{"id":12435,"date":"2023-01-30T22:55:11","date_gmt":"2023-01-31T06:55:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/how-green-building-policy-could-evolve-in-2023\/"},"modified":"2023-01-30T22:55:11","modified_gmt":"2023-01-31T06:55:11","slug":"how-green-building-policy-could-evolve-in-2023","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/how-green-building-policy-could-evolve-in-2023\/","title":{"rendered":"How green building policy could evolve in 2023"},"content":{"rendered":"

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For much of its recent history in mitigating climate change, Denver has concentrated on buildings\u2019 operational energy \u2014 the energy needed to run basics like heating, air conditioning, lighting and hot water.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

That will shift in May, when Denver\u2019s newly adopted <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span>green code<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a> takes effect, said Christy Collins, green communities specialist with the local government. The code will also consider the greenhouse gas emissions created during construction of a building and the manufacturing of its materials. It will set limits for carbon dioxide equivalent in the manufacturing of concrete and steel for commercial and multifamily developments.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cEmbodied carbon is sometimes much more than half of the carbon impact of a given building, as opposed to operational energy,\u201d Collins said. Commercial projects in Denver must choose about 10% of the green code to follow to comply with local law. Along with provisions on water use and residential energy are the embodied carbon amendments on concrete and steel.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Across the U.S., local and state action around embodied carbon, electrification of buildings and other decarbonization efforts is likely to grow in 2023, experts say.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cMore folks are realizing both the carbon emissions impact of their buildings and appliances,\u201d said Denise Grab, principal on nonprofit RMI\u2019s carbon-free building team. \u201cI expect we’ll see many more cities, counties [and states] over the next year really moving toward electrification, low embodied-carbon buildings and other forward-looking policies.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s important to look at how states will use clean energy funding from the Inflation Reduction Act to advance building decarbonization measures, said Frankie Downy, London-based technical lead for energy and buildings at C40 Cities, a global network of mayors united for climate action.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Downy said U.S. cities have been passing performance standards that put a cap on building emissions or energy use. The Inflation Reduction Act should instill further confidence that cities can pass policies in this vein, she said. The law\u2019s provisions include <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span>$1 billion in grant money<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a> to help states adopt new residential and commercial building energy codes.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Some local governments have already focused on embodied carbon policies. Portland, Oregon\u2019s <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span>low-carbon concrete ordinance<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a> took effect this month, and New York City\u2019s mayor announced <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span>a clean construction executive order<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a> last fall addressing procurement of cement, steel and machinery. Looking at machinery is a novel move in the U.S., said C\u00e9cile Faraud, London-based technical lead for clean construction at C40, and she expects cities and states will pass more such provisions.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Governments should concentrate more on existing buildings than on new construction, Faraud said. \u201cWhen cities are prioritizing their existing stock and working more on retrofits, they remove the need for virgin materials in the first place. So it’s the best way to reduce embodied carbon.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Yet new construction tends to be an attractive starting point because it can often be simpler to build something new rather than retrofit, Grab said.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cMost of the codes so far have focused on new construction,\u201d she said. \u201cBut I do expect over the next year we’ll see more focus on policies like building performance standards, like existing building codes that are starting to look more at existing buildings.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Another trend is policies designed for a more circular economy, namely salvaging materials and deconstructing buildings to recover materials rather than demolishing them. <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span>Portland, Oregon<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a>, and <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span>Austin, Texas<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a>, are some of the cities leading in this area, Faraud said.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

In the U.S., embodied carbon policy usually emphasizes cement, concrete and steel, Faraud said. Denver began its own efforts with concrete and steel because their production processes emit large amounts of carbon relative to other building materials. Steel production, for example, is responsible for <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span>6.6%<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a> of human-made greenhouse gas emissions globally.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n