April 7, 2008—Promoting the green design, construction, renovation, and operation of buildings could cut North American greenhouse gas emissions more “deeply, quickly, and cheaply” than any other available measure, concludes a new report from the tri-national Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC). The CEC was established by Canada, the United States, and Mexico to build cooperation on environmental issues in North America.
The CEC report notes that North America’s buildings cause the annual release of more than 2,200 megatons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, or about 35% of the continent’s total carbon emissions. The report concludes that the rapid deployment of currently available and emerging energy efficiency technologies could avoid 1,700 megatons of annual carbon dioxide emissions by 2030.
The report notes that it is common now for more advanced green buildings to routinely reduce energy usage by 30, 40, or even 50 percent over conventional buildings, with the most efficient buildings now performing more than 70 percent better than conventional properties. However, green building today accounts for only two percent of the commercial construction market.
The report highlights the importance of green building in urban development, and describes a number of disincentives to green building to be overcome. It recommends ways to accelerate the market uptake of green building and make it the standard practice for all new construction and renovation of existing buildings in North America.
<Green Building in North America: Opportunities and Challenges is available on the CEC Green Building Web site.
