Sustainable Development Focus
Greentech Media - Dec 28 Many voices have highlighted the expected leadership role of private-sector investment in the continued growth of clean technology markets. One such opportunity for the private sector is energy-efficiency investments in and by the nation’s small businesses. According to a 2013 report by the Preservation Green Lab, the energy efficiency potential of the 7 million small businesses in U.S. small commercial buildings is enormous: savings of 1.07 quadrillion Btu (British thermal units) of site energy, or more than $30 billion annually. Although energy use can account for up to 20 percent of the expenditures of a small business, many business owners do not have the expertise themselves or within their staff to identify and manage energy savings projects. Several organizations, such as Green Impact Campaign, are working with small businesses to address the knowledge and time barriers. In addition, many utilities offer free energy audits, rebates, and incentives, and even free installation of energy conservation measures to small businesses.
Proud Green Building - Dec 30 The 1970s-era 435 Indio Way in Sunnyvale, California, didn’t have a lot going for it. Nondescript, dark, and cold buildings don’t attract a lot of tenants, but especially not in sunny California. However, after a deep energy retrofit that included using 100 percent natural ventilation and 100 percent daylighting, the building took only three months to fill with tenants, reports High Performance Buildings. Sharp Development had to look beyond the downsides to the potential profits that could result from a net zero energy conversion, and the investment paid off. “The retrofit increased the property’s value by $56 per square foot,” according to RMW Architecture and Interiors.
UC Davis - Dec 29 The University of California, Davis, is the greenest university in the world, according to the seventh annual GreenMetric ranking from the University of Indonesia. UC Davis held the third position in last year’s UI GreenMetric World University Ranking, and emerged No. 1 in the 2016 assessment of 516 colleges and universities in 74 countries for environmentally friendly campus operations and policies, and research and education on sustainability. In another year-end environmental achievement, UC Davis earned the U.S. Green Building Council’s highest LEED rating for the new Jan Shrem and Maria Manetti Shrem Museum of Art. It is the ninth UC Davis project to be platinum-certified in LEED.
San Diego Union-Tribune - Dec 29 San Ysidro would be transformed into a vibrant commercial and residential area under a new city plan that envisions multi-story housing along the trolley line and a tourist-oriented “village” near the international border. The new San Ysidro Community Plan, approved last month, rezones hundreds of acres to attract new businesses and jobs, calls for more parks, and sets the impact fees the city will charge developers to pay for dozens of badly needed infrastructure projects. The number of housing units in San Ysidro would increase by more than 31 percent, with many of those in multi-story condominiums and apartments built along the trolley line. That’s known as transit-oriented development or “smart growth,” where the city seeks to address its housing shortage without creating the traffic congestion and environmental damage that typically comes with projects in more rural areas relatively far from transit and freeways.
Recycling Today - Dec 22 Outdoor gear and outfitter company Recreational Equipment Inc. (REI), headquartered in Seattle, has received LEED Platinum certification at its newest distribution center in Goodyear, Arizona. Platinum is the highest level in the U.S. Green Building Council's green building rating system, making it the first distribution center in the U.S. to achieve both LEED Platinum certification and Net Zero Energy. REI achieved LEED Platinum certification by implementing sustainable strategies and solutions throughout the building, including: recycling approximately 97 percent of all materials at the distribution center, with less than 3 percent of waste sent to landfills; a 2.2-megawatt solar system producing enough renewable energy on-site to power the entire facility annually; and a nonevaporative cooling system, fully powered by renewable energy, to keep employees cool in the desert heat and save millions of gallons of water every year.
