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Weekly UpdatesAwareness of Energy and the Environment: Perspective One
A NEW ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL AWARENESS Was thrust upon the United States in the 1970s with the OPEC oil embargo. (1) Facing rising energy prices and gas shortages, the U.S. had a sudden realization that energy supplies would not keep pace with the world's consumption. As the economic fallout of the sudden rise of oil prices gripped the nation, the government responded with new regulations to reduce consumption. Programs included implementing gasoline rationing on alternating days based upon odd/even license plates, the establishment of an "Energy Czar," the creation of the Department of Energy, the imposition of a national speed limit of 55 miles per hour, and the creation of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. (2) In the private sector, energy conservation quickly moved from being a technical field of interest that was centered in the manufacturing, energy production, transportation and building industries, to the concern of every citizen. A period of discovery, research, investment, new laws, incentives and even celebrations such as Earth Day (3) followed and set forth a new national imperative that has continued to evolve. The result has been an emergence of environmental industries and advocates that have had a significant impact both on the quality of our environment and on the reduction of energy consumption.
CREATING TRUST IN ENVIRONMENTAL PROGRAMS
Following the Oil Embargo, equipment, electronics and appliance manufacturers made great advances in the development of reliable and ever more environmentally responsible products. At first, there were many fads to save energy, and wild claims of environmental benefits of the recycled content of products. These fads created both confusion and mistrust of environmental claims. But soon, products designed to reduce energy and environmental impact through use of responsible materials and recycled goods became prevalent. As gains in energy conservation came to market, false claims in labeling of environmental benefits gave rise to a need for a responsible way to identify and prove that product claims were accurate. In 1992, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Energy established a voluntary labeling program known as ENERGY STAR [R] (4) to identify and promote energy-efficient products to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Manufacturers signed on and began to produce appliances and other electrical devices whose newly engineered systems began delivering measurable environmental benefits, with direct cost and energy use information. Today, the ENERGY STAR label has become a trusted name in sustainable products for more than 12,000 organizations, delivering more than $16 billion in energy savings (over non-ENERGY STAR products) in 2007. (5)
FROM VOLUNTARY PROGRAM TO A LEGISLATED REQUIREMENT: LEED[R] GRADUATES AT THE HEAD OF THE CLASS
The nature of buildings, their ownership, use and location makes the subject of sustainable design complex. The industry struggled to find the connection between the professional and technical participants in the process of development, and to find a vocabulary to communicate expectations, desires and requirements. With thousands of government jurisdictions, countless zoning and build code requirements and diverse geographic locations in our nation, it is difficult to establish uniform standards or to navigate the diverse requirements for building design. The design community and industry organizations took the early leadership in establishing design and performance-based standards for building systems and components: insulation and sealants, glass and building skin, roofing, and HVAC and plumbing systems. These standards have provided engineered and measurable contributions to building design, achieved major improvements in conservation, and reduced the environmental impact of buildings. Communities have joined industry by adopting energy conservation standards and using these industry standards to define code and/or performance requirements.
A few short years ago, the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) trademarked its Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design, or LEED program. It is a voluntary but prescriptive system to promote and certify "green" buildings. Today, USGBC has more than 16,000 member companies and organizations, including real estate developers, architecture, design and engineering firms, contractors, product manufacturers, government agencies, educational institutions, nonprofit organizations, and 50,000 individuals who have received recognition in LEF.D processes." This widespread adoption of the LEED rating system has brought an important focus to the building and design industry, and made sustainability a national priority.
USGBC's efforts have organized the uncertain and disparate jargon, practices, principles, and opinions with regard to energy conservation, consumption and environmental impact of buildings. USGBC has built upon many accepted engineered system standards and has expanded its evaluative process to include other attributes which project the opinions of professionals on the importance of design/project criteria. USGBC has seen its building certification program and its rating system become the nationally accepted benchmark for sustainable development, adopted by corporations, institutions and all levels of government, as required on development projects. What had been created as a voluntary certification process has morphed into regulatory requirements, as government organizations and communities have adopted the LEHD certification for zoning or permitting. The rush to these standards has led to 20 states and more than 160 other jurisdictions implement LEED as a standard, while implementing and enforcing it in different ways. The acceptance by jurisdictions of the LEED standard as a prerequisite for zoning or permits creates a new responsibility on the part of governments to ensure that the certification of LEED buildings in their jurisdictions does, in fact, improve the environment, and that certification does not confuse or mislead the public as to what the requirement for LEED certification, or achieving it, represents.
