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DEVELOPERS SEE GREEN IN 'BROWNFIELD' SITES

Brown has become the new green in a hot real estate market. Years ago, only brave developers would touch brownfields. But in an era of high land prices, fierce competition for real estate and government incentives, investors and developers are actually competing for abandoned steel mills, gas stations and shuttered factories. Environmental Protection Agency grants to nonprofits and other recipients for brownfield cleanup and development totaled $75.9 million for this fiscal year, up from $38 million four years ago. Congress appropriated $165 million to EPA's brownfields redevelopment office for the current year, up from $98 million four years ago. And even as the Bush administration calls for broad spending cuts, it is seeking $210 million, a 28% increase, for EPA's brownfields program for next year. In many older industrial areas, the only available sites are brownfields. After buying only greenfield sites, J.G. Petrucci Co., an Asbury, N.J., developer, is focusing solely on buying up contaminated sites in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. "Ten years ago, if a [parcel] had an environmental problem, we didn't want to talk about it," says Gregory T. Rogerson, a principal at J.G. Petrucci. "Today, we say, 'If it doesn't have an environmental problem, we don't want to talk about it.' " According to William James, a venture capitalist, "A brownfield is in some cases much safer because of exhaustive testing, so you know what's there." The 2002 federal Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act has fueled investor interest by giving buyers of sites additional liability protection, cutting one of their biggest risks.
The Wall Street Journal, 1 Jun 05, p B1, by Ray. A. Smith.

SHOPPING IN REVERSE

A Swiss company in the town of Winterthur has recently built a new recycling facility that integrates the recycling process directly into the community fabric. Maag Recycling's 69,000-square-foot facility accommodates the diverse needs of commercial, municipal, and individual clients. On the south side of the site is the recy-hof, where individuals go "reverse shopping," returning used products and materials into the production stream. They use flatbed carts to move disposables from their cars to the warehouse, "giving back" the waste by placing it in containers identified by hanging signage made of the material that is to be recycled. When their cart is empty, the reverse shopping is complete. (The deposit of some items, such as tires, concrete, and furniture, requires a fee based on weight.) With Maag's new facility, Zurich-based architects OOS OG open operating system have produced a vibrant spatial experience that strengthens the community's relationship to the environment. In most cities, waste disposal is an unremarkable, often hidden process. But it doesn't have to be.

ONE MORE TIME AROUND FOR PVC ROOFING MEMBRANE?

Recycling of used PVC roofing membranes may be less of an issue than with other roofing materials because vinyl is designed specifically not to degrade, often lasting 15 to 20 years or more. Nevertheless, PVC can be recycled. While the longevity of the membranes does not make many available for post-consumer recycling, manufacturers of PVC practice post-industrial in-house recycling. A successful post consumer vinyl recycling program must find a cost-effective way to collect, separate, and transport clean PVC for recycling, as demonstrated by the European Single-Ply Waterproofing Association. In 1994, Arbeitsgemeinschaft fur PVC-Dachbahnenrecycling formed a company to recycle discarded vinyl roofing products. Members pledge to recycle at least 50 percent of vinyl waste and transport it to the recycling plant. Germany has fully implemented this system, which is expected to be adopted by the rest of the European Union shortly. Thinking about the long-term, should a viable recycling program for commercial roofing ever be designed in the U.S., a single-ply membrane's ability to be stripped off, rolled up, and shipped to the reclamation plant makes it a far more amenable product for such a process. This is especially true for mechanically fastened PVC, as it allows the roof membrane to be cut into strips and rolled up for easy handling.
The Construction Specifier, May 05, p 65, by Gerald Capocci and Mike Hubbard.

HOW TO GAIN LEED LIGHTING POINTS UNDER LEED'S INDOOR ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY

Besides the Energy and Atmosphere category, credit for lighting control can also be achieved in LEED's Indoor Environmental Quality category, Credit 6, Controllability of Systems. It is intended to improve workers' comfort conditions and productivity. Two credits can be achieved in this section. The first credit, 6.1, requires an average of one lighting control device for every 200 sq. ft. for all occupied areas within 15 ft. of a perimeter wall. This can be achieved by using independent line-voltage or low-voltage switching or photocell/daylight controls. Another indoor environmental quality credit, 6.2, can be achieved by providing one lighting control per occupant for half of the regularly occupied non-perimeter areas. The same design approach used for credit 6.1 also works here. Away from the LEED process itself, designing lighting systems to this standard offers additional advantages, one of which is capitalizing on energy incentives sometimes offered by electric utilities.
Consulting-Specifying Engineer, May 2005, p. 55, by Keith Lane.

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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. Email or call for more information: chrishammer@greenclips.com;415.928.7941. GreenClips is edited by Susan Vogt, a Portland, Oregon freelance writer with 25 years of experience in energy-efficient and sustainable buildings.

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