It Was a Very Good Year
Phil Crone
Director of Green Building Programs
HBA Staff
In a year fraught with historical economic challenges, I know this is one many of us will be happy to forget. But before the calendar turns over, let us reflect on some of the extraordinary things we’ve accomplished. Specifically with green building, as our progress with Green Built North Texas demonstrates how quickly we as an industry are able to diversify, respond to and even preempt market forces.
Using the lessons we learned in the program’s first year we transformed GBNT from a small band of eco-conscious HBA members into one of the nation’s most dynamic and successful green building programs. These efforts earned the program National Green Building Program of the Year honors from NAHB in May and brought it to an international stage at the Greenbuild Conference in Boston where more than 25,000 from around the world attended.
Here locally, GBNT served as an effective policy tool and is now the region’s green building clearinghouse after forming alliances with the U.S. Green Building Council and NAHB that allow homes built to either of those national programs to also earn GBNT branding. The program’s regional protocol now serves as a compliance path for the City of Dallas’s green building ordinance passed in April. The protocol was revised at the beginning of the year giving it the flexibility to meet the needs of our diverse membership, while retaining the rigor necessary to satisfy the demands of policy makers.
Thanks to a dedicated group of about a dozen members, GBNT moved into the realm of multifamily building. The multifamily task force convened for the first time in May and soon produced a pilot program, which is still being tested on several projects throughout the area.
Perhaps the program’s biggest milestone was the development of its third party verification process, which paved the way for the introduction of the nation’s first interactive registry of green homes. By centering most of its inspections on the ENERGY STAR inspection process, which is followed in 37% of Texas homes, the program allows for the maximum amount of quality control and the lowest practicable cost. Eight months ago we really weren’t sure really sure how well this experiment would work.
As they say, the numbers don’t lie. As of mid-December we’ve registered more than 1,500 projects on GreenBuiltNorthTexas.com, provided new sales and marketing opportunities for participating builders and, most of all, furthered the mission of this association by enhancing the ability of our members to provide the region with greater access to quality homes that are healthy, efficient and affordable.
As we look ahead at the year to come and a new Presidential Administration, our industry will continue to grapple with demands for a more efficient housing stock as policy makers deal with global concerns such as the increasing scarcity of natural resources and the need curtail greenhouse gas emissions.
Fortunately, due to the tremendous foresight of the HBA’s leadership who saw the need to invest the resources needed to create a viable program, the association and its members now stand as the state’s (and one of the nation’s) leaders on green building.
The continued viability of GBNT will on its ability to stay ahead of the constant evolution in building codes, but do so in cost-effective and reasonable way that still provides measurable and verifiable benefits. Although this may be a daunting task, it is one that must be undertaken by the industry that stands to be most affected by these requirements.
I want to thank each and every member that contributed the time, talent and revenue without which this program and its accomplishments would not be possible. I personally have gained much from your extensive knowledge and experience as well as your collective willingness to achieve our common goal. With your continued investment in the program and the anticipated move towards a statewide initiative, I’m certain that the best is yet to come.
Green Diplomacy
Phil Crone
Director of Green Building Programs
HBA Staff
At the National Green Building Conference in May, most of the seminar focused on the pending completion of the process to mold the Model Green Home Building Guidelines published by NAHB in 2004 into a new National Green Building Standard.
Only a few months before, the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) who had been in the green building game since 1994, cutting its teeth primarily in the commercial sector, dropped the pilot label off its LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) for Homes or LEED-H program. NAHB’s new ANSI (American National Standards Institute) approved, ICC (International Code Council) published juggernaut would soon be christened to wage war with LEED-H for hearts and minds of eco-conscious builders, consumers and policy makers.
Realizing the epic battle that was about to ensue, representatives from numerous state and local HBA programs across the nation were left scrambling for strategies to ensure their programs would not perish in the crossfire. These initiatives, tailor-made for builders in their climate zones, were largely responsible for taking green to the mainstream, producing more than 100,000 green homes before either national program came on the scene.
