In 1995, the Washington, D.C.-based U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s ENERGY STAR for Buildings was launched to help businesses improve their energy performance and increase the bottom line while reducing fossil-fuel energy use to prevent carbon-dioxide emissions. Nine years later, Designed to Earn the ENERGY STAR was created to help architects and engineers make informed decisions about energy efficiency throughout the design process and be recognized for achieving an energy-efficient design. The objective of this initiative was to guide the process by setting energy targets early. Target metrics are based on measured performance of similar existing commercial buildings and take into account the physical characteristics of buildings, idiosyncratic nature of occupant behavior and effects on energy consumption when those factors interact. As design teams address the aesthetic, materials and functional aspects of the building, the target helps architects understand whether their design is approaching the desired energy goal. The target is what the design is measured against later in the process. An EPA energy-performance rating (score) indicates how well the estimated energy use of the design compares to that of a similar space type—schools are compared to schools, offices to offices, and so on. The score also indicates whether the estimated energy use for the design achieves the desired target.

There is no crystal ball that predicts performance, and the design score may not turn out to be the same score that the operating building eventually receives. Instead, through Designed to Earn the ENERGY STAR, EPA helps architects and engineers focus on the drivers that affect energy use in commercial buildings. These include evaluating the building envelope, orientation on the site, use of materials appropriate for bioclimatic conditions and the building program, occupant comfort and equipment needs.

As the project progresses through construction, things can change. Value engineering caused by unforeseen budget constraints, change-order requests, or the inability to obtain specified products—these and other changes will affect the energy profile of the building. Thus, evaluating energy use is a continual process requiring constant checking and recalibrating to get it right. As design parameters change, so does the EPA energy score.

Moving from design to operations is a critical stage in the new building’s life cycle. The first year of operation is a difficult time for the operations and maintenance personnel, yet most architects have moved on to other projects by that point. ENERGY STAR best practices recommend that energy be addressed at the start of design and through at least one year after energy-use data are available from utility bills. During that period, the design team has a tremendous opportunity to help owners understand how to operate the building at peak efficiency by sharing insight about the design’s capabilities and learning how the project is actually performing day to day.

The ENERGY STAR program helps bridge the gap between design and performance by using the same EPA score to assess energy during design and in the completed building. EPA has been successful in raising awareness in the marketplace, and many participating architects see the value of using ENERGY STAR to help clients reach their goals. Having their projects earn the most recognized symbol in the country for energy efficiency lets the owners and designers show their peers and the community that they’re committed to protecting the environment by partnering with EPA.

Achieving performance goals starts with ENERGY STAR and a great design. Then it requires follow through with building commissioning, tracking energy use, educating occupants and due diligence. In turn, top-performing buildings will sustain us well into the future by reducing energy use, dependence on fossil fuels and the effects of global climate change.

Resources: The Architects and Projects table features projects that earned ENERGY STAR for the design and operating building. Click the “Status” tab to display those projects. The table also lists all projects that have achieved Designed to Earn the ENERGY STAR to date.

Karen P. Butler manages Commercial Building Design--EPA ENERGY STAR Program.

The Deepwater Horizon disaster should have reminded us as a society that thinking of ourselves as a “developed” nation is a bit premature. A fully developed nation has the capacity to meet its needs without operating in a way that creates existential threats.  We do not meet that standard yet in the U.S. What do you think?

Let’s review: The Gulf oil blow-out, which may have resulted from negligence, left 11 people dead, unknown millions of gallons of oil in the Gulf, millions of sea mammals and fish dead, and a wide range of family businesses destroyed—possibly forever. The well was closed about one month ago, and now the punch line is “it’s over.” Really?

In addition to the beach cleanup, which is ongoing, work is just beginning on a number of fronts. The government has multiple investigations into London-based BP and its own regulators to determine how many different systematic failures led to the blow-out.  Countless lawsuits are being filed by individuals, families and businesses. Fisheries are being examined to determine whether they are safe. Researchers are examining strategies for raising the funds necessary to truly understand where the oil has gone and what its long-term effects will be. This is not over. The $20 billion fund established by BP to compensate victims doesn’t even begin to reflect the true costs here.

