How to Get Involved in the Green Building Program

By: Jess Traver, P.E., and Director of Government Affairs

In 2007, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and the International Code Council (ICC) partnered to establish a much-needed and nationally-recognizable standard definition of green building.

The resulting ICC 700 National Green Building Standard™ is the first and only residential green building rating system to undergo the full consensus process and receive approval from the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). The Standard defines green building for single and multifamily homes, residential remodeling projects, and site development projects while still allowing for the flexibility required for regionally-appropriate best green practices.

How can builders get involved in green building?    

For builders who want to become more involved in the Green Building program, we recommend taking Green Professional classes.  The Certified Green Professional designation recognizes builders, remodelers and other industry professionals who incorporate green building principles into homes.  Class work leading to the designation provides a solid background in green building methods, as well as the tools to reach consumers.

Certification is provided by the NAHB. Copies of the Standard, a companion commentary, and other publications related to the Standard can be purchased online. A free Green Scoring Tool compatible with the standard is available on the certification side of the NAHB Green website.

For residential buildings, four threshold levels - Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Emerald - allow builders to quantify and qualify green building at all levels. At the Emerald level, the highest rating for a residential green building, a building must incorporate energy savings of 60% or more.

To comply with the Standard, a builder or remodeler must incorporate a minimum number of features in the following areas:

• ·         Lot and site development
• ·         Energy, water, and resource efficiency
• ·         Indoor environmental quality
• ·         Home owner education

In order to attain a higher level of green certification by the NAHB Research Center, a home must accrue successively higher levels of minimum points in every category – the highest level of certification is dictated by the lowest category score level.

In my next blog, I’ll share with you detailed tables that highlight the point values required in each area for green buildings.

Have you participated in Green Professional classes? What did you think?