Here in Dallas, Green Built North Texas (GBNT) underwent rapid development in just over two years, establishing and refining its own construction protocol and verification process while successfully persuading cities to recognize an established program in favor of creating their own. The hard work and dedication of its members earned the program National Green Building Program of the Year honors at the national conference in May. Ironically though, it was during program’s finest hour when its leaders realized it was about to be stuck between the gun barrels of the two green building dreadnoughts.
With some swift maneuvering, GBNT quickly turned this challenge into an opportunity to draw out the commonalities among the DFW market’s three major residential green building programs by working cooperatively with both NAHB and the USGBC to educate building professionals, policy makers and homebuyers alike. While their specific strategies may differ, GBNT, NAHB Green and LEED-H each address essentially the same tenants of green building: site management, water efficiency, indoor air quality, energy efficiency, material usage and homeowner education, each requires quality assurance through independent third party verification and each offer a plethora of educational opportunities to their members. Each program offers a bona fide way to build a green home.
This made it an easy decision for the GBNT Board of Directors to allow homes that take the LEED-H and/or NAHB path to be eligible for listing on the program’s registry right along with the 1000+ homes built (or being built) to the GBNT protocol this year. In other words, pick which program works for you, follow it, and for a $30 registration fee, you’ll have the GBNT brand. This is being done through a memorandum of understanding recently signed by the HBA and USGBC and a new initiative started by NAHB that allows local programs to affiliate with them.
Such alliances not only further awareness and knowledge of the benefits of green homebuilding by focusing the resources of all three programs under one roof, they also establish GBNT as the region’s green building clearinghouse. Meanwhile, both national efforts benefit from a vibrant local program serving as a conduit for certification.
If we as an industry truly are to be the champions of market-driven green building, we must recognize the variety of established green building programs that together can meet the needs of our diverse membership. By combining the national resources offered by the USGBC and NAHB with our local expertise, we are best positioned to further our Association’s mission of promoting positive public policy and providing homeowners with greater access to quality homes that are healthy, efficient and affordable.
Green Building & The Environment: Where the Candidates Stand
Phil Crone
Director of Green Building Programs
HBA Staff
Perhaps for the first time in history climate change and environmental policy are pervasive issues in the presidential election. Much of the recent debate has centered on the global financial crisis, but with rising energy and fuel prices contributing to the problem, terms like “green-collar jobs” and “carbon cap trading” have become part of each candidate’s vocabulary. A quick look at where each candidate stands on environmental issues that will affect the home building industry reveals several similarities and supports the conclusion that no matter who is elected on November 4, green building and the environment will be salient issues for years to come. Senator Obama and Senator McCain’s environmental platforms.
The issue summaries below each come from information posted on the candidates’ own websites. Visit GreenBuiltNorthTexas.com for links to
BUILDING EFFICIENCYUTILITIES AND ELECTRIC GRIDRENEWABLE ENERGY
Senator Obama proposed to weatherize at least one million low-income homes each year for the next decade, which can reduce energy bills by 20-40 percent and reduce usage across the economy, moderating energy prices for all. He puts specific emphasis on providing financial assistance to insulate low-income consumers from the increasing cost of heating oil.
Obama also subscribes to the 2030 Challenge, an initiative that started in the design professional community and has become a trendy endorsement for U.S. mayors. The 2030 Challenge establishes the goal of making all new buildings carbon neutral, or produce zero emissions, by 2030. Obama promises to establish a national goal of improving new building efficiency by 50 percent and existing building efficiency by 25 percent over the next decade to help us meet the 2030 goal.
The Lexington project, Senator McCain’s comprehensive energy policy proposals, centers around the federal government’s own practices. According to McCain’s website, “the U.S. government is the largest electricity consumer on earth and occupies 3.3 billion square feet of space worldwide. It provides an enormous opportunity to lead by example. By applying a higher efficiency standard to new buildings leased or purchased or retrofitting existing buildings, we can save taxpayers substantial money in energy costs, and move the construction market in the direction of green technology.”
Senator Obama proposes to require states to provide technical assistance and incentives for utilities to reduce usage. He aims to encourage this through a policy of “regulatory equity” centered on decoupling utility profits from increased energy usage. This would be similar to the templates created by the Public Utility Commission of Texas, which have led many utilities such as Oncor to implement successful energy conservation measures in order to reduce peak energy demand and to avoid the high cost and regulatory hurdles of building new power plants.