More than all of this combined, the biggest issue on the table remains unspoken. We are all responsible for this. Raise your hand; you are the problem. Check your 401k. Examine your driving habits. Consider whom you have voted for the past 20 years. Recall how many actions you have taken to indicate to companies and the government that our addiction to oil costs us more in life and treasure than it will ever be worth. If after conducting this analysis you conclude you are guilt-free—somehow not part of the oil-based economy in this country, living a life without connection or responsibility for this and other disasters like it—then call me at (202) 429-2694. We can chat about the oil-driven violence in Nigeria, the two Gulf wars and I’ll bring you up to speed on this little news item called climate change.

What will it ultimately take to fundamentally shift our mindset to recognize that oil is not the only, the best or even a reasonable way to fuel our lives? Ultimately, some event will shake us even more than the Gulf disaster did. Instead of waiting for that catastrophe, how about we wake up now!

Michael P. Washburn, Ph.D., is the senior director for Eastern forests for The Wilderness Society and a member of Eco-Intel's advisory board.

When dealing with commercial buildings, we all know the basic approaches to energy efficiency: improved operations and maintenance, equipment upgrades and energy-saving behaviors. As more organizations adopt energy-saving programs, we’ve seen many best practices emerge. These usually involve corporate commitments, planning, measurement and tracking, and a staged approach to improvements. The results can be significant; organizations are able to trim energy use by 30 percent or more during the course of an energy-efficiency program.

What if the Washington, D.C.-based U.S. Environmental Protection Agency required you to reduce your building’s energy consumption as much as possible in 12 months, starting today? What would you do? Where would you start?

It so happens that we made 14 phone calls requiring this when we launched EPA’s National Building Competition. We upped the stakes—and added an element of fun—by turning this into a competition. As part of the rules, we asked each of our 14 competitors to provide regular updates to let us know what they were doing to save energy. We set them up with Twitter accounts and they embraced the idea, firing off a flurry of tweets within minutes of launch. Now, three months later, we have compiled a unique peek into some of the measures these 14 buildings are taking to save as much energy as possible. Some already had energy-efficiency programs in place when they got the call from EPA; some didn’t. Some have big budgets and a dedicated staff of energy managers; some don’t.

Before we get into the tweets, if you haven’t already, please meet our 14 competitors. They include hotels, schools, college dorms, retail stores, office buildings and other buildings we see in our communities every day. Their strategies are paying off already at the competition’s midpoint; leading competitors are turning in double-digit reductions in just six months!

Let’s take a look at some of the themes that have emerged from the activity. These were all originally written as tweets, hence the shorthand writing style.

OPERATIONS & MAINTENANCE

Working with Different Teams in Your Building

Timers and Sensors

Other Operations & Maintenance

UPGRADES

Lighting

Other Upgrades

BEHAVIORAL CHANGES

Employees’ Computer Monitors

Natural Light

Dashboards, Banners, Signs

Read all the contestant tweets and access links to photos and videos.

Lauren Pitcher is a communications specialist in the ENERGY STAR Commercial & Industrial Buildings Program.

Earlier this month, the International Energy Association released a report that noted an “energy technology revolution” is underway. This is exciting news for those of us who have been working to put the pieces in place to encourage this type of a market shift. Policy makers have been actively seeking solutions to the energy demand and supply conundrum, often using a variety of tools to do so. Among the most popular techniques employed: the voluntary reduction program. These programs, targeted at businesses and consumers, are meant to encourage the development and eventual purchase of energy-efficient products.

Consumers and manufacturers are looking for more efficient products and processes, and several government programs exist around the world to set standards and encourage efficiency for products and processes. In fact, many governments are actively changing requirements.

As the global economy becomes increasingly energy conscious, governments will continue to evaluate and regulate the design and use of products to increase efficiency. To help ensure products are adhering to requirements, governments are looking to third-party testing and certification organizations to validate that energy-efficiency standards are being met.

