Part 1 of 3

By Stephen Ashkin

The building owner ultimately calls the shots, so getting that person or group on board early is essential. But not every owner will find the same arguments compelling: a hospital board may opt for green because certain green features promote healing, a commercial office property holding company may incorporate green features to speed the lease-out and thus lower carrying costs, a federal agency may desire green features to improve employee morale and increase job retention.

Even within a single project, different team members often have different reasons for promoting a green agenda. The architect may promote environmental measures because she feels it's the right thing to do. The facilities manager who will take care of a building may recognize inherent durability and maintenance advantages. And the owner may look strictly at bottom-line financial benefits of green. Note that while a green building might theoretically be able to achieve all of these benefits, most green buildings do not. For any specific project, it is important that any claims about the benefits are associated with green strategies that are actually being implemented-or at least considered-for that project.

Further, there are green buildings in which benefits that are not achieved-such as durability-may render other benefits irrelevant. If poor moisture control results in premature building failure and the growth of mold, those problems could undo key benefits of the building, such as providing a healthy indoor environment. Green building is not only about adding together different green features-and green benefitsit is about how these systems fit together to create a building that works.

There are lots of reasons for building green, none necessarily better than others. This article examines the spectrum of reasons, providing short explanations for 46 benefits. Even if many of these items are already familiar, this list may provide some new insights and help you convince your next clients to pursue an even deeper shade of green.

Streamlined permitting and approvals
For some, but not all, green projects, regulatory delays and difficulties may be reduced as a result of green measures. A project that is designed to minimize loss of open space or that will result in less stormwater runoff, for example, can greatly reduce concerns by local citizen groups and planning commissions. (On the other hand, innovative development schemes may be unfamiliar to regulatory and citizen groups and result in additional review-but this outcome is less common.)

Reduced infrastructure costs
Substantial first-cost savings can often be achieved
with green building through differences in how infrastructure is handled. For example, innovative stormwater infiltration systems can reduce or eliminate the need for storm sewers and stormwater detention ponds; narrower streets to slow traffic can reduce paved area; and clustering buildings on a site can reduce the amount of paved area and the length of sewers and utility lines. For some projects, the infrastructure savings are so significant that they can pay for other green features with higher construction costs.

Reduced material use
Designing smaller, more compact houses and other buildings can save a substantial amount of materials. Because construction waste volume is generally proportional to building size, smaller buildings also generate less construction waste-another savings (see next item). Keep in mind, though, that other strategies, such as daylighting, may conflict with the goal of keeping the building geometry simple.

Savings in construction waste disposal
Disposal of construction waste was once an almost insignificant component of construction costs, but it has become significant in many regions. Reducing construction waste through optimizing building dimensions (designing on a two-foot module, for example) and separating and recycling waste can dramatically reduce these costs. Architect John Boecker, AIA, saw savings of $20,000 and $30,000 through these strategies on two recent projects: a $2.5 million office building and a $7.5 million school, respectively.

Savings from downsizing mechanical equipment
By improving the energy performance of a building envelope, it is often possible to downsize mechanical equipment as well as perimeter heating systems. With air conditioning equipment, the cost is fairly proportional to the cooling capacity, so a reduction in cooling load translates into savings quite directly. (The correlation between heating capacity and cost is less direct.) Once loads have been reduced significantly, whole new approaches to heating and cooling sometimes become available-for example, using radiant systems rather than air distribution for heating and cooling, and separating ventilation air from comfort air. In some cases, by going even further with improved envelope energy performance, it's possible to totally eliminate heating or cooling equipment-and in the process pay for much or all of the envelope improvements.

Tax credits and other incentives
A few states and municipalities offer tax credits and other financial incentives to developers of green buildings or buyers of green products, such as efficient clothes washers and water heaters, that might go into such buildings. New York, New Jersey, Maryland, and Oregon are among states that offer significant green building tax credits. Also, a growing number of local municipalities offer incentives for green building.

Lower energy costs
Reduced energy use is often the single most obvious economic benefit of green buildings. Minimizing energy consumption is a priority in nearly all green buildings-from single-family houses to skyscrapers. Green buildings commonly use less than half as much energy as their conventional counterparts, and some green buildings consume less than a quarter as much energy. Much of this benefit often comes from an improved building envelope and more energyefficient equipment, but, with residential projects, simply creating smaller houses can save tremendous amounts of energy even without improving the envelope. In addition to reducing energy usage, many green design strategies lower peak energy demand, which has a huge impact on the energy costs of nonresidential buildings. If energy costs continue rising, as they have during 2004 and 2005, energy savings will become an even greater driver of green building.

Lower water costs
Many resource experts are more worried about freshwater supply than energy supply over the coming decades. Through a combination of indoor and outdoor water conservation strategies, many green buildings are using less than a quarter as much water as conventional buildings. In addition to conserving water, some green buildings collect water off their rooftops or separate graywater from the waste stream for use in landscape irrigation. A few green buildings, such as the Solaire high-rise apartment building in New York City and the Pennsylvania DEP office building in Norristown, Pennsylvania, include self-contained water collection and treatment systems to provide nonpotable water for toilet flushing and irrigation from wastewater. Very high water costs or high hook-up fees can be a motivation for strategies such as this.

Greater durability and fewer repairs
A very important, yet often overlooked, feature of green buildings is durability. Well designed and properly built green buildings will not experience moisture problems because sound building-science principles were incorporated into the design and construction. Durable buildings cost less to operate because repairs and replacement of failed building components are less common. Although durable building materials and equipment may cost more up front, their life-cycle costs are often lower than conventional products because they last longer and require fewer repairs. Green (vegetated) roofs, for example, can significantly increase the durability of the roof membrane by protecting it from exposure to UV light and thermal shock.

Reduced cleaning and maintenance
Some green building strategies, materials, and products require less maintenance or reduce the need for cleaning. A rain-screen siding detail, for example, reduces the need for repainting wood siding. Track-off entryway grates and carpeting keep a building cleaner by capturing dirt before it enters the building-and thus reduce the costs of cleaning. A natural landscape created with native plants generally requires significantly less maintenance than conventional turf and shrubbery.