Senator McCain focuses on upgrading our national grid to meet new demands such as capacity to charge electric cars and accommodation of SmartMeter technologies. SmartMeters provide consumers with a more exact picture of their home or business’s energy consumption, which encourages a more efficient use of power. This summer Oncor rolled out a proposal to spend $690 million to roll out 3 million of these new meters by the year 2012.
Senator Obama’s goal is for at least 30 percent of the federal government’s energy to come from renewable sources by the year 2020. By 2025, he wants to require 25 percent of the electricity consumed by the nation be derived from “clean, sustainable energy sources, like solar, wind and geothermal.”
Senator McCain also wants to encourage the use of alternative energy resources. He cites figures from the Department of Energy that claim wind energy could provide as much as one-fifth of our electricity by 2030 and the continued growth of the solar industry as reasons to establish a permanent, “even-handed” system of tax credits to further foster the development of these emerging fields.
While the underlying philosophies on how to get there may differ, both wish to lead our nation towards energy independence. Indeed it seems very likely that the winning candidate will be known as the Green President. Perhaps it’s the old adage that the times make the man, since market forces have placed the green movement squarely in the center of the policy arena. Nevertheless, our industry must continue to discover innovative and cost effective ways to build even more green than we do today as the underlying market and policy forces will define the way we build for years, even generations, to come.
Green Built North Texas Mid-Year Report
Phil Crone
Director of Green Building Programs
HBA Staff
It is easy to state both cliché’s and doomsday scenarios when discussing green building. But when you get past the warm fuzzy’s and earth science the subject of resource-efficient construction is serious business. Not only are consumers aware of it but the codes are reflecting it and public policy is demanding it.
Four years ago when the HBA began incorporating green building into its organizational structure the goal was to create a program that gives builders guidance individually and empowers the industry collectively while maneuvering through the public discourse. If honors and recognitions are used as the measuring stick, then perhaps Green Built North Texas (GNBT) being named the NAHB’s National Green Building Program and being recognized as an approved method of green building in the City of Dallas’ far reaching ordinance indicates some level of success in meeting the original goals.
But since green building and its many facets are so pervasive in the today’s news, public discussions, and consumer preferences it is imperative that the GBNT program keep setting goals and looking forward for the betterment of the membership. By taking a quick review of the most recent agenda for the GBNT Board of Directors meeting I think you’ll agree that new goals for GBNT are, in fact, being set higher and that the good work of the Association is in action to represent the common interests of its membership.
Item 1 Home Registry Update: Board members were briefed on the progress to establish a searchable online registry of homes being built to the GBNT Protocol. The registry is directly aimed at consumers seeking to find both “Under Construction” and “Completed” homes built to the GBNT protocol. The registry went live to the public last week and all members are encouraged to go to www.greenbuiltnorthtexas.com to examine this one-of-a-kind home listing.
Item 2 Multifamily Construction Protocol: The Board deliberated a final draft green building construction protocol for multifamily projects. Ultimately approved as a “Pilot Program” and therefore subject to further review and refinement, the Board’s action paves the way for multifamily builders to carry the GBNT brand and take advantage of the registry among other benefits.
Item 3 Verifier Guidelines: Third party verification is now a requirement of the GBNT program. In order to ensure that builders are working with knowledgeable building professionals, the GBNT Board established criteria for verifiers. The minimum professional requirements for becoming a verifier (such as being an architect or engineer) will be accompanied by training requirement thereby creating a network of highly qualified verifying companies that share common thoughts and understanding of the GBNT program.
Item 4 Upper Levels of the GBNT Protocol: Since its early inception, and up through its most recent revision, the GBNT construction protocol has been regarded as a “base” level for green building construction. The challenge now is to establish additional levels for the program to keep ahead of regulatory mandates and building code changes. Having these upper levels keep the program relevant and provides the market separations needed in today’s competitive housing market.