Today, manufacturer self-declared energy efficiency claims are giving way to a new era of third-party testing and validation. In North America, there have been several significant announcements this year that impact manufacturers participating in the ENERGY STAR program or selling products in Canada. The Natural Resources Canada Office of Energy Efficiency has historically regulated appliances, HVAC equipment and motors. Starting July 1, 2011, NRCan is proposing energy labeling requirements for televisions. In addition to the new regulations in Canada, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Department of Energy recently announced intentions to expand regulated product categories and develop stricter efficiency requirements. EPA also will require that all products be tested by an accredited laboratory before qualifying for ENERGY STAR.

Testing organizations are evolving to meet these new regulations. In February 2010, UL Environment launched the Energy Efficiency Certification Mark to show compliance with energy-efficiency standards and regulations. The EEC Mark appears on home products proven to meet energy-efficiency requirements outlined by entities, like EPA, NRCan and the California Energy Commission. Participating product categories include appliances; heating, air-conditioning and refrigeration systems; high-tech equipment; and lighting products. More product categories and geographic markets will be added over time.

During the next few years, government energy-efficiency requirements will continue to evolve to address increasing demands for energy efficiency. Independent energy-efficiency testing programs may be new today, but expect them to be “business as usual” tomorrow.

Marcello Manca is vice president and general manager for UL Environment Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Underwriters Laboratories Inc. Find out more about the UL Environment Energy Efficiency Certification program at www.ulenvironment.com.

Louisville, Ky.-based Concord Energy Strategies LLC is hosting an upcoming free educational Webinar about Internal Revenue Code Section 179D. The Webinar takes place Aug. 4, 1-2 p.m. EST/10-11 a.m. PST.

Originally passed as part of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and expanded upon in IRS Notices 2006-52 and 2008-40, Section 179D allows for a one-time tax deduction, worth up to $1.80 per square foot, for any new construction or retrofit placed in service between Dec. 31, 2005 and Jan. 1, 2014.

To qualify, the commercial project must meet specific energy-efficiency benchmarks that improve upon ASHRAE 90.1-2001. For any new construction or retrofit building that meets a 50 percent energy-power-cost reduction compared to the ASHRAE 90.1-2001 standard, a deduction worth $1.80 per square foot is available. Those buildings put in service or retrofitted that earn at least a 16 2/3 percent energy-power-cost reduction can earn a partial deduction worth up to 60 cents per square foot.

Energy-power-cost reductions can be made in any of the three following subsystems: HVAC, interior lighting and building envelope. One of the unique provisions of this tax-incentive program is that for newly constructed or renovated publicly owned buildings (defined as governmental or municipality), a tax deduction is allowed for the lead designer of the energy-efficient property. This means architects, engineers, energy service companies and other design professionals are in the position to reap considerable tax benefits for their public design work. (Read more about the tax deduction for design professionals on Eco-Intel.)

To claim the 179D deduction, tax payers are required to have an independent third party complete an analysis, certification and site visit to determine whether the building improves upon ASHRAE 90.1-2001. For example, Concord Energy Strategies is a multi-disciplinary firm of certified public accountants and engineers who help clients maximize their tax savings through the EPAct/179D deduction.

I will be conducting the free Webinar on Aug. 4 and hope you will join me.

To register: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/212998139

For more information: education@concordenergystrategies.com, (888) 897-5445, www.concordenergystrategies.com

Dennis Stilger Jr. is managing member of Concord Energy Strategies LLC, Louisville, Ky.

“Design for the New Decade” was the theme for the 2010 American Institute of Architects National Convention, which just took place June 10-12 in Miami. Bustling with the usual workshops, networking opportunities and vendor exhibits, the convention also offered provocative keynote speeches. The speakers encouraged us to take a step back, reflect about how we consume our resources, and examine our quality of life and the role architects play in making things happen for the better.

Although their words were inspirational—occasionally alarming enough to shake some people out of their complacency—they didn’t always leave us with guidance about what to do today, tomorrow or in the near term to make a difference in the way our planet evolves.

That made me appreciate even more the work the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s ENERGY STAR program has accomplished with AIA during recent years. Together, our joint efforts to green the built environment in systemic, practical ways have not only succeeded, but have also expanded each year.

EPA works with nonprofit member organizations, like AIA, to encourage professionals in many different walks of life to participate in voluntary sustainability programs covering a broad range of environmental issues. ENERGY STAR is one such program where the principles of sustainability have been turned into concrete actionable strategies.

