Spring Greening

Preservation Green Lab Partners on New Energy Code Framework

Curious about what we’ve been up to lately in our Seattle-based Preservation Green Lab? Check out this post on the blog Worldchanging by Julia Levitt, who writes about our work with the city of Seattle and New Buildings Institute on outcome-based energy codes.

Most cities and states have prescriptive energy codes, which require certain energy efficiency elements in major renovations or new construction – like insulation or windows with a particular efficiency rating. It turns out these codes do a poor job of encouraging owners to retrofit their commercial buildings; their “one size fits all” approach often doesn’t recognize the inherent strengths and weaknesses of individual buildings, and can create challenges for historic buildings in particular by prescribing changes that can compromise historic character. Prescriptive codes also tend to squelch innovation because they don’t allow for new approaches to energy reduction.

via blogs.nationaltrust.org

May is National Preservation Month in the US!

A brief article about combining historic preservation with green design: Historically Green Article