Cooler Planet

Most scientists agree our climate is changing – they may not agree on the causes for that change – but most concur that global warming is real.  Essentially, too much heat remains in the earth’s atmosphere. 

The main culprit for that heat retention is carbon dioxide, a byproduct of combustion.  The coal, oil, natural gas, gasoline, diesel fuel, and wood we burn emit carbon dioxide.  Of course, we have used these materials and have emitted carbon dioxide for millennium.  What makes our actions different now is the magnitude of our emissions and their cumulative effect on our atmosphere.

Trees and other vegetation have always helped (and will continue to help) process carbon dioxide and release oxygen, however, our continuous use of fuels, demand for wood to make paper, furniture, and houses, and clearing of land to make way for agriculture exceed our planet’s “natural” pace to consume carbon dioxide.

Carbon neutral is the term coined to rebalance our consumption.  You can calculate the carbon you use, and then purchase credits from companies that invest in clean energy projects.  These “carbon neutral” companies pool resources to invest in large-scale development of projects such as wind power, solar power, or land preservation to help our planet heal. 

Mind you a quid-pro-quo attitude is not enough to “fix” our addiction to combustion-production.  That’s where actions such as installing solar panels come in.  The more all of us choose less energy producing products and activities (like Energy Star appliances, compact fluorescent light bulbs, and high gas-mileage cars, to name just a few) the more hopeful we can all be that our lifestyles we so enjoy will not wreak total havoc on our environment.

A lamp’s “color temperature” describes how warm or cool a light appears to our eye.  Traditional incandescent light bulbs emit a warm (or reddish colored) light.  Scientists measure color temperature in degrees Kelvin (K).  On a bright sunny day, the scientists would say the color temperature equaled 5,500 K, whereas candlelight would register at 1,500 K.  Incandescent lights equal 3,000 K.

The other component of a light’s quality is its color rendering index (CRI) which measures how accurately the light reflects color.  The CRI is measured on a scale of 1 to 100 and daylight and incandescent light bulbs set the standard for 100.

So the incandescent light bulb has ruled our world, setting the standard for light color since Thomas Edison mastered his invention oh so long ago.

Fluorescent lights were invented in 1976 but hadn’t made a dent in the market until recently.  Today, fluorescent light bulbs are close to par with the incandescent standard.  When shopping for a compact fluorescent bulb (CFL), look for a CRI at 82 +.  Many have a color temperature of 3,000 K.

Since CFLs use 30 to 50% less energy than incandescent bulbs, using the modern CFLs available today makes more and more sense just from a comparable color standpoint.  So go for it, rather than looking pasty in the mirror you’ll look warm and bright.  It will be our planet that stays cooler instead.

The EPA’s ENERGY STAR label not only encompasses over 50 different types of energy-consuming products such as computers and appliances, but also has created a green building protocol for homes.  ENERGY STAR Homes is a nationwide voluntary program, implemented at the regional level throughout the United States.  The certification targets new homes and requires third-party certification.

ENERGY STAR Homes focuses on the inter-related systems that impact energy use in your home.  Some are obvious:  the ways you heat and cool your home, the types of lamp fixtures and appliances you choose, and the number of televisions, computers, and other electronic equipment you operate.  Others are less obvious:  the way you water your yard, the insulation installed in your walls, and the types of windows and doors in your home.  The products you (or your builder) choose and the way the systems are installed affect the dwelling’s overall energy performance.

According to the EPA its standards often lead to homes that are 20-30 percent more energy efficient than their conventionally built counterparts.  You can find the names of participating ENERGY STAR builders by visiting http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?fuseaction=new_homes_partners.showHomesSearch. 

These days, there are seemingly endless amounts of “green labels” out there.  What do they all mean?   

In the world of green building there are a variety of green building rating systems.  Some take a holistic approach and evaluate all the various systems inside and outside your home; others examine a narrower band of categories such as indoor air quality or energy efficiency.  Complicating matters further, different – yet similar – names are used within different regions (or even smaller jurisdictions) throughout the country.  Take, for example, this dizzying sampling of names:  Built Green, Build Green, Earth Advantage, Earth Craft Home, Green Home Choice, I-Built, EcoBUILD. 

Generally, to achieve certification in any of these green building rating systems designers produce designs and specifications that incorporate the required goals and then builders incorporate requirements into their construction practices.   What generates confusion for home owners and buyers is trying to understand the myriad of different goals and check-list requirements applied to each prospective home.  Green labels wouldn’t do much good if consumers did not understand them and what they are trying to achieve. 

Understanding and appreciating the design, engineering and finishing choices builders include can help prospective home buyers differentiate between homes beyond an aesthetic appeal.  Builders often tout a home’s “green features.”  However, until a single building standard is adopted what is called “built green” may differ between programs.

So how do you distinguish between green building certifications?  Let’s start at the national level.  Both the National Home Builders Association (NAHB) and the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) have developed rating systems for residential construction.  The NAHB calls it guidelines, the Green Home Building Program; the USGBC who created the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification system, calls its system:  LEED for Homes.  Both of these rating systems include a wide-range of protocol for how to build a green home. 

At first glance, both the NAHB Green Home Building Program and the USGBC LEED for Homes look similar.  They are.  Both organizations have published lengthy checklists and guidelines that define categories such as Energy Efficiency, Water Conservation, and Indoor Environmental Quality.  Both describe criteria and objectives to meet in order to obtain points toward a rating.  And each rating system has different levels – the Green Home Building Program has 3-levels:  Bronze, Silver, and Gold; LEED for Homes has 4-levels:  Certified, Silver, Gold, and Platinum.  The higher the level, the more green features a home has incorporated.  Both rating systems aspire to design and build homes that are energy efficient, use water wisely, are well placed on a site, and incorporate building materials and best construction management practices that tread lightly on the earth.

The differences between the programs are subtle.  Many of the variances relate to how the homes are rated, how the programs are executed, and plain old competition for brand name recognition and dominance.   The USGBC rating system relies on third-party certification to determine how many points to award each house.  The NAHB allows local builders and jurisdictions to establish their own certification process.  For example, the local home builders’ chapter in King and Snohomish counties, two counties in Washington State, has established a rigorous green building rating system that requires third-party certification to achieve its highest green building levels whereas the lower-point levels are based on the builder’s self-verification. 

In future posts I’ll explain the actual differences between other types of green building certifications, labels, and standards.