By Debra DeHaney-Howard, Judy Sheahan, Brett Rosenberg and Ted Fischer
November 6, 2006

With concern growing nationally about global warming and its impact on the environment, Conference of Mayors President Dearborn Mayor Michael A. Guido convened a National Summit on Energy and the Environment: Implementing the 2030 Building Challenge October 26 through 27 in Atlanta. The Home Depot Foundation was the Title Sponsor.

The Summit, which focused primarily on the building sector – a major consumer of fossil fuels and contributes significantly to the climate change problem in the United States – gave further definition to a Conference priority that was set forth by Guido in June at its Annual Meeting in Las Vegas. The Conference, at its Annual Meeting, unanimously adopted a resolution calling for all new buildings in the U.S. to be carbon-neutral by the year 2030 (meaning they will not use fossil fuel energy).

Over 120 mayors, business leaders, developers, retailers, and architects from across the country joined Guido and Host Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin to share best practices and identify specific strategies to encourage energy-efficient building design to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the construction and operation of all new and renovated buildings.

In his opening remarks, Guido said, “The nation’s mayors have become increasingly aware of the need to take action to mitigate the impact of global warming in our cities. Because buildings account for nearly half of the energy used in this nation, mayors are taking the lead on this issue to help create a sustainable green America through building efficiency.”

Guido noted that the building sector – commercial, residential and municipal – account for as much as 48 percent of all greenhouse gas emissions and 68 percent of electricity consumed. He said, “We need to continue to explore ways to become energy independent, while keeping the environment in mind – whether we’re talking about the quality of our air and natural resources and their impact on the climate.”

“If mayors can achieve this goal, it is estimated that, greenhouse gas emission levels will be potentially reduced to the point where the negative impact of global warming can be reversed, said Guido.”

Conference Executive Director Tom Cochran said, “With the lack of federal action on energy issues, mayors are taking the initiative and are leading the way in developing innovative programs to deal with the challenges of global warming and climate change.” Cochran noted that the Conference of Mayors has partnered with the American Institute of Architects (AIA) to help mayors achieve the goals of the 2030 Building Challenge. Cochran said, “Mayors have committed themselves to try to make all buildings carbon neutral by 2030 and are continuously looking for innovative ways to do so. Our partnership with AIA is invaluable because it lends practical expertise to this effort.”

In welcoming Summit participants, Franklin said, “I am pleased that the Conference chose Atlanta for this very important Summit. We know that building green reduces operating costs, makes people healthier and more productive and conserves natural resources. We are proud to share some of the accomplishments Atlanta has achieved to become one of the most recognized green cities in the United States.”

Franklin stated that Atlanta has been successful in utilizing the nationally accepted benchmark for design