Rafael Reyes on Sunday, 14 November 2010 19:20

State green building standards poised to take effect

State green building standards are poised to take effect.

Come Jan. 1, cities throughout California will be required to enforce the new California Green Building Standards Code, or the CALGreen Code. Finalized earlier this year by California’s Building Standards Commission and the Department of Housing and Community Development, the guidelines represent the first statewide mandatory green building code for newly constructed buildings in the nation.

The new code will regulate energy efficiency, water conservation, indoor air quality, site development, disposal and recycling using a three-tier system. The lowest tier will indicate the minimum levels needed for compliance, while the two upper tiers indicate voluntary measures for those who wish to exceed the required level.

City officials say the CALGreen code will contribute to public health by promoting green building practices, such as reducing the use of volatile organic compound (VOC) emitting materials, requiring construction waste recycling and extending storm water pollution prevention efforts.

These new state standards are similar to those of the US Green Building Council's LEED system (used widely for commercial buildings) and Build It Green's Green Points Rated.  CalGreen establishes a floor on standards - improving building quality and growing the market for green building materials.  By growing the market, building materials costs will drop and become more accessible throughout the country.  Many cities in the region however have adopted LEED and Green Points Rated as standards (as shown in BACC's regional assessment, Cupertino and Burlingame being among the most recent) and some alignment is required between the standards systems (see BACC's recommendations).

The Daily Journal article explores steps San Mateo and Burlingame have taken.

The cities of Burlingame and San Mateo have both exercised the option to adopt additional green building measures, saying the cities’ close proximity to earthquake fault lines, as well as local conditions like the expansive nature of the soil, increase the need for more restrictive legislation. Both cities have elected to require those renovating homes or businesses to exceed the CALGreen Code’s energy efficiency requirements by a minimum of 15 percent.

Both cities will continue to utilize third party rating systems in rating renovation projects and new developments. Specifically, they will still apply the United States Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) and the Build It Green’s Green Point Rated checklists and rules. Residents and builders will be able to choose the rating method.

In Burlingame, Cyr said people can elect to follow the Green Points Rated checklist, LEED for homes, Build It Green points, or a number of other methods. Applicants have the ability to determine how they earn points by choosing from a list of items, depending on the nature of the project. Currently, residential projects in San Mateo require the equivalent of 75 Build It Green points if they are new construction or remodels valued at more than $100,000. Burlingame requires residential projects valued at more than $50,000 to be the equivalent of 50 points or more. Both cities require new construction and additions of greater than 10,000 square feet in commercial space to obtain a LEED Silver rating.

Build It Green is planning to align fully with CalGreen such that fulfilling Build It Green requirements will fully comply with CalGreen.  USGBC's LEED however has some differences which are not fully reconciled.  BACC will provide guidance on LEED and CalGreen soon.

While some builders have initially expressed concern about added requirements, there is growing recognition that while the standards mean doing things a bit differently, it is not necessarily more difficult.

Tom McGinley, executive director of the Peninsula Builders Exchange, a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving standards in the construction industry, said the code from its inception has always been concerned with life, health and safety. This new code involves things like lighting, heat retention and water usage. The new code, he said, also gives people points for building an apartment complex near a train station, for example, because it encourages people to use public transportation instead of driving.

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McGinley was apprehensive at first about using LEED standards as a guideline, but said he now finds the system reasonable.

“The twist is that when LEED changes, the law changes,” said McGinley. “I thought it was going to be awful, but it’s actually very sensible, very flexible. It encourages consistency because most cities in the county have adopted LEED. We don’t want a lot of different standards, because then it becomes difficult to navigate.”