GreenClips.253 11.24.04 HAPPY BIRTHDAY GREENCLIPS! This year is GreenClips' 10th birthday! Celebrate by donating to GreenClips. Your donations keep us going year after year. Visit www.greenclips.com for info. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GSA RELEASES LEED COST STUDY The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) commissioned a study, completed in October 2004, that estimates the costs of developing green federal facilities using the U.S. Green Building Council's LEED(TM) rating system, Version 2.1. The report provides a detailed and structured review of both the hard- and soft-cost implications of achieving Certified, Silver, and Gold LEED ratings for two GSA building types, using GSA's established design standards as the point of comparison. The two building types include a new mid-rise federal courthouse and a mid-rise federal office building modernization. [For both building types, low- and high-cost estimates were developed at the Certified, Silver, and Gold rating levels in order to bracket the LEED costs. The estimated percent change in hard costs for the new courthouse were: Certified: Low (-0.4%), High (+1.0%). Silver: Low (-0.03%), High (+4.4%). Gold: Low (+1.4%), High (+8.1%).] To download study: www.wbdg.org Environmental Design + Construction, Nov 04, p 12. DESIGNTEX INTRODUCES ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY SOLAR SHADES Designtex, in collaboration with Ludvig Svensson, a Swedish greenhouse shade manufacturer, recently developed a collection of environmentally conscious solar shades for the residential and contract market. Available in six patterns, three widths, and a wide variety of color options, Shades and Screens are PVC-free, flame-retardant and dimensionally stable. They cut solar heat and light, reduce glare and energy costs, provide a degree of thermal insulation, and create a sense of privacy. Three patterns have a non-glare aluminum backing for further energy savings. Architects and designers can measure approximate energy use with these shades by plugging their specifications into a downloadable software program (www.parasol.se) created at Lund University. "Formerly, there were specs on the back of a textile card that would give information about things like solar transmission and reflection," says Karen Kops, manager of product development at Designtex. "Now architects and designers have a tool that further diagnoses an actual energy-savings cost approximation using our product." More: www.dtex.com Metropolis, Dec 04, p 78, by Paul Makovsky PREVENTING FAILURES IN NONFLUSHING URINALS A survey of 22 Seattle-area facilities revealed that most were pleased with their nonflushing urinals, but some were not. "My enthusiasm for waterless urinals has waned over time," says Roger van Gelder, the water conservation specialist with Seattle Public Utilities who conducted the survey. "Some people like them, some don't. When [these urinals] fail, they tend to fail suddenly." According to John Watson of Sloan Valve Company, a waterless urinal manufacturer, all of the problems users have with nonflushing urinals can be traced to one or two factors. First, "If you have a no-slope installation or negative-slope installation, [it] will fail," Watson predicts. The second factor is inappropriate maintenance, which can lead to the most persistent complaint from users that cartridges don't last the promised 7,000 uses. "Alkaline cleaners break down the sealant and cause it to dissipate more quickly," says Watson. "You want to use a slightly acidic type of cleaner." Also, if too much water is used during cleaning, especially if it's hard water, calcium deposits may form, along with odor. Nonflushing urinals are a great way to save water, but they may not be ideal for every situation. If you can't ensure a reliable pitch in the drain line and a maintenance staff that is willing to learn new procedures, then you should stick with conventional urinals, particularly the new low-flush models. Environmental Building News, Nov 04, p 4, by Nadav Malin. [Full text: http://www.buildinggreen.com/auth/article.cfm?fileName=131104b.xml] KYOTO TREATY CLEARS THRESHOLD, PROMPTING EMISSION TRADING President Vladimir V. Putin recently signed Russia's ratification of the Kyoto Protocol, giving legal force to the international treaty aimed at reducing emissions of heat-trapping gases. Kyoto, which will take effect February 16, 2005, commits participating industrialized countries to cut their emissions of greenhouse gases between 2008 and 2012 to levels that are 5.2% below 1990 emissions. While some Russian officials argued that the treaty would do grave economic harm to Russia, others argued that Russia - whose emissions are now well below its 1990 levels - could benefit by selling emission credits to countries that exceed their limits, especially in Europe. Each participating country agreed to its own specific Kyoto target. EU countries are expected to cut emissions by 8% and Japan by 5%. The U.S. is notable in its absence among participating countries, but many larger companies based or operating in the U.S. are opting to adopt or exceed Kyoto's targets. Meanwhile, the Chicago Climate Futures Exchange (CCFE) has already obtained approval from the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission to trade emissions futures contracts. The New York Times, 6 Nov 04, by Steven Lee Meyers and The Green Business Letter, Nov 2004, p 1 [More: http://www.chicagoclimateexchange.com/] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 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