Item 5 Bylaws Amendment: The GBNT Board is comprised of eight builder members and five associate members. Because of increasing participation from volume builders and the implementation of a new multifamily protocol, the GBNT Board voted to amend its bylaws in order to reserve three Board positions on for representation from volume builders (two seats) and a multifamily builder (one seat).
Item 6 Cooperative Agreement with the United States Green Building Council (USGBC): The GBNT Board debated the merits of entering into a “Memorandum of Understanding” (MOU) with the USGBC. The MOU was approved by the GBNT Board thereby adding a new dimension to the GBNT program and new opportunities for education, marketing and special events.
As stated, the actions taken by the GBNT Board of Directors at the recent meeting outlined above clearly demonstrate that this dynamic program is setting its goals high to meet the needs of the HBA membership in this very serious and challenging housing market. If you have any questions or comments about the recent actions taken by the GBNT Board or about any other aspect of the program contact HBA staff.
Making Sense Out of WaterSense
-EPA Proposes Whole-House Certification Under New Water Conservation Label
Phil Crone
Director of Green Building Programs
HBA Staff
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a draft specification for whole-house certification under its WaterSense brand. Similar to ENERGY STAR, WaterSense began as a label for products such as showerheads and faucets, but is now poised to become a third party verified certification offered for the entire home and a major player in the policy arena as jurisdictions look to water conservation measures.
http://www.epa.gov/watersense/specs/homes.htm
According to the EPA, by meeting criteria in indoor and outdoor water use, along with homeowner education, WaterSense homes are designed to be about 20 percent more water efficient. Indeed, at first glance the prescriptive list of requirements seems pretty straight forward, but as is usually the case, the devil is in the details.
The indoor water use requirements include above-code bathroom faucets, an ENERGY STAR dishwasher, WaterSense toilets rated at 1.28 gpf, clearing 350 grams of waste and showers limited to 2.5 gpm per stall. This means that the flow rate of all bodysprays and jets combined must not exceed 2.5 gpm, unless the floor area of the stall is more than 208 square feet. This is an attempt to accommodate higher-end luxury bathrooms. Also, homes are required to maintain a static service pressure of 60psi; however, this may not be feasible if the city’s water pressure is lower than this requirement.
Moving outside, things get even more complicated. A builder has two options when it comes to landscape design, (1) ensure that the amount of turf does not exceed 40% of the landscapable area or (2) develop a water budget using the evapotranspiration (ET) limit on the landscapable area. The first option, and the only one that does not require a math degree, is a “one-size-fits-all” approach that does not account for the water-saving benefits of drought-tolerant turf. The way this is currently written, one could comply with the turf limitation and still install tropical species in the planting areas. Also, it is unclear what is included in the “landscapable area.”
In addition, there will be no koi ponds or fountains, since ornamental water fixtures are prohibited from WaterSense homes. It is not clear whether fixtures such as fountains or waterfalls will be allowed if they are part of a pool design.
The outdoor irrigation items are pretty straightforward as they address system controllers, sprinkler heads and seasonal watering schedules. However, the system must be designed and installed by a WaterSense Irrigation Partner. According to the EPA’s website, there are only about 10 of these professionals that service residential construction in the DFW area. Despite the fact that there are many more licensed professionals fully qualified and capable of installing these systems to the program’s specifications, WaterSense limits installation in our area to these individuals.
Due to the increasing influence that this program will have, especially here in Texas, it is important that the aforementioned issues are addressed during the public comment period, which ends Sept. 4. Hopefully, the EPA will also consider supplementing its prescriptive list with performance-based software that renders a percentage above code rating similar to ENERGY STAR. The proposed guidelines can be found at GreenBuiltNorthTexas.com/GreenVineNewsColumn and submit them either directly to the EPA or to me for inclusion in the HBA’s official comments.
Link to Proposed EPA Specifications:
The Legal Considerations of Green Advertising
Phil Crone
Director of Green Building Programs
HBA Staff
Since the column goes legal this time, it’s only appropriate to start it out with a disclaimer. While I hope to cover a few ways that the law addresses green marketing and advertising, it’s important to note that I’m not a lawyer, (I just play one at SMU for the cost of $23,000/year) so nothing in here should be taken as legal gospel. Always speak with qualified legal counsel if you have questions related to your compliance with the federal and state laws that this column talks about. Fortunately for HBA members, one of your greatest benefits of membership is that the construction law experts at The Bush Firm are just a phone call away.