In joining ENERGY STAR, AIA made a fundamental commitment to help protect the environment by promoting superior energy performance in commercial buildings. That, in turn, enhances the financial health of AIA members and their clients and protects the environment for future generations. Partnering with ENERGY STAR, AIA has committed to encouraging architects to:

AIA has gone even further with its commitment by incorporating the EPA energy-performance metrics in the AIA Committee on the Environment’s Top 10 Green Projects criteria and actively supporting the ENERGY STAR Challenge for the past four years.

The outstanding results of our joint efforts were showcased at the Miami convention in the COTE and ENERGY STAR galleries. The two galleries featured projects from firms that are “designing far beyond the new decade.” These firms are leading the way and showing others that sustainable energy strategies are good design for the environment and bottom line.

The ENERGY STAR Challenge differs in approach from the COTE Top 10 Green Projects competition. The challenge is a call-to-action encouraging all firms to participate. We were excited to have almost 60 different architecture firms this year submit more than 80 design projects that met or exceeded the EPA score of 75 to earn ENERGY STAR certification and be honored in Miami. More than 30 of these projects are intended to reduce fossil-fuel energy use and CO2 emissions by 50 percent or more, clearly demonstrating that meeting the AIA 2030 Commitment is an attainable goal.

What’s also unique about the ENERGY STAR Challenge projects is they all report estimated whole-building energy use. That includes the human interaction with the building systems, such as plug loads, hours the building will be occupied, and process loads for cooking and building services. These factors account for the largest drivers of energy use. Although building codes are ramping up requirements for equipment efficiencies, codes do not offer the whole-building calculation necessary to compare the design energy to actual energy use of “real” buildings with similar functions.

EPA’s approach goes beyond business as usual and requires knowing how buildings use energy and how much they use. Case in point: At the start of my session, “From Alpha to Omega with ENERGY STAR,” in Miami, I asked how many people had actually gone back to measure the energy performance of their projects. A few people hesitantly raised their hands. Yet, using EPA’s online tools to benchmark a building once it is operating is very straightforward. I immediately reversed the timeframe of my question to keep the audience engaged: “How many intend to build this into their work from now on?” More than half the audience raised their hands to affirm that that they would measure energy performance on future completed projects. Now that’s moving in the right direction!

My session demonstrated how EPA online tools make it easy to communicate the energy and CO2 reduction goals for design projects and the performance results for completed, operating buildings. The ENERGY STAR Challenge is one way that architects and building owners can show they are achieving AIA’s goals and contributing to EPA’s mission to prevent greenhouse-gas emissions.

In front of their peers in Miami at a special recognition ceremony, Kohl’s Department Store and MulvannyG2 Architecture, one of Kohl’s architecture firms, were honored by EPA and AIA for working together to establish energy and sustainability goals for new store designs. They also were recognized for operating their portfolio of stores so that as many as possible earn the ENERGY STAR label for superior performance. EPA’s tools make it easy for Kohl’s to target, measure and track the energy use from designing to operating their stores by using the same rating scale throughout the building’s life cycle. The tools allow Kohl’s and its designers to evaluate whether design goals were achieved, how much energy their stores really use and whether GHG emissions from energy use are decreasing over time. In June, the ENERGY STAR Challenge for Architects was also proud to launch its first ever Facebook Favorite Contest, which showcased 10 projects from this year’s submittals. We “tweeted” on Twitter to get the word out to architects and their friends about voting for their favorite. The response was great!

Congratulations to the Facebook Favorite project, the 300 University Avenue office project in Sacramento, Calif., designed by Dreyfuss & Blackford Architects. The runner-up was the Mingalarama Monastery Residence Hall in Silver Spring, Md., designed by Tom Nyein. All the projects can be found on the AIA Facebook page.

Thanks to AIA’s support and the architectural firms that took the ENERGY STAR Challenge and submitted energy-efficient projects this year, we had a very successful 2010 convention and look forward to next year in New Orleans. I encourage every architecture firm and every building owner to participate in the ENERGY STAR Challenge—starting today—and help our nation reduce the carbon footprint of current and future buildings.

Karen P. Butler manages Commercial Building Design--EPA ENERGY STAR Program.