Today more than 14,300 projects have submitted LEED applications, and more than 1,750 have been certified, up from 40 in 2002. The ENERGY STAR classification system, with measurable results as to its contribution to the quality of the environment, continues to exist, although newer LEED certification of buildings strives to deliver savings far beyond those achieved by ENERGY STAR.
LEED certification is an important new standard for developing sustainable buildings and communities. However, development patterns that separate workspaces and living places can have a significant impact on the environment. The space between home and work demands the use of fossil fuels for the shipment of goods, commuting to work, shopping and recreation.
The concern over greenhouse gases from the emissions of fossil fuels has increased significantly, and petroleum use in transportation has become the largest contributor to the emissions of greenhouse gas from human activities. Transportation accounts for more than 31 percent of all C[O.sup.2] in the U.S., and C[O.sup.2] gas emissions account for 80 percent of all greenhouse gases produced in the U.S. (8)
Less than one percent of U.S. buildings have been certified by the USGBC. (9) With more than 80 million buildings in our nation, the goals set by USGBC present a major opportunity to make a positive impact on the environment. However, promoting environmental improvement by rewarding only buildings with certification shines the light too narrowly on too small a portion of the built environment. It certainly fails to adequately consider the impact of site selection. USGBC is addressing this concern with its new LEED-ND Certification, which gives greater importance to reduction of Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) to sites with transit services.
ENDNOTES
(1.) http://www.eia.doe.gov/pub/oil_gas/petroleum/analysis_publications/chronology/petroleumchornology2000.htm#T_2.
(2.) http://www.eia.doe.gov/pub/oil_gas/petroleum/analysis_publications/chronology/petroleumchronology.2000.htm
(3.) http://www.earthday.net/about
(4.) http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=about.ab_index.
(5.) http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=about.ab_index.
(6.) http://www.usgbc.org/News/USGBCInTheNewsDetails.aspx?ID=3795.
(7.) U.S. Green Building Council, Green Building Facts--Green Building by the Numbers (USGBC September 2008) http://www.usgbc.org/DisplayPage.aspx?CMSPageID=1718.
(8.) http://www.eia.doe.gov/oiaf/1605/flash.htm.
(9.) http://www.usgbc.org/News/USGBCInTheNewsDetails.aspx?ID=3795.
The Impact of U.S. Fuel Consumption, Communting Patterns and Vehicle Miles Traveled on the Environment: Perspective Two
THE IMPROVEMENT IN FUEL ECONOMY and of reduction of emissions from vehicles has been one of the earliest environmental battlegrounds. In 1975, the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards were established by the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (EPCA) of 1975 as a means of reducing U.S. dependence on foreign oil. CAFE set as national policy, the average miles per gallon (MPG) that passenger cars and light trucks sold by U.S. manufacturers must attain. When enacted, CAFE established a 14.6 miles per gallon (MPG) level for combined car and light truck fuel economy.
The CAFE standards presented major technology challenges for automakers and required tremendous investments over a sustained period of time in order to meet the ever increasing mileage performance of vehicles. (2) The standards--and their constant revision upward--has been one of the great successes of the EPA in the U.S. The MPG performance of passenger cars increased from 14.0 MPG in 1975 to 22.4 MPG in 2007, (3) resulting in a nearly 20 percent reduction in gasoline use per passenger vehicle. Unfortunately, at the same time the number of vehicle miles traveled (VMT) also increased from 9,309 in 1975 to 12,427 (4) miles in 2007, wiping out nearly all of the efficiency improvements. This was caused by the explosive growth of the ex-suburbs, the popularity of SUVs and trucks, and increased commuting distances.
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