These days it seems like everyone is advertising that they have gone green or that their product can make a home thirty, fifty or even seventy-percent more energy efficient. So, install three or four of these products and you should have a zero energy home, right? Obviously not, but this illustrates the slippery slope of environmental marketing claims.
At the Federal level, environmental marketing claims are subject to the Federal Trade Commission Act (FTC). The FTC is authorized by Congress to bring law enforcement actions against false or misleading marketing claims. Claims can be brought either by the Commission itself or a citizen can bring a complaint to the Commission’s attention. When the Commission springs into action, it has the ability to seek fines, injunctive relief or even order a violator to do corrective advertising. It has done so on ads ranging from funeral home prices to the amount of milk contained in cheese.
Even in residential construction, marketing claims in Texas fall far from the civilized administrative world of the TRCC and instead reside in the legal Wild West that is the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices – Consumer Protection Act (DTPA). The DTPA is our state’s iteration of the Federal Trade Commission Act (FTC that offers a much wider range of claims and remedies for consumers. The DTPA provides for both public enforcement and private remedies. Public enforcement is done by the Texas Attorney General, who can seek a court order prohibiting further deceptive practices, similar to the FTC. Unlike the FTC, a private citizen may seek redress for damages caused by certain specific acts and practices listed in the DTPA.
These specific acts appear in Section 17.46(b) of the Texas Business and Commerce Code, often referred to as the “laundry list,” and include things such as representing that goods or services have sponsorship, benefits or quantities that they do not have or advertising that goods or services are of a particular standard or quality that they actually are not. One can see how this could apply to green advertising claims. For example, saying that a home improves indoor air quality by 50 percent – is a claim that is very hard to substantiate or stating that a product will reduce your heating and cooling bills by $60/month may not hold true depending on the homeowner’s living habits.
Running afoul of the DTPA can result in a wide variety of consumer claims, especially since the act has very broad definitions as to who is a consumer and what is considered trade or commerce. Consumers may be entitled to actual economic damages (how much money they lost by justifiably relying on the deceptive advertisement). If the court finds that the deception was done “knowingly” or “intentionally,” the injured consumer may be able to tack on attorney’s fees and court costs. As extra punishment, treble damages, which can be up to three times the amount of the economic damages, may also be sought.
All of this can really add up, which is why taking just a few steps to avoid consumer confusion and inflated expectations makes the most sense. Ask yourself, what message does the advertising actually convey to consumers? The FTC and the DTPA interpret claims from the consumer’s prospective. Make sure that there is a reasonable basis to your claim. Is there testing or scientific evidence to support it? If a manufacturer has made a claim about a product you installed on your home, you could pass it along with the words, “according to” instead of making it yourself.
Along with substantiating your claim, make sure it is specific. The claim needs to be clear and understandable – this will also make your advertising effective. Specific claims are easier to substantiate than more general ones and therefore are less likely to be deceptive. A general environmental claim may lead the consumer to believe that a product has more benefits than it actually does.
Finally, make sure to temper consumer expectations in your contract. The homeowner’s lifestyle may defeat your best efforts to build an energy efficient home and their asthmatic child may still have asthma even though the home is designed to improve indoor air quality. You may want your contract to address these types of things. However, you should also look at the advertising claims that led your consumer in the door. Courts probably will not look kindly on those who offer enticing claims only to sweep them under the rug when it comes time to sign the contract.
There are many more legal issues that affect green building, which is why all members are strongly encouraged to attend the Risk Management for Green Builders class at the HBA on August 25. This proactive seminar, conducted by Russell Daniels of The Bush Firm, will equip you with the knowledge you need to avoid being caught up in this emerging legal field.