As you may have read in the Wall Street Journal, the U.S. EPA launched the National Building Competition last month, the first national energy-efficiency contest of its kind. Featuring a variety of commercial buildings from across the country, contestants are competing to save energy and fight climate change by "working off the waste" through improvements in energy efficiency. The building that sheds the most energy waste on a percentage basis will be declared the winner by EPA on Oct. 26.

Nearly 200 buildings applied to compete in the contest. EPA selected 14 buildings, including schools, hotels, dormitories, stores, offices, museums and other buildings we see in our communities every day. The buildings were chosen to represent ENERGY STAR partners in a variety of markets across the country and a wide range of building sizes, ages and space types.

The following buildings’ monthly energy use is being measured using EPA’s online energy tracking tool, Portfolio Manager:

522 Fifth Ave. building, New York

1525 Wilson Blvd. building, Arlington, Va.

Crystal River Elementary School, Carbondale, Colo.

Courtyard by Marriott San Diego Downtown, San Diego

JCPenney Store 1778, Orange, Calif.

Maplewood Mall, St. Paul, Minn.

Memorial Arts Building at the Woodruff Arts Center, Atlanta

Morrison Residence Hall at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

Sears, Glen Burnie, Md.

Sheraton Austin Hotel, Austin, Texas

Solon Family Health Center at the Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland

Tucker Residence Hall at North Carolina State University, Raleigh, N.C.

Van Holten Primary School, Bridgewater, N.J.

Virginia Beach Convention Center, Virginia Beach, Va.

The Buildings’ Workout Routines

The 14 contestants already are well underway with their "slim downs." Using ENERGY STAR best practices and guidelines, building managers are looking for ways to reduce energy use from simple behavior changes to cost-effective technology upgrades.

What are some of the go-to strategies these contestants are using to save energy? Students—from elementary school to college—are making sure lights are turned out in their classes and campus dorms when no one is using them. Sears is weather stripping around doors and windows to prevent heat gain and loss. JCPenney is retrofitting lighting to energy-efficient LEDs and installing window tinting on south-facing windows and doors. 522 Fifth Ave., a more than 100-year-old mid-town Manhattan office building, is coordinating with cleaning staff to turn off lights earlier and has installed variable frequency drives on its fans to save energy.

At UNC Chapel Hill’s Morrison Hall student dorm, all eyes are on one resident advisor who will have the daunting task of ensuring that the dorm’s summer guests—high-school students who stay for a week at a time while participating in on-campus programs—use energy-efficient behaviors during their brief stays. Down the road at NC State’s Tucker Hall, students are creating and posting energy awareness videos on YouTube. There are additional videos on Tucker Hall’s Twitter page.

At the Virginia Beach Convention Center, staff members strive to provide a world-class meeting space with a low carbon footprint. Since the competition began, they’ve designed and installed custom covers for refrigerated drink cases, keeping cold air in and energy bills low.

The employees of the Cleveland Clinic’s Solon Family Health Center are getting in on the weight-loss-themed energy competition and have committed to use the stairs instead of elevators. They’re getting important exercise and cutting energy use. After only one week, the employees walked up nearly 12,000 steps, which almost is the height of Mt. Fuji. Their efforts, combined with good operations and improvements by the facilities team, are helping to keep the health center in fighting shape.

Visit the National Building Competition Web site to find out other ways the contestants are saving energy, as well as view photos and profiles, get tips for making your own facility more efficient and read “Advice from the Experts” blog posts. Be sure to check out the live Twitter feed or read through all past tweets at www.twitter.com/EnergyStarBldgs/Contestants. Television personality Bob Harper will also provide energy fitness tips for the contestants through a series of videos that will be available on the contest Web site.

Once you've picked your favorite contestants, look for the results of the first weigh-in on July 21!

Lauren Pitcher is a communications specialist in the ENERGY STAR Commercial & Industrial Buildings Program.

Some of you know me from the five years I spent working for the Forest Stewardship Council. During the past couple years I have been working on land-conservation issues, which is a different dynamic from engaging in the certification debate. However, both roles complement one another in that they reflect different positions on the spectrum of approaches to forest conservation.

