NY STATE TAX INCENTIVE TO SPUR GREEN BUILDING
New York State's Green Building Tax Credit, which became law May [15], is designed to encourage building owners and tenants to produce energy-conserving and environmentally friendly buildings and spaces by offsetting some of the additional first cost associated with high performance buildings. Under the program, $25 million is available from 2001-2009 to building owners and tenants, in the form of income and franchise tax credits. These include a total of 7 percent of eligible costs for green buildings that meet the state's requirements both in the base building and the tenant spaces; 5 percent for green base buildings only; and 5 percent for minimum 10,000-square-foot green tenant spaces. There is also a credit equivalent to 10 percent of the cost of new air-conditioning equipment using refrigerants that don't harm the ozone layer. Builders using fuel cells and photovoltaic panels are eligible for additional credits. The program's minimum requirements would result in new buildings that are 35 percent more energy efficient than required by state energy code, and rehabilitated buildings that are 25 percent more efficient, says Craig E. Kneeland, program manager for the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority. NYSERDA is soliciting bids for a technical assistance contractor to aid in formulating the law's green building standards. - Engineering News-Record (ENR), 29 May 00, p 14, by Nadine M. Post, and The New York Times, 29 May 00, by John Holusha. [Contractor services proposals due to NYSERDA on 6/26/00. More: http://www.nyserda.org/558rfp.html]

WRI HOPES TO INSPIRE OTHERS TO BUILD GREEN
The new office of the World Resources Institute (WRI) reflects the organization's mission of moving human society toward environmental sustainability. "We hope that others will be inspired by what we have done and that they will realize that 'green architecture' is an important and easy road to travel," says Nancy Kiefer, WRI's manager of facilities and office services. Designed by Hellmuth, Obata + Kassabaum (HOK), WRI's 38,000-square-foot offices occupy the eighth and a portion of the seventh floor of a building in Washington, DC. "Closed offices are on the inside of the space with open offices on the outside. To us, it's an inside-out office, a configuration that maximizes the flow of natural light into the space, creating an open environment that encourages people to get out of their offices," says Sandra Mendler, senior designer at HOK when the project was in progress. Six-foot high clerestory windows allow natural light to reach into all offices. Energy-efficient fluorescent light fixtures provide indirect lighting and personal dimming control through a desktop PC. Office doors are manufactured from wheat straw fiberboard, are formaldehyde free, and are finished with a zero-VOC, UV-cured finish. Kiefer estimates that the cost of "going green" is no greater than designing an office without a heavy environmental focus. - Green@Work, May-Jun 00, p 34, by Janet Wiens. [Take a virtual tour of the materials used in WRI's office: http://www.wri.org/office/material.htm]

NATURAL VENTILATION OFFERS SAVINGS AND PERSONAL CONTROL
Natural ventilation often provides building occupants with personal control over their space--allowing them to open and close windows--and is also often a cost-saving feature, with energy savings in the range of 10 to 25 percent compared to similar buildings without natural ventilation. Natural ventilation may replace air conditioning entirely or, more commonly in large buildings, may coexist with mechanical systems. These "mixed-mode" buildings are more practical in extreme climates and provide backup in case occupants are uncomfortable. Integrating passive and mechanical air-distribution systems is tricky, however, and most engineers prefer not to deal with the variable of occupants undermining the mechanical system by opening windows when the equipment is operating. Many mixed-mode spaces switch from natural to mechanical ventilation on a daily or seasonal basis. Rafael ViÒoly's 1.3 million-square-foot David L. Lawrence Convention Center in Pittsburgh, to be completed in 2003, will switch to natural ventilation when outdoor conditions allow it. The exhibit hall and circulation areas will be naturally ventilated much of the year. Cool air, conducted via plenums from openings along the building's river and city ends, will be distributed to meeting rooms. Natural ventilation is likely to save about 25 percent in energy costs over comparable buildings. Mixed-mode buildings sometimes include locks that prevent occupants from opening windows when the air conditioning is on. But at the new computer sciences facility at York University in Toronto, occupants will be given instructions on when to keep their windows closed, and will be trusted not to undermine the mechanical system. - Architectural Record, May 00, by Nadav Malin. [Full text: click on Continuing Education at http://www.archrecord.com]

HOME RATING SYSTEM LAUNCHED IN UK
In April, the Building Research Establishment (BRE) [a UK center for research into buildings and construction] launched EcoHomes, a rating system for homes that encourages the homebuilding industry to offer better environmental performance through good design. Developed with support from the National House Building Council and an advisory group of homebuilders, EcoHomes is a voluntary certification scheme that assigns qualified homes a rating ranging from pass to excellent. This rating is worked out by qualified assessors, under license to BRE, according to credits awarded for performance on seven issues: energy, transport, pollution, materials, water, ecology/land use, and health/well-being. To help calculate the environmental consequences of materials and components, BRE has established a standard method of life-cycle assessment, and maintains a database of environmental profiles of UK construction materials. In addition, BRE has developed a reference aid, the "Green Guide to Housing." - Green Futures, May-Jun 00, p 2, by Tom Harvey. [More: http://www.bre.co.uk/press2000/april/eco060400.html]

RECYCLED SYNTHETIC ROOF SHINGLES GAINING IN POPULARITY
Recycled synthetic roofing shingles that resemble slate or cedar shakes are becoming popular among homeowners and designers interested in maintain vernacular regional styles or the historical integrity of buildings. These recycled rubber and plastic shingles offer an alternative to roofing materials such as cedar shingles and shakes, natural slate, clay or concrete tiles, and standing seam metal roofs. Four producers offer six different synthetic shingle products in a range of colors and shapes. EcoStar manufactures Majestic, composed of synthetic rubber and recycled industrial plastic from manufacturers of car hoses, shoes, tires, and other rubber products. EcoStar also distributes EuroSLATE, which contains 60 percent recycled content. US Century produces FlexShake, containing 90 percent recycled waste tires. Re-New Wood's EcoShake, which looks like cedar shakes, is made of recycled PVC hoses and wood fiber from sawmills and cabinetmakers. Crowe Building Products manufactures Authentic Original, a slate look-alike made from recycled plastic and rubber, and Authentic 2000, made from recycled TPO (thermoplastic olefin). Recycled synthetic shingles have a 40- to 50-year life expectancy, and are priced competitively with slate and cedar shingles, especially when ease of installation and absence of slate breakage are factored in. More: http://www.ecostarinc.com; http://www.flexshake.com; http://www.authentic-roof.com; http://www.ecoshake.com. - Environmental Building News, May 00, p 6, by Rod Francis. [Full text from EBN: http://www.buildinggreen.com/products/shingles.html]

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