FTC: Part 260 — GUIDES FOR THE USE OF ENVIRONMENTAL MARKETING CLAIMSFTC Publication: Complying with the Environmental Marketing Guides
The Bush Firm
4025 Woodland Park Blvd.; Suite #190
Arlington, Texas 76013
Phone: (817) 274-5992
Fax: (817) 261-1671
-May 2008-
The True Global Impact of Residential Construction
Phil Crone
Director of Green Building Programs
HBA Staff
These days it’s all too common to hear environmentalists talk about the perils of global warming or “climate change” as some now call it. Indeed we are now inundated with images of glaciers crashing into the sea and polar bears clumsily falling through the ice. Whether or not you are a fan of polar bears or a believer in global warming, the reality is that these concerns have quickly traveled south from the arctic and into a city hall near you.click here.
So what impact do the homes we build really have on these global concerns? According to a recent study conducted by NAHB using data compiled by the Energy Information Administration (EIA), the statistical agency housed within the U.S. Department of Energy, not as much as some would think.
The study analyzed the amount of electricity demanded by residential homes, which roughly translates into the amount of greenhouse gases they are responsible for, and then compared this to the demands of the commercial, industrial and transportation sectors. The conclusion was that residential buildings accounted for about 21% of the nation’s total energy usage in 2001. However, newer homes built within the last few years, 1991 to 2001 in this case, only accounted for 2.5% of the total U.S. energy consumption in 2001, and half of that energy was lost in the grid before it even reached the home.
This clearly shows that advancements in building codes along with the technology and techniques by which we now build our homes have greatly reduced our industry’s effect on the environment. Put another way, even if every American home built from 1991 to 2001 was a zero energy home; the nation’s total energy consumption would only drop by 2.5%.
When global or local environmental concerns do come to a city near you, these numbers can be used as an effective policy tool. Jurisdictions must take the utmost care not to increase the cost of housing and leave citizens with no choice but to remain in older homes that, on average, use two-thirds more energy than those built in the last decade. Effective policy also means that incentives are needed to address strategies to upgrade the efficiency of these older homes.
Our industry will continue building more efficient homes than ever before and is ready, willing and able to be part of the solution by upgrading the efficiency of older homes. With some help from our local leaders and even activists, both we and the polar bears can continue to make solid strides in the right direction.
To read the full NAHB study called Residential Greenhouse Gas Emissions,
-April 2008-
Green Built North Texas: It’s the Law
Phil Crone
Director of Green Building Programs
HBA Staff
With a unanimous vote from the city council on April 9, the City of Dallas adopted a green building ordinance that aims to reduce water and energy consumption in new homes and commercial buildings constructed in the city. As part of phase 2 of the ordinance, effective in 2011, single and multifamily builders must choose between the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standard or Green Built North Texas (GBNT).Click here for More information about the new Dallas ordinance including the ordinance itself, HBA comments, and a press release.
While most in the industry believe, and the numbers clearly indicate, that green building is a market driven phenomenon that is growing exponentially without mandates, the fact that GBNT is part of the ordinance bodes well for local builders. Thanks to years of development and input from local builders and building science experts, GBNT has tailored its Construction Protocol and third-party verification process specifically for builders in our region’s Mixed-Humid climate. The result is a program that is rigorous enough to meet the demands of city leaders, but its flexibility allows builders to construct a GBNT home at any price point.
In hopes of avoiding a patchwork of different green building regulations around the region, the HBA urged Dallas council members to continue their discussion of green building policy at the North Central Texas Council of Governments (COG). The regional nature of GBNT will allow any North Texas city, seeking their own mandate, a feasible alternative to creating a new green building program or adopting other programs that are more difficult to comply with.
Unlike other cities in this area, Dallas should be commended for uniformly applying its green building regulations to both commercial and residential construction. In the coming months, members and staff will continue to contribute to Dallas’s green building task force, which is charged with helping the city implement these new regulations. Green Built North Texas will soon complete development on a multifamily construction protocol that will also serve as a path to compliance in 2011.
Green building mandates will be an inevitable part of the industry’s future. However, thanks to an effective local green building program, North Texas builders will have a feasible option that will help our region remain one of the best places to build and buy a home in America.