At the base of the forest-conservation movement is a desire to maintain healthy forests across the planet. We need to do this for a variety of reasons, including ameliorating climate change, the fact that forests provide tremendous value in cleaning water, and forests are home to myriad creatures great and small without which this little planet would be quite lonely. Further, forests minimize the impact of natural disasters, such as mudslides and flooding.

So, with conservation as the goal, the question becomes how do we protect forests. It turns out there are many different ways to do this, all of which must be applied or ultimately we fail as so many forces drive change in our forests. These forces include ownership patterns, varying regulatory regimes or the lack thereof, market forces, climate change, bugs, fires, I won’t go on. In other words, we need a big tool box.

In my work with The Wilderness Society we actively seek the protection of lands as parks, monuments, recreation areas and the like. This often precludes logging but results in forest carbon sinks, refugia for sensitive wildlife, protection of vital water sources and the ability to adapt to shifts in ecosystems because of climate change

However, we do not suggest that all forests should be off limits. There are many forests in the U.S. and elsewhere that because of flawed fire-management policy, past logging abuses, and various kinds of infestations and disturbances require some level of active management to restore them to health. We at The Wilderness Society call this “restoration forestry.” Indeed, if left alone forests will ultimately level off and move back toward a natural balance, but active management can jumpstart this process within a century. In short, depending on the situation, full protection might be in order; in other cases, restoration and balanced management might be appropriate. It is still true that building with wood is environmentally preferable to steel and plastic. If the spill in the Gulf isn’t enough to convince you of the cost of using plastics, derived from oil, then please contact me.

There is not enough room in this blog for me to convey the science, theory and practice of restoration forestry. What I can tell you is that by preferring certified forest products, particularly FSC-certified and certified-reclaimed wood, you create market forces that signal back to the industry the old ways of doing business no longer meet society’s demands for environmental performance and social equity. Alternatively, buying any old wood could mean that you are in fact buying blood timber, or illegally harvested wood that contributed to a higher magnitude mudslide in a place you might not be able to find on a map. By driving change at this end of the spectrum, you enable a more rational market connection to good practice. This in turn enables improved forest health and gives those of us on the professional side more leverage to make the case for doing the right thing. To be clear, FSC-certified forestry and restoration forestry are not the same thing. That said, alternatives to FSC-certified forestry typically move us away from restoration and toward poor forest health.

Specifying FSC-certified wood complements the ongoing need to set aside and protect truly unique, rare habitats and special places that restore the human soul. This is the end of the spectrum I work on. If you will do your part, I will do mine. If we can meet in the middle, we all win.

Michael P. Washburn, Ph.D., is the senior director for Eastern forests for The Wilderness Society and a member of Eco-Intel's advisory board.

I am sitting in my Project 52, which those of you who spend time on whitewater rivers will know to be a kayak. The river level is up, which makes for lots of company on the water, and the guy I am chatting with asks me what I do for work. “I work for EPA on water infrastructure sustainability.” His reaction is typical—no idea what that means. But he kayaks and has some interest in water and seems up for the explanation.

Most folks I know don’t think much about where their water comes from, where it ends up when it goes down the drain or the extensive infrastructure systems that take care of all that. The ones I have cornered, like that kayaker, now know that those water infrastructure systems of pipes and treatment plants are in quiet crisis. Our utilities have done a great job of providing us with safe water to drink by collecting and treating wastewater before discharge, usually into a nearby waterway (that some of us kayak in). But many utilities have underinvested in renewing those systems. And a BIG bill is coming due.

We need to start replacing that stuff at a rate that is sustainable. I have heard estimates that we replace about 0.5 percent of water distribution pipes a year. That would mean we expect those pipes to last, on average, for 200 years. Not likely. NOT sustainable … .

Nationwide, annual utility revenues are roughly $25 billion less than what a sustainable replacement pace would require. We can cover a good portion of that through efficiency, and I coordinate a slew of programs to help utilities cut costs and make the most of every dollar. But utility revenues—and so the price of water services—are also going to have to go up to close that gap.

So next time you hear that water or sewer rates might go up, think about how you depend on those services. Think about how much you spend on cable T.V. or your cell phone (typically more than on water services). Lots of folks have very tight budgets, no question, but if we want to continue to enjoy fabulous water services, we are all going to have to help keep our utilities afloat.

