replacing traditional stormwater systems with streams and gardens.

Other speakers included Shari Shapiro, Stephen Del Percio, and Chris Cheatham, all green building law attorneys and LEED Accredited Professionals.

For a full summary of the Symposium and for links to each speaker, go to http://elpr.org/symposium/.

NAHB Green Building Standard approved by ANSI

The American National Standards Institute™ (ANSI) has approved the National Association of Home Builders' (NAHB) rating system known as the "National Green Building Standard"™ (NGBS). NGBS certification applies to residential construction of single-family homes, apartments and condos, including remodeling and renovation. I listened to the NAHB tele-conference announcing the approval and it is clear that the NAHB intends to got head-to-head with LEED™ and other competing standards.

“The National Green Building Standard is now the first and only green building rating system approved by ANSI, making it the benchmark for green homes,” said Ron Jones, who chaired the NAHB consensus committee that developed the standard. Rachel Neuhaus, Government Affairs Director at the Builders Association of the Hudson Valley, sent me a comparison showing that the additional cost of NGBS certification is significantly less than LEED-H certification.

How do we reconcile competing "green" standards? LEED is positioned as the "top of mind" brand but is considered expensive in application. NGBS is touted as affordable, has stature afforded by the ANSI certification, but is new to the market. Throw in Green Globes™ and Energy Star™ and there is bound to be confusion in the marketplace (developers, design professionals, municipalities, etc.)


Locally, the Town of Blooming Grove Zoning Ordinance provides an example of the uncertainty these competing standards create. In the Ordinance, the district regulations provide for a 10% density bonus for residential subdivisions based upon "adherence to New York State Energy Star guidelines, low-impact development guidelines, or U.S. Green Building Council Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards". Each standard is remarkably different but all will result in the same bonus. The Town may now want to add the NGBS to the list, and at the same time, clarify what actions will constitute "adherence" to each.

NY State Bar Association issues report on Climate Change

The NYS State Bar Association's Task Force on Global Warming issued it's report "Taking Action on Climate Change" in January, 2009. The Task Force recommends that New York adopt a "statewide comprehensive climate change strategy" with "a target to reduce New York's greenhouse gas emissions to 80% below 1990 levels by 2050" (pg. 34). The report contains 22 proposals to meet this strategy that are broken into 4 catagories: Building and Energy; Land Use; Vehicles and Traffic; and Other Initiatives. Some of the proposals related to "green" building and development are:

• Improve incentives for "green" building, and centralize the information on available incentives.


• Expedite the approval process for "climate-friendly" projects, and prioritize "green" building projects for affordable housing.


• Eliminate the "50% rule" in the State Energy Conservation Construction Code to broaden its applicability to building renovations. Renovation projects involving less than 50% of the "building subsystem" are currently exempt.


• Require "green" building standards for all school construction.


• Amend the State Environmental Quality Review Act to require environmental impact statements to document GHG emissions and climate change considerations.


• Require GHG emissions considerations to be included in municipal comprehensive plans.

The report is a wealth of information. Please let me know your thoughts or comments on any of the topics in the report.

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