-March 2008-
Green Light for DFW Housing Market
Phil Crone
Director of Green Building Programs
HBA Staff
Despite the negative national news bombarding the airwaves about the state of the housing sector, North Texas remains one of the nation’s strongest markets due to our region’s strong economy, price stability and affordability. In fact, one of the reasons I moved here from the East Coast was the realization that DFW was one of the only metropolitan areas where someone my age could even think of affording a home anytime soon after college. click here. If you are a Home Energy Rater and/or Engineering Company interested in becoming a Green Built North Texas Verifier, contact the HBA, ext. 112.
A silver lining in all the negative headlines and hoopla is that interest rates have been driven down to historic lows. Couple that with the above reasons and it becomes easy to see why we live in the best place to build and buy a home in America right now. If you don’t believe me, visit DFWHousingFacts.org.
It logically follows, and the numbers support, that now is also an outstanding time to think about building green. Even in a national marketplace that continues to run cool as builders work down their unsold inventories, green building and remodeling remain one sector where demand is riding much higher than the available supply. NAHB still forecasts that the market for green building will be on the high side of McGraw-Hill Construction’s forecast that green building will become a $20-60 billon dollar industry by 2010 (up from just $2 billion in 2005).
Demand from consumers for green building and remodeling is also being spurred on by another common national headline, the ever-increasing price of energy. Every green homebuyer surveyed by McGraw-Hill identified lower utility and operating costs as an incentive for purchasing a green home. Homebuyers are also willing to pay more for a home with certain green features, according to an NAHB article; about $17,000, to be exact, over an average-costing $292,000 home.
Luckily for North Texas homeowners, HBA builders can offer a green built home at just about any price-point, thanks to the easy-to-follow Green Built North Texas Construction Protocol and its new independent, third party verification process. The Protocol identifies strategies aimed at delivering a bona fide high-performance home in this region’s Mixed-Humid climate. While the Protocol is one of the more stringent sets of local green building guidelines in the nation, it is flexible in that it identifies and allows builder to choose from a variety of green building strategies to achieve its performance goals. The best part: no complicated scoring system, no math, just a simple roadmap to building a green built home.
With the recent introduction of third party verification and the ability to place your project on one of the nation’s first interactive registries of green built homes, now is an excellent time to consider making a long-term strategic decision to go green. There is no better market to do it than right here in North Texas.
For more information about how to build, verify and register a Green Built North Texas home,
Big Attendance at First GBNT General Membership Meeting of 2008
Members of the HBA of Greater Dallas and the Fort Worth Builders Association packed the Grapevine Convention Center on March 17 for the year’s first Green Built North Texas General Membership Meeting. More than 120 attendees were given a summary of the GBNT Protocol by Chairman Dan Fette, CGB, and received an overview of the program’s mandatory home verification and registration process. GBNT will hold three more General Membership Meetings and several more installments of its Green Vine Lecture Series throughout the year.
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Click here to view entire slideshow.
-February 2008-
TCEQ Implements Phase II MS4s and Makes Significant�
Changes to General Permit
Phil Crone
Director of Green Building Programs
HBA Staff
The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) has begun to implement what is known as “Phase II” for storm water control, which will now require National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits from communities that have a population of at least 50,000 and an overall population density of at least 1,000 people per square mile. Previously, Phase I covered communities of 100,000 or less. With increased scrutiny placed upon a new class of communities, builders will likely begin to see increased enforcement of storm water regulations by cities seeking to comply with new state mandates. For more information about this issue click here or contact Paul Cauduro at 972-931-4840.Green Built North Texas to Introduce Third Party Verification Process
Additionally, on February 13, the TCEQ approved a proposal to renew the Construction General Permit, TPDES Permit No. TXR150000, which authorizes discharges from construction sites into surface water in the state. Significant changes from the existing general permit include combining the NOI fee into the Water Quality Annual Fee for the duration of the permit. The combined fee for a paper NOI is $325, due when the NOI is submitted. The commission is attempting to encourage electronic submission by charging a fee of $225 for utilizing an electronic NOI.
The renewed general permit will be effective beginning March 5. Existing permitted construction sites that are required to submit an NOI will be required to submit an NOI for continued coverage no later than 90 days from the effective date of the general permit (June 3).
