GreenClips.244 07.07.04 TIME FOR A BREAK... Look for GreenClips.245 after 08.04.04 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DEMOCRATIC CONVENTION GOES GREEN It may only be a four-day event, but the amount of building material that will be used to transform the FleetCenter in Boston for the Democratic National Convention is staggering: 21,000 square feet of sheetrock, 60 tons of structural steel, 120 doors, and 4,000 feet of wiring will make up some 25,000 square feet of temporary office space and protective structures inside the arena, according to the head contractors on the project, Shawmut Design and Construction. To make sure it doesn't go to waste when the convention is over, more than 50 environmental groups formed the Coalition for Environmentally Responsible Conventions in November 2002 to help make the DNC "green." In addition to encouraging the recycling and reuse of building materials (solutions include transferring sheets of plywood and Masonite to Habitat for Humanity), CERC has also focused on energy use. So far, the council has purchased $11,000 of renewable energy certificates and secured a handful of hybrid buses from General Motors to transport delegates around Boston. Of course, these green initiatives aren't just about lessening the environmental impact of the convention. With approximately 5,000 politically influential delegates coming to town, Ruben said that CERC hopes to expose them to environmentally sound practices they can take back home. To that end, CERC has organized a series of events, including a "New Energy for America" reception to discuss renewable and efficient energy practices that benefit both industry and the environment. The Boston Globe, June 13, 2004, p 3, by Steve Grove. [More: www.cerc04.org] HEALTH-CARE INDUSTRY SPURS DEVELOPMENT OF HEALTHIER BUILDING MATERIALS In 2002, Kaiser Permanente, the country's largest non-profit health-care system, issued an unusual mandate to a longtime supplier: Create a quality carpet without the controversial chemical polyvinyl chloride (PVC), or forget about winning any more contracts. Tandus Group Inc. has met the challenge and will cover floors in most of the 20 new hospitals Kaiser Permanente will build in the next decade. Hospital purchasing organizations also spur development. Schaumburg-based Consorta and Premier of San Diego pledged to purchase hospital equipment and supplies free of mercury, if a substitute was available, by the end of 2004. Besides Tandus, Shaw Industries Group Inc. plans to make only PVC-free carpeting by the end of the year, said Steve Bradfield, Shaw environmental director. Window treatment manufacturers, including Nysan Shading Systems, Lutron Shading Solutions by Vimco, and MechoShade Systems have introduced PVC-free systems. Construction Specialties and InPro, two of the largest wall-protection manufacturers, have produced PVC-free rail and wall guard systems. Herman Miller eliminated PVC in its latest eco-friendly office chair. But the Tandus approach is unique. Its new carpet is made with a cushion backing from reclaimed polyvinyl butyral, PVB, a film found in used-car windshields and other safety glass. Up until now, the PVB film has been lying unclaimed in piles at glass recycling centers. Chicago Tribune, 20 June 2004, by Melita Marie Garza. MAYOR DALEY'S GREEN CRUSADE Richard M. Daley has been working for years toward his oft-stated intention to make Chicago the greenest city in America, no small matter given its size and industrial past. First elected in 1989, Daley has since built the first municipal rooftop garden on City Hall and opened one of only five LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Platinum-certified buildings in the country. A dozen more city buildings are expected to be LEED certified. "My belief is that environmental initiatives should not just be out on the West Coast, in Alaska, or by the ocean, but in cities. If we don't do this, the expansion will be overwhelming: more cars, more concrete, more pollution in the air and water. They won't have any environment left out there, and no one will want to live here either," says Daley. The most ambitious undertaking to date is particularly relevant to the challenges of greening an old industrial city. In the farthest southeast section of the city is the Lake Calumet region, a 20-square-mile area that was once one of the largest wetland complexes in North America. In the late nineteenth century steel companies built factories and it became one of the most polluted. Over the last couple of decades manufacturing interests consolidated and decamped, as vast areas of wetlands that managed to survive years of pollution, dumping, and destruction began to thrive again. In 2000 the city of Chicago, the state of Illinois, and the Chicago Environmental Fund launched an ambitious program to mix industrial uses with wetland restoration Calumet Open Space Reserve, where preservation and restorative programs are already underway. Studio Gang will design the Ford Calumet Environmental Center, a research and education center within the reserve for environmental remediation. Metropolis, July 2004, p 104, by Lisa Chamberlain. [More: http://www.cityofchicago.org/Environment/index.html] FUNDING CONFLICT DELAYS AIRING OF BUILD IT GREEN! ON PBS If all goes as planned, public broadcasting stations around the nation will begin airing Build It Green! this fall. The weekly program will combine an insider look at home renovation and new construction projects with tours of green homes. Charlie Popeck, a contractor accredited by the U.S. Green Building Council, and architect Jill Burtin will guide viewers through each of the first season's 13 planned episodes. Build It Green! is the creation of Mick Dalrymple, a Scottsdale, Arizona-based film and video producer. The first episodes of Build It Green! visit the site of an experimental hydrogen-powered house; a cob cottage, made from a mixture of earth, sand and straw; and a zero-energy house, which produces as much energy as it uses. Build It Green! was initially set to begin airing in July, but PBS felt that the show's initial funding source, from a green-building organization, presented a conflict of interest. Nevertheless, Dalrymple sounds confident that new underwriters will be on board in time for the show to begin airing in October. He says the syndication arm of PBS expects "95 percent of their stations to pick this show up." Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 12 June 2004, by Liz Stevens. [More: http://www.desertmooninc.com/TV1.html] NEW GREEN LABEL FOR CARPET MEETS CALIFORNIA'S LOW-EMITTING STANDARDS The Carpet and Rug Institute (CRI) has released its new "Green Label Plus" testing program for indoor emissions from carpets. Developing this program took a year of sometimes contentious negotiations with California's Sustainable Building Task Force and its Department of Health Services. Green Label Plus provides carpet manufacturers with a single, well-defined standard to meet, while adding significant rigor to conform with California's requirements. The new program bridges the gap between CRI's original Green Label program and the Collaborative for High Performance Schools (CHPS) Low-Emitting Materials Credit 2, which is based on California's Section 01350 Specification. Green Label Plus inherits from Section 01350 an extensive list of chemicals to test for, based on predicted classroom exposure to a set of chronic reference exposure levels (CRELs) maintained by California's Department of Health Services. To carry the new Green Label Plus label, carpets must be tested by Air Quality Sciences, Inc. of Atlanta. Carpets that pass the initial, quarterly and annual tests are listed on CRI's website (http://www.carpet-rug.org) and referenced in the CHPS Compliant Materials table at http://www.chps.net. Environmental Building News, July 2004, p 2, by Nadav Malin. [Full text: http://www.buildinggreen.com/auth/article.cfm?fileName=130702b.xml] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GreenClips is free of charge thanks to individual members and these sponsors: ARMSTRONG CEILING SYSTEMS http://www.armstrong.com/commceilingsna/article10790.html Armstrong offers an expanding portfolio of sustainable ceiling products. 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