Green Building Blog

It’s 2020 and we are in for BIG changes in this decade!  Or are we?

If you haven’t heard about it yet, PACE, or Property Assessed Clean Energy - is the unique financial tool that allows building owners to fully finance energy conservation measures with no money down. Because PACE projects must be “cash-flow positive,” this long-term loan is generally paid back out of the savings realized from the upgrades!

With the increasing number of catastrophic weather events over the past few years, the concept of Resilience should be top-of-mind for anyone involved in the building industry.

First it was rebuilding. Now it’s resilience. We need to be thinking about, and acting upon, what we can do now to prevent having to start over from scratch after the next 100-year flood that happens only a few years after the last one.

There’s a new phrase gaining popularity in the energy efficiency and cost saving arena. It’s really a new name for something we’ve been advocating for all along.

Why are green buildings better? According to the US Green Building Council (USGBC), a green building can have the following impact:

• 15 - 40% reduction in energy use over non-green buildings
• 20 - 40% reduction in carbon emissions over non-green buildings
• 30 - 50% reduction in water use

One of the best ways to achieve optimal environmental and financial results from greening your building is “Greening the HVAC.” There are basically three things to consider when looking to improve the efficiency of your building’s HVAC.