Green Building

What is NAHBGreen?

 

The NAHB National Green Building Program, commonly referred to as NAHB Green, is a comprehensive set of educational resources, advocacy tools, rating systems, and referrals to a national green home certification system that lets home builders anywhere build green homes and home buyers at all price points buy green homes.

 

Green building means incorporating environmental considerations and resource efficiency into every step of the home building and land development process to minimize environmental impact. In short, green building is a practical response to a variety of issues that affect all of us including increasing energy prices, waning water resources, and changing weather patterns.

 

For builders and remodelers, green building means making intentional decisions about:

 

                    Energy efficiency improvements such as high levels of insulation, efficient HVAC systems, high-performance windows and energy-efficient appliances or lighting
                    Water conservation measures such as water-efficient appliances, water-conserving fixtures, water filtration systems, and water-efficient or low-maintenance landscaping
                    Resource conservation using materials and techniques such as high-performance engineered wood, wood alternatives, allergen-free materials, recycled building materials, sustainably harvested lumber and more durable products
                    Indoor environmental quality considerations such as effective HVAC equipment, use of formaldehyde-free finishes, and use of products with minimum off-gassing or low volatile organic compounds (VOCs)
                    Site design planning such as minimizing disruption and preserving open space
                    Home owner education through manuals and operating guides

                    Green business practices that adopt ideas from other industries for saving resources and money in the home office

 

A Spring 2008 survey of our members showed that more than half are incorporating at least some of these green features into the homes they build and that an estimated 12-20 percent of housing starts will be green by 2012.

 

NAHBGreen accelerates that process�educating and credentialing building professionals, developing measurements for green building, and certifying homes to give assurances to the home buying public.

 

While some of the impetus to build green is being dictated by policy makers, increased consumer awareness is also driving the growth in this sector, making green a self-fulfilling prophecy – the more consumers are exposed to the benefits of green homes, the more demand we will see.

 

Affiliating with NAHBGreen helps answer the needs of state and local HBAs that want to provide additional technical resources and knowledge as well as marketing assistance to their members. It also provides a national umbrella for local advocacy efforts to keep green building dynamic by keeping it voluntary and by providing incentives in the form of tax rebates or fast-track permitting.

NAHB Green encourages this growth to continue and assure that green practices remain flexible, voluntary and cost-effective. Components include:

 

                    The NAHB Model Green Home Building Guidelines and, more recently, support for the National Green Building Standard as the foremost green rating systems for residential construction in the United States, as well as the only to undergo complete and thorough American National Standard Institute consensus requirements.
                    The National Green Home Scoring Tool: a free online resource that enables any builder in any part of the country to gauge how green their planned home will be. The tool provides a designer's report that compiles the information the builder has provided and scores the home according to the thresholds in either the Guidelines or the Standard. Builders can also get design and technical assistance for their green building projects.
                    Referrals to the National Green Home Certification Service, available through the NAHB Research Center. Using the Green Scoring Tool as a guide, a builder can request that a home receive third-party national certification from this ANSI-accredited third-party certifier in addition to any local certification.

                    Verifier Training and Accreditation via the Research Center to ensure that certification is consistent, accurate, neutral, and technically rigorous throughout the country.

                    The Certified Green Professional designation that enables builders, rem
odelers, and other housing industry professionals to gain and then demonstrate and market green expertise.
                    Extensive additional education opportunities through such venues as the NAHB National
Green Building Conference, the International Builders Show, and other industry-sponsored events.

                    Marketing and Advocacy Guidance for builder members and HBAs to communicate the benefits of green building and the importance of keeping these innovative practices voluntary to the home buying and policymaking members of their communities.

 

Green building is growing, and will continue to expand. The resources of NAHB Green are helping the home building industry and home buyers make that transition in a cost-effective, market-driven way.
 
http://www.nahbgreen.org/