Pending board approval, Green Built North Texas will soon require third party verification of compliance with its Construction Protocol in order for a home to be recognized by the program. This process will provide builders with the quality assurance that their homes qualify to carry the Green Built North Texas brand and will allow the program to recognize these homes on an interactive online home registry, similar to an MLS listing, which is currently under development and will be the mainstay of the program’s website.
The move towards third party verification will make Green Built North Texas one of the only HBA-run green building programs in the nation to require verification for all levels of their program. Moreover, the program would be the first to offer an interactive online home registry of verified green homes to consumers in its market.
The key to the success of the process will be the ability to provide inspections and compliance testing on each and every home while not imposing an undue financial or administrative burden upon participating builders. To strike this balance, the verification process is designed so that the verifier can provide the highest number of inspections with the least amount of trips to the home. This can be achieved because ENERGY STAR, which is already a program requirement, mandates inspections for energy performance at both the pre-drywall and final stages of the construction process; stages when most of the other program requirements can be verified as well.
Implementation of the Green Built North Texas verification and home registration process will begin initially as a pilot program. Beginning the process this way will allow the program to receive valuable feedback from builders and verifiers, which will refine the Protocol and the verification process using information gathered from the field.
-January 2008-
2008 Enrollment in Green Built North Texas is Now Available
Phil Crone
Director of Green Building Programs
HBA Staff
Enrollment in the HBA’s Green Built North Texas program is now available for the year 2008. Last year the commitment of the program’s 105+ members allowed the program to mature significantly and reach significant milestones in its first full year of existence. Noteworthy achievements include the region’s first Green Built Parade of HomesTM, numerous Association Excellence Awards, increased builder participation, and program’s distinction as the Association Accomplishment of the Year by the Texas Association of Builders. In addition, the program’s members received numerous honors ranging from Congressional Commendations to honors from the North Central Texas Council of Government, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, and the National Association of Home Builders. Why Join Green Built North Texas?
Despite recent downturns in the number of housing starts, demand for environmentally preferable, green, homes continues to grow both regionally and nationally. According to NAHB, the value of the residential green building market will grow from $7.4 billion or 2% of housing starts in 2005 to at least $60 billion or 10% of housing starts just two years from now. No place is this more true than right here in Texas, which built over 60,000 ENERGY STAR homes in 2006, easily leading the nation and the next three leading states combined.
This is why the HBA established and will continue to expand Green Built North Texas, the only green building program tailored specifically for the builders in this region’s Mixed-Humid Climate. The program’s Base Construction Protocol provides strategies for builders to distinguish their homes by conforming to high standards of site management and waste reduction, water efficiency, indoor air quality, energy efficiency, materials, and homeowner education. The protocol is flexible in that it allows builders to choose construction strategies that meet their business plan, but rigorous in that it results in a higher-performance, lower-impact home.
Last year, educational seminars related to green building, including the new Green Vine Lecture Series, were among the best-attended events at the Association. These events, aimed at increasing member knowledge of the latest green building techniques and technologies will continue to be a mainstay of the program this year.
Throughout the year, Green Built North Texas will continue to increase familiarity of the program and its members among both consumers and local government entities. To that end, the program has set an ambitious goal of establishing and maintaining a comprehensive online Home Registry that will list all certified homes built (and being built) by members to its Construction Protocol. The registry will be a mainstay of the program’s newly-redesigned website (GreenBuiltNorthTexas.com) and will be at the center of an aggressive marketing campaign aimed at increasing consumer awareness of builders constructing Green Built North Texas homes in their area.
Associate members will be listed in the program’s new Products and Services Directory that will allow both builders and consumers to view member listings categorized by the products and expertise they provide. This year the program will have enhanced levels of membership for Associates who wish to partner major events and have increased exposure in the form of banner ads on the program’s website, which already receives thousands of hits each month.
In addition, the program will tailor NAHB’s National Green Building Standard to our climate zone as a higher level of green building achievement that will allow builders to advance their building product to meet both consumer desires and their own business plan.
