The Home Builders Association of Greater Dallas’s Green Built Texas program has partnered with the producer of the Dallas Home and Garden Market, to add a Going Green Showcase to the popular consumer event that will be held September 11 and 12. In this section of the show, attendees will learn practical ways to live green and save green from hands-on, do-it-yourself seminars, interactive presentations from local industry experts, and dozens of product and service exhibitors. » Read more: Going Green Showcase: Some Booths Still Available

Two weekends ago, I testified at public comment hearings on the International Green Construction Code (IGCC) in Chicago on behalf both the HBA and TAB. As you will recall, the IGCC began development in June 2009 and it stipulates that the ICC-700 rating system be followed for residential construction.

Additionally, the IGCC would require the minimum energy efficiency for residential occupancies to exceed the 2006 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) by at least 30 percent. One jurisdiction in Washington State has adopted the IGCC and the ICC is actively encouraging others to do the same. » Read more: HBA Staff Testifies at International Green Construction Code Hearings

Masco Home Services has become the third Green Built Texas Title Partner, joining Dow Building Solutions and Demilec.

Masco has promulgated the Environments for Living (EFL) program since 2001. EFL provides a rigorous set of requirements for home builders who’ve made a commitment to go the extra mile. It’s a program that treats a home as a “system of systems” that work together, with limited guarantees on comfort and heating/cooling energy use.

“Getting EFL on board as a Title Partner is huge for us and them,” said Green Built Texas Chairman Adam Auensen of Tonti Properties. “We share a similar mindset on what a green building program should be providing to builders and consumers; I think that will lead to a very innovative relationship.”

More information about Masco and all other Green Built Texas Title Partners can be found by clicking the logos in the right margin of this site.

In an attempt to create a legislative benchmark for green building, the International Code Council has been heavily focused on establishing the International Green Construction Code (IGCC) for that purpose. While the lion’s share of the document is geared towards commercial construction, the ICC-700 program (National Green Building Standard) promulgated by the National Association of Home Builders is incorporated by reference for residential buildings.

The ICC-700 program is just one of many rating systems available in the market. Unfortuneatly though, it is the only rating system currently recognized in early drafts of the IGCC. It is our hope that once work on the IGCC is completed in early 2012, it will either encourage adopting jurisdictions to consider multiple rating systems that are available at the state and local level (as many already have) or will simply maintain focus on commercial construction; again realizing that multiple solutions already exist in the residential field.

The ever-evolving field of green building continues to be defined by innovative theories coupled with unique demands among both consumers and policy makers. We sincerely hope that further progress will not be curtailed by short-sighted regulatory attempts to fashion a “one-size-fits-all” approach.

More information on the IGCC can be found on the ICC’s web page. Our public comment is #1-31 and the Texas Association of Builders is comment #1-10 on this document.