Sustainable Development Focus
PRNewswire - Apr 19 Simon Property Group, a global leader in retail real estate, and Current, powered by GE, are partnering on the next generation of efficient, intelligent malls. To advance its sustainability goals and improve the shopping experience, Simon is installing a variety of solutions from Current's efficient-energy portfolio, including intelligent LEDs, electric vehicle charging stations, and demand response systems to shift and optimize electricity use. These solutions are projected to save Simon 50-75 percent in energy costs in the applications where they're installed.
Environmental Leader - Apr 14 Water is increasingly affecting companies’ bottom lines, making water management no longer a choice for environmental managers. An Ecova survey of more than 700 energy, facility, finance, and sustainability professionals across North America found water conservation is a business imperative. While water conservation and efficiency measures such as low- and no-flow fixtures and toilets and drought-tolerant landscaping are the low-hanging fruit for environmental and facility managers looking to save water and money on utility bills, water reuse is growing in popularity as well. The next step is incorporating smart water technologies into facilities management.
Curbed - Apr 22 Construction is kicking off on a development that might become America's first solar-powered city. Located in southwestern Florida just 13 miles from Fort Myers, the Babcock Ranch development is slated to encompass 19,500 homes, 6 million square feet of retail, and 50,000 inhabitants by the time it's fully finished in roughly 25 years. It will largely be powered by one of the country's largest arrays of photovoltaic panels. When complete, the 400-acre, $300 million array will produce enough energy to run the town and feed excess power back into the electrical grid.
San Francisco Examiner - Apr 19 San Francisco became the first large city in California to mandate solar installations on new buildings last week, following the lead of the smaller municipalities Lancaster and Sebastopol, which passed similar mandates in 2013. Beginning January, new commercial and residential buildings of up to 10 stories in height will have to install rooftop solar systems for heat or electricity under legislation unanimously approved by the Board of Supervisors. The legislation, introduced by Supervisor Scott Wiener, builds on San Francisco’s environmental efforts like the imminent launch of a renewable energy program, known as CleanPowerSF, later this year.
Haute Living - Apr 19 The U.S. Green Building Council has awarded Eli and Edythe Broad’s new art museum, The Broad, with LEED Gold certification for LEED New Construction. The Broad is the first major art museum in Los Angeles and one of only a handful of museums nationwide to achieve LEED Gold status thanks to environmentally friendly features such as electric car charging stations, bike parking spaces, rooftop drains routed to street level gardens that filter runoff, and high-efficiency plumbing fixtures that help reduce indoor water use by 40 percent.
Portland Business Journal - Apr 22 The $155 million or so spent to upgrade the Edith Green-Wendell Wyatt Federal Building in Portland is reaping some benefits a few years after the project wrapped up in 2013. Studies have shown that the 18-story, 512,474-square-foot office tower now uses 55 percent less energy than it did in its original format when it was built in 1974, resulting in savings of about $313,000 per year. Additionally, the revamped building uses 65 percent less water than it used to, to the tune of about 4 million gallons each year. Last week, the American Institute of Architects honored the building with its Committee on the Environment Top Ten Plus Award for reaching its improved resource efficiency after the four-year remake.
