NIGHT ROOF SPRAY SYSTEMS PROVIDE DAYTIME COOLING
In arid climates with clear night skies and cool night temperatures, water chilled on rooftops overnight can cool building interiors the next day. In such climates, roofs radiate heat outward to the night sky. By midnight, most low-slope roofs are cooler than the outdoor air. Night roof spray systems, such as NightSky by Integrated Comfort, Inc. of Davis, California, chill water to 50 to 55 degrees at night by spraying it over large, low-slope roofs. The chilled water is captured at roof drains, filtered and stored. When cooling is needed the next day, a pump delivers stored water to the coil to cool the building. During the summer of 1997, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory monitored a NightSky system installed on a US Customs border patrol station in Nogales, Arizona. Cold nighttime air temperatures frequently resulted in tank temperatures below 50 degrees by morning. The measured average cooling efficiency was nearly 15 times higher than the building's existing compressor-based cooling system. The system's reported 12-year payback would have been much shorter with higher electric rates or concurrent downsized chiller replacement. At current southwestern US population growth rates, conventional refrigerant-based cooling systems will require substantial new electrical generation capacity, and will continue to cause both global warming and ozone layer depletion. Night roof spray cooling systems offer a refreshing alternative. - Architecture, Nov 99, p 149, by Richard Bourne. [For more information email <dbourne@davisenergy.com>]

FREE GREEN DESIGN ADVICE FROM BRE
Architects in the UK are the target audience for the Building Research Establishment's Design Advice Service, a free government-funded environmental consulting service that encourages green building design. The service has already been brought in on more than 300 projects in the last year, from large commercial buildings to council flat refurbs. "Initially, we anticipated that architects would be wary of inviting someone else in to improve their designs," said Noel Burns of BRE. "Instead, they're presenting the service as a free extra, a value-added bonus that shows clients they're plugged into the best practice, and as something which also impresses the planning department." Demand for the service will likely rise as building owners and managers prepare for a new tax on energy supplies planned for April 2001. The service, underwritten by the [UK Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions], provides clients with a day's consulting from a BRE-approved energy and environmental practitioner. The consultant examines the design and recommends energy efficiency and environmental improvements. Any design with at least 500 square meters of floor space is eligible. Costs average 350 pounds a day, which the client pays to the consultant, then reclaims from DETR. For longer consultations--full thermal modeling, for example--clients get a 30 percent refund. For more information, email <DesignAdvice@bre.co.uk>. - Building  Design, 10 Dec 99, p 8, by Ian Martin.

MCDONALD'S/EDF ALLIANCE TO FOCUS ON ENERGY
McDonald's and the Environmental Defense Fund, which formed an alliance ten years ago to cut fast-food packaging waste, recently announced plans to reduce energy use in the chain's 12,500 US restaurants. McDonald's will work with EDF and other outside experts to set energy-conservation goals by Earth Day 2000, with an initial target of at least a 10% reduction compared to 1999. "It's going to be a several years' process," says McDonald's Chairman Jack Greenberg. "We're constantly remodeling and rebuilding our older restaurants. We can select those [energy-saving devices] that have the most impact." But he acknowledged that "we have a lot more control over the new restaurants we build." The energy-reduction project, tested in five stores in Illinois, California, Colorado and Georgia, includes fluorescent lights which dim in response to daylight levels, light pipes in the roof to introduce daylight into the building, high-efficiency air conditioning, infrared controlled water valves in restrooms and an electronic device that automatically turns off lights in walk-in freezers. - The Washington Post, 22 Dec 99, p E1, by Frank Swoboda, and EDF website. [More: <http://www.edf.org/pubs/NewsReleases/1999/dec/k_mcdonalds.html>]

WHITE HOUSE TRIMS ITS ENERGY BILLS
Energy-efficient measures taken as part of a "greening of the White House" initiative have saved taxpayers nearly $1.4 million since 1993, according to an administration report released on December 2. The savings, now running about $300,000 a year, were achieved through more efficient lighting, heating and air conditioning and other modifications. President Clinton announced the energy-saving project for the 19-acre White House complex on Earth Day 1993. "This has been his baby from the beginning," said Roger Ballantine, deputy assistant to the president for environmental initiatives. The energy-efficiency strategy developed by architects, Potomac Electric Power Co. experts, and federal agency officials included replacing incandescent table lamp bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs, taking advantage of natural light, and ensuring that electric lights got turned off when not in use. The team also installed a new heating and air conditioning system in the executive residence, put new insulation on pipes and installed high-efficiency refrigerators in the White House kitchen. Next door at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, virtually all the windows in the 1888 structure were replaced with double-paned glass. The White House also participated in pilot programs to test alternative-fuel vehicles and an electric pickup truck. - The Washington Post, 2 Dec 99, p A37, by Stephen  Barr. [More: http://www.whitehouse.gov/CEQ/Greening.html]

GREEN BUILDING DISCUSSION FORUM LAUNCHED
Iris Communications recently launched "Big Green," an email discussion group dedicated to sustainable construction of large projects such as multi-family developments, commercial buildings and industrial projects. The list is  co-sponsored by Drew George and Environmental Building News. To join or access the discussion's archives, visit http://www.oikos.com/biggreen.html. - EcoBuilding Times, 1999-2000, p 7.

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U.S. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY http://www.eren.doe.gov/buildings Twenty-three percent of the energy used by TVs, and over 50% of the energy  used by VCRs, occurs during their off, or stand-by mode, according to a  report prepared for DOE's Office of Building Technology, State and Community  Programs. Whether on or off, the 211 million TVs and 128 million VCRs in  U.S. households consume 330 trillion Btu and 96 trillion Btu, respectively,  each year. This is approximately equivalent to the amount of electricity  used by all households in New York state each year. This study will assist  DOE in prioritizing its building equipment research and development programs  by identifying energy saving technologies to pursue. The full report, Energy  Use of Televisions and Videocassette Recorders in the U.S., is available as a  pdf file at http://www.eren.doe.gov/buildings/documents/. For more  information on DOE's energy efficient buildings programs, please see  http://www.eren.doe.gov/buildings or call 800.363.3732.

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ABOUT THE PUBLISHER Sustainable design consultant Chris Hammer publishes GreenClips in San Francisco. Ms. Hammer helps her clients with environmentally responsible approaches to urban planning and development, and to building design, construction, and operation. GreenClips is written by Chris Hammer and Jennifer Roberts.

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