To tune in more to this issue, join us at our facebook page: EPA – Water Is Worth It.

Andy Crossland is the sustainable infrastructure coordinator for EPA’s Office of Water. This blog first was posted in EPA’s Greenversatic blog.

I had the pleasure of exploring the tropical rainforest on the island of Puerto Rico during my vacation. I was surprised to learn that this was the only rainforest under the supervision of the U.S. Forest Service in any U.S. territory. Hawaii is home to other rainforests, but they are part of the National Park Service—a little trivia to use at the next cocktail party.

Rainforests are the home to more than 50 percent of all species on Earth. They are also responsible for almost 30 percent of the world’s oxygen turnover through photosynthesis from carbon dioxide. I was struck by the size of the plants and trees, as well as the fragile nature of the surroundings. The strange sounds of tree frogs, birds, flowing water and wind moving through the vegetation was a unique experience.

Although this was vacation, I quickly related the rainforest to the building construction industry. We often forget there is no waste in nature. A tree or plant at the end of its life will die, decay and return nutrients to the soil of the rainforest. The soil of the rainforest is not very deep or rich in minerals, so it relies on decaying vegetation to benefit new growth. The sun is the primary source of energy for the Earth, and the rainforest takes advantage of this fact. Tall mahogany or teak trees, some more than 150-feet high, create a thick layer of large leaves that absorb 98 percent of the sunlight that strikes the rainforest. With only 2 percent of the sunlight reaching the forest floor, there is very little vegetation below, which allows for walking and exploring with little difficulty.

Water is captured by the plants from the frequent rainfall. This particular rainforest experiences on average 19 minutes of rainfall six times every day. Some say it takes 20 minutes from the start of a rainfall for any water to reach the floor of the forest. The water that does reach the ground is purified as it permeates through rocks, minerals and plants. The Puerto Rico rainforest trail I traversed included a beautiful waterfall and pool at its base. The 1-mile-long trail out of the forest took us along water falling over rocks and shallow drops that fed into the impressive rainfall below.

OK, so what does all of this have to do with the construction industry? Today we use the term “sustainability” loosely and we often simply equate it to “green”. But only when you begin to appreciate the forces of nature can you truly understand what a sustainable setting is. No waste. No end to the supplies of energy and sustenance. The capture of rainfall without destroying the delicate ecosystems. These are all components of MBDC’s Cradle to Cradle life-cycle analysis certification concept.

In a Cradle to Cradle concept, an industrial system that typically "takes, makes and wastes" can actually create goods and services that generate ecological, social and economic value. William McDonough, one of MBDC’s partners, claims today’s product designers can look to nature for “industrial” nutrient cycling and use the abundance of the sun’s energy in today’s buildings and products.

So what is taking so long to realize that harvesting renewable energy through integration into a building’s envelope makes a lot of sense? Installing photovoltaic systems on a roof or wall surface takes advantage of a free source of energy. Likewise, tapping into the energy from the sun with a water-heating system or heat recovery system on a roof can augment the energy needed for heating water or air inside the building.

A rainwater-harvesting system integrated into a roof assembly can reduce a building’s dependence on a local water supply that is often strained because of climate changes. Once again, the water falling from the sky is free, whereas the water from your faucet has a price attached to it—not to mention embodied energy.

Designing building components that can be removed, disassembled, reused or recycled helps to reduce the solid waste stream and energy needed for replacement virgin materials.

In the systems mentioned above, a metal roof or metal wall assembly can achieve the noted benefits of sustainable design. The design flexibility of today’s metal-building components allows for a variety of aesthetic features and a variety of fastening, attaching and dynamic performance features. With high recycled content and the ability to be completely recyclable, metal-building components are an important contributor to today’s sustainable building design.

Much of this is simply rethinking how we can produce and use building materials and systems. It will take rethinking to make “sustainability” a household word. A walk through a rainforest can make you rethink a lot of how we do things in industry.

Scott Kriner is president of Green Metal Consulting Inc., Macungie, Pa., and a member of Eco-Intel's advisory board.