GreenClips.161 02.14.01 LOCAL CODES AN OBSTACLE TO SMART GROWTH An audit of Illinois municipalities shows that while smart growth is a hot topic among planners, few or no towns have regulations allowing compact, mixed-use developments. The study, funded by a $15,000 grant from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, tabulates the median requirements of jurisdictions' zoning laws, and finds them to be "significantly more land consumptive" compared to recommendations in the American Planning Association's "Principles of Smart Development." The study found that pavement widths for local residential streets are nearly double what smart growth policy would recommend; minimum lot size requirements are 3 to 4 times above the ideal; block length maximum limits and residential setbacks are double what they could be; and commercial setbacks are well above the optimal setback of zero. Parking requirements of 1 space per 200 square feet of retail floor area (for cities) fall below the optimal parking requirements of 1 space per 300 square feet. "Even if a developer was interested in building a pedestrian-oriented, compact development, local regulations would be so costly to overcome (by requiring the granting of variances), that the regulatory framework prohibits against smart growth practices," the study's authors note. The study was set up as a model "smart growth regulatory audit" that could be copied in other states at a minimal cost. [For more information email: talen@uiuc.edu] New Urban News, Jan-Feb 01, p 1. POST OFFICE'S MASTER SPECS GOING GREEN The US Postal Service (USPS) is making good environmental design the standard for the 500 to 600 buildings it constructs each year. In 1997 the USPS assembled a green design wish list, or green addendum, that included sustainably harvested wood, post-consumer recycled carpet, occupancy sensors, and indigenous plantings. The USPS then challenged its 11 construction and design regional offices to do a green showcase project. Six of the districts responded. The first project, a post office in Fort Worth, Texas, completed in 1998, includes daylighting, recycled materials, and a system for harvesting rainwater for landscaping. In Corrales, New Mexico, the USPS built a straw bale post office--one of its greenest structures to date. In Alaska, the USPS installed one of the largest fuel cell systems to power its Anchorage distribution center. Successful green addendum initiatives are moved to the USPS's master specifications list when cost parameters are met, material and installation expertise are available, and the items make sense environmentally and geographically. If an item on the master specifications list doesn't meet either the USPS environmental or financial requirements, it can be removed. Building Operating Management, Feb 01, p 15. [Full text: see Green Building Report at http://www.facilitiesnet.com/fn/NS/NS1bom.html] SAVING ENERGY A PRIORITY FOR CALIFORNIA SCHOOL DISTRICT When the Newport-Mesa school district in California decided to build a new school for grades K-6, a primary administration concern was to cut energy costs. To get buy-in from the building's users, the district set up focus groups with educators, administrators and parents. The results showed strong support for flexible learning and teaching environments, and for energy-saving features. Project architects Perkins & Will designed a 42,000-square-foot facility to accommodate 700 students; the design includes features such as exposed equipment meters so students can track energy savings. The project is expected to produce a 43 percent annual energy savings above California's building code requirements. Most of the savings will come from using daylight combined with energy-efficient lighting and dimming. Additional savings will come from efficient heating and air conditioning units and natural ventilation. The project will also have a solar collector storage unit, paid for with a $50,000 federal grant. This system, which is in series with a conventional gas water heating system, uses 26 four- by eight-foot solar panels to preheat water supply, and is expected to reduce gas use by approximately 40 percent. Southern California Edison will monitor the school's actual energy usage for one year after completion. Building Operating Management, Feb 01, p 18. [Full text: see Green Building Report at http://www.facilitiesnet.com/fn/NS/NS1bom.html] MOLECULAR SIEVES IMPROVE VENTILATION SYSTEM PERFORMANCE Thermal wheels used for heat recovery in building ventilation systems are evolving into something smarter: devices that not only recover heat but also water, and without the bugs. Known as molecular sieves, these devices are enthalpy-recovery thermal wheels whose heat absorbing metal-foil substrate has been coated with a zeolite, an aluminosilicate material that absorbs and diffuses water vapor while excluding other particles that may be in the air. Recovery and transfer of moisture enhances heat recovery efficiency, and increases the supply air's relative humidity. In winter, cold dry air is drawn into the air-handling unit via a filter and passed through the foil substrate-wound enthalpy exchange wheel. The warm humidified air is then delivered to the rooms through displacement terminals. The warmed, humid, contaminated air is extracted from the rooms and ducted to the enthalpy exchange wheel. Here, heat and moisture are transferred between outgoing and incoming air streams before being discharged. All pathogens and substances other than water molecules are excluded from the transfer process. Bristol & West plc uses molecular sieve technology in its 20,000-square-meter headquarters building in Bristol, UK. It was chosen because of its energy performance and its contribution to high indoor air quality. Bristol & West expect the molecular sieve enthalpy recovery device to reduce energy use by 800,000 kWh per year for air heating and 60,000 kWh per year for air cooling. Building Services Journal, Dec 00, p 30, by Justin Spencer and Terry Wyatt. MASSACHUSETTS PLANS LANDFILL BAN FOR MOST C&D WASTE As Massachusetts runs out of room to put ever-growing mounds of garbage, state officials are planning to ban most construction and demolition material from landfills by 2003. Already, the state is giving grants to nonprofit stores that will take the best used materials--such as kitchen cabinets, bathroom countertops and ceramic tiles--and resell them to low-income families. Contractors who do the bulk of demolition, building and renovation work will shoulder most of the ban's burden. The ban will also force homeowners to think about how they dispose of their old windows, floors, carpets, light fixtures and even sheetrock. State officials are trying to work out exactly how construction material can be recycled in the easiest, most cost-effective way. And they say the ban will only go into effect in 2003 if there are enough places to recycle or resell the material. Eventually, says Peter Allison of the state's Department of Environmental Protection, through grants, technical assistance and public awareness, recycling and reusing the innards of homes and offices can become commonplace. The state wants 88 percent of all construction and demolition material recycled or reused by 2010. [For more information email: james.mcquade@state.ma.us] The Boston Globe, 4 Feb 01, p B1, by Beth Daley. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GreenClips is free of charge thanks to individual members and these sponsors: ENVIRONDESIGN5 www.environdesign.com. EnvironDesign5, set for April 25 to 27 in Atlanta, GA, is the premier conference showcasing all that is revolutionary about placing environmental stewardship front and center into mainstream America. It has grown from a small, intimate gathering of the passionate and the curious into an event where you need to be if you're a player in the sustainability movement. Scheduled are keynote speakers, workshops, site tours and a Product Learning Center featuring 75 suppliers. Faculty includes pioneers who are changing the environmental landscape in the 21st century. 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