Green Buildings Can Help a Warming World

Chris Pyke, vice president of research at the U.S. Green Building Council, is a lead author of “Residential and Commercial Buildings,” the ninth chapter in the third installment of a new report from the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

A global conclusion. Our buildings—offices, schools, homes and more—are both a problem and solution for global climate change. Our built environments drive climate change by directly and indirectly emitting greenhouse gas emissions. These emissions are the result of on-site combustion, purchase of off-site energy, occupant transportation and energy-intensive material supply chains. Our built environments also mediate our vulnerability to changing conditions. The location, design and operation of structures determines the risk of flooding, the consequences of rising temperatures and the potential for continued operations during emergency events. While we’ve known many of these things for a long time, the IPCC’s Fifth Assessment (which is currently in the process of being released, with the final report due in October) brings us up to date and drives home the conclusion that we have the knowledge and practical tools to cost-effectively address these challenges while generating a wide range of co-benefits.
The basic facts are familiar. Energy use and greenhouse gas emissions have been rising for decades. Without intervention, this trend is likely to continue, with many IPCC scenarios indicating more than a doubling of energy use and emissions by 2050. This business-as-usual (or “baseline,” as IPCC calls it) trajectory is bad news for the planet. Research repeatedly shows that this will lead to warming in excess of 4 degrees Celsius, generating myriad negative impacts and disruptions.
What’s new? We don’t have to take this road. In fact, the IPCC’s Fifth Assessment Report describes real opportunities to break from “business as usual” by using cost-effective tools and technologies that already exist. The authors document short-, medium- and long-term opportunities to create better buildings and communities that benefit people and the environment.
New successes. The IPCC’s conclusions reflect a decade of broad-based, accelerating innovation in the building sector. Over this time, we have seen a revolution in building design, construction and operation.

Today, the global green building movement has provided tens of thousands of examples of high-performance buildings that go far beyond basic requirements to save energy and reduce emissions, while providing exceptionally healthy and comfortable places to live, work and study."

These projects have led the way in showing that any kind of building in any circumstance can help break from the baseline. For example, we can find zero-net-energy, LEED Platinum office buildings delivered at market construction prices (e.g., the Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory), thousands of ultralow-energy passive houses across Europe (search the Passive House Database) and, in some cases, entire neighborhoods or districts planning for low-carbon futures (e.g., half a dozen EcoDistricts in Portland, Ore.). These are not pie-in-the-sky ideas. These are brick-and-mortar examples of a better future.

New policies. These leaders are creating opportunities to advance new, more aggressive policies. This includes new mandates for transparency, advanced energy codes and innovative opportunities for financing. The push for transparency is global. We take fuel-economy window stickers for granted on new vehicles, but, in most cases, we lack the equivalent to inform our decisions about residential and commercial real estate. Fortunately, this is changing with policies like New York City’s landmark Local Law 84, California’s State Law 1103, Australia’s long-established NABERS benchmarking program and the widespread use of Energy Performance Certificates across the European Union.

While these policies are making it easier to understand operational energy efficiency, codes and standards are asking architects and engineers to step up to improve the performance of new and retrofitted buildings. For example, the newest version of the primary energy code referenced in the latest LEED Version 4 rating system—ANSI/ASHRAE/IES 90.1-2013—is 40 to 50 percent more stringent than the 2004 version.

These advances in energy savings and emissions reductions have repeatedly been shown to generate long-term operating-cost savings with modest upfront investments. Moreover, a variety of organizations have stepped up to create a variety of new policies and mechanisms to help homeowners and businesses get access to financing. Innovative, potentially transformational, business models have emerged that can help upgrade energy efficiency or install solar power on attractive terms.

New technologies. Continued investment in clean, low-carbon technology is making a difference across the entire building supply chain.

Increasingly, building material suppliers are being asked to understand and disclose the carbon intensity of their products. In turn, this has inspired innovation in product design, such as cement that actually sequesters greenhouse gases."

Architects and engineers are evaluating technologies that can dynamically control solar heat gain, reuse waste heat or store thermal energy. These tools are being deployed with increasing awareness of the role of behavior and even culture in operational energy use. This has inspired a range of tools to provide real-time feedback and localized control.

New opportunities. While the IPCC story is familiar, the new reports also have real, tangible opportunities for action. Buildings—in the broadest sense—can be part of a coordinated, economywide effort to address rising greenhouse gas emissions. We don’t need to wait. Thousands of real-world projects have shown the way in both new and existing buildings. Moreover, IPCC’s recent report underscores that waiting to act “locks in” inefficiency and excess emissions. IPCC’s findings clearly describe the roads ahead. Some lead to warmer worlds, burdened by pollution with continued dependence on traditional energy sources. Many other paths lead toward cleaner, more resilient futures that break from business as usual to benefit people and the environment. Policymakers and citizens will need to consider which path they prefer for themselves and their children.