Definitions

What Makes a Product Green?

There is no easy answer to this question. Green Building is about the overall environmental impact of building for a specific site. For every product vying for a 'green' title, consideration must be given to manufacturing impacts, resource-extraction impacts, indoor-air-quality impacts, and other crieria.

Despite the inherent difficulty a leading authority in Green Building established threshold criteria for products used in construction for acquiring the title of green. A discriminating system that still allows for judgment calls due to application variables and overall performance, it is by far the most comprehensive standard available today.*

The following “summarized” criteria for designating products as green is derived from www.BuildingGreen.com. Go to their website for the complete list.

1. Products That Conserve Natural Resources
Products can contribute to the conservation of natural resources. They may serve a function using less material than the conventional approach, products that are especially durable products and therefore won't need replacement as often, Forest Stewardship Council (FSC)-certified sustainably harvested wood, and products made from rapidly renewable resources.

1a. Products that reduce material use -- This criterion may not be distinctly green include as green products because of resource efficiency benefits that they make possible

1b. Products with exceptional durability or low maintenance requirements -- These are environmentally attractive because they need to be replaced less frequently, or their maintenance has low impact.

1c. Certified wood products -- Third-party forest certification, based on standards developed by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), is the best way to ensure that wood products come from well-managed forests.

1d. Rapidly renewable products -- Rapidly renewable materials are distinguished from wood by the shorter harvest rotation--typically 10 years or less. They are biodegradable, often low in Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) emissions, and generally from agricultural crops.

2. Products Made with Salvaged, Recycled, or Agricultural Waste Content

2a. Salvaged products -- Reusing a product instead of producing a new one save son resource use and energy. Many salvaged materials used in buildings are sold on a local or regional basis by salvage yards.

2b. Products with post-consumer recycled content -- Recycled content is an important feature of many green products..

2c. Products with post-industrial recycled content -- Post-industrial recycling refers to the use of industrial by-products, as distinguished from material that has been in consumer use.

2d. Products made from agricultural waste material -- Products are included in the green category because they are derived from agricultural waste products.

3. Products That Avoid Toxic or Other Emissions
Some building products are considered green because they have low manufacturing impacts, are alternatives to conventional products made from chemicals considered problematic, or because they facilitate a reduction in polluting emissions from building maintenance.

3a. Natural or minimally processed products -- Products that are natural or minimally processed can be green because of low energy use and low risk of chemical releases during manufacture.

3b. Alternatives to conventional preservative-treated wood

3c. Alternatives to ozone-depleting substances

3d. Alternatives to products made from PVC

3f. Products that reduce or eliminate pesticide treatments -- Periodic pesticide treatment around buildings can be a significant health and environmental hazard. The use of certain products can obviate the need for pesticide treatments, and such products are therefore considered green.

3g. Products that reduce pollution or waste from operations -- Alternative wastewater disposal systems reduce groundwater pollution by decomposing organic wastes more effectively. Porous paving products and green (vegetated) roofing systems result in less storm water runoff and thereby reduce surface water pollution and sewage treatment plant loads.

4. Products That Reduce Environmental Impacts During Construction, Demolition, or Renovation
Some building products produce their environmental benefits by avoiding pollution or other environmental impacts during construction, renovation, or demolition. While a fairly small category in terms of the number of products satisfying the criterion, it is nonetheless important. The subcategories here refer to the construction stage where the benefit is typically realized:

4a. Products that reduce the impacts of new construction -- Various erosion-control products, foundation products that eliminate the need for excavation, and exterior stains that result in lower VOC emissions into the atmosphere.

4b. Products that reduce the impacts of demolition -- Fluorescent lamp and ballast recyclers and low-mercury fluorescent lamps reduce environmental impacts during demolition (as well as renovation).

5. Products That Save Energy or Water
The ongoing environmental impacts that result from energy and water used in operating a building often far outweigh the impacts associated with building it. Many products are included as green for these benefits. Subcategories:

5a. Building components that reduce heating and cooling loads -- Examples include structural insulated panels (SIPs), insulated concrete forms (ICFs), autoclaved aerated concrete (AAC) blocks, and high-performance windows and glazings.

5b. Equipment that conserves energy -- such as water heaters and refrigerators, clothes washers, lighting and lighting control equipment that are efficient.

5c. Renewable energy and fuel cell equipment -- Equipment and products that enable us to use renewable energy instead of fossil fuels and conventional electricity are highly beneficial from an environmental standpoint. Examples include solar water heaters, photovoltaic systems, and wind turbines.

5d. Fixtures and equipment that conserve water -- Includes toilets, showerheads landscape irrigation controllers and rainwater catchment systems.

6. Products That Contribute to a Safe, Healthy Indoor Environment
Buildings should be healthy to live or work in, and product selection is a significant determinant of indoor environment quality. Green Building products that help to ensure a healthy indoor environment can be separated into several categories:

6a. Products that don't release significant pollutants into the building -- Included here are zero- and low-VOC paints, caulks, and adhesives.ducts.

6b. Products that block the introduction, development, or spread of indoor contaminants -- Certain materials and products are green because they prevent the generation or introduction of biological contaminants into occupied space. Duct mastic can block the entry of mold-laden air or insulation fibers into a duct system. Linoleum helps to control microbial growth.

6c. Products that remove indoor pollutants -- Included are certain ventilation products, filters, radon mitigation equipment, and other equipment and devices that help to remove pollutants or introduce fresh air.

6d. Products that warn occupants of health hazards in the building -- Included here are carbon monoxide (CO) detectors, lead paint test kits, and other IAQ test kits.

6e. Products that improve light quality -- There is a growing body of evidence that natural daylight is beneficial to our health and productivity. Products that enable us to bring daylight into a building, including tubular skylights, specialized commercial skylights, and fiber-optic daylighting systems, are included.

*Some products may not meet threshold criteria in any one category but are still considered green because the overall performance deems them so. Conversely, a product with green attributes might not qualify if it also carries significant environmental burden.

The above criteria for designating products as green has been summarized from BuildingGreen, as published in GreenSpec-- a national directory of green products. BuildingGreen, Inc. is publisher of Environmental Building News, GreenSpec, EBN Archives, and Green Building Advisor.


What is the Definition of Green Design?

To significantly reduce or eliminate the negative impact of buildings on the environment and on the building occupants, green building design and construction practices address: sustainable site planning, safeguarding water and water efficiency, energy efficiency, conservation of materials and resources, and indoor environmental quality.


Why Build Green?

Green building has multiple direct environmental and economic benefits to consumers and to society as a whole. Green building is an integration of environmental elements, spiritual and personal well-being, healthy practices, architectural designs and non-toxic building materials. The integration of all of these things creates the ideal, modern, work place. It involves architects, clients, consultants, construction managers, and material suppliers, all of whom comprise the project green team. Some of these benefits include:

• Increasing demand for recycled content building products creates markets for the feedstock collected in municipal recycling programs.
  
  
• Reducing and recycling construction wastes directly benefit local jurisdictions working to meet the diversion requirements of AB939.
  
  
• Recycling construction waste is often less expensive than disposal.
  
  
• Making homes more energy efficient, California residents can realize actual monthly utility savings.
  
  
• Including onsite electricity generation, via photo-voltaic cells or other methods, reduces the state’s dependence on out-of-state power generation, provides electricity back to the grid during the day, saves consumers money, and reduces air-pollution.
  
  
• Using low-flow water fixtures and reducing the amount of landscape can reduce water demand, and, in areas with meters, will save consumers by lower monthly bills.
  
  
• Cities that embrace green building can reduce the impacts on their infrastructure including roads, water treatment, and storm water run-off.
  
  
• Reducing water consumption also saves electricity used to pump water to consumers.
  
  
• Increasing the use of infill land and/or encouraging redevelopment in underutilized sites reduces the consumption or farmland and eases transportation burdens since these sites are generally located in developed areas near jobs and services.

What are Housing's Environmental Impacts?

Population growth and housing development have many impacts on the environment and on quality of life issues. The sheer number of existing housing units as well as the potential impact of future growth in the state directly speaks to the need of an integrated green building approach to housing. Among some of the direct factors that impact California include:

• In 2002, California had approximately 12.4 million existing housing units, nearly 70 percent having been built more than a quarter century ago.
  
  
• In order to meet expected population growth, approximately 220,000 housing units will need to be added annually until 2020.
  
  
• The construction of a 2,000 ft2 house generates approximately 3.5 tons of waste.
  
  
• The residential sector accounts for roughly 31 percent of the electricity consumed in the state.
  
  
• Transportation issues in California will become more acute as we continue to build houses on cheaper land further from the economic centers of the state.
  
  
• California residences use 5.6 million acre-feet of applied water annually.
  
  
• American’s spend an average on 90 percent of their time indoors, and many common building products used in housing construction emit formaldehyde or other chemicals known by the state to have health impacts.

Currently, houses in California must be built to the most stringent energy code in the country, but this will not be enough to reduce the impacts housing has on the state’s environment. In order to be truly effective, an integrated approach to building must be pursued.


What is the Definition of a Hybrid Vehicle?

By definition, a hybrid vehicle is one that employs two or more power sources to improve the overall efficiency of the vehicle. By combining an internal combustion engine along with an electric battery-motor system, low emission and reasonable vehicle mileage can be realized. In addition, hybrid electric vehicle can recapture the wasted kinetic energy during braking, thus further improves the overall efficiency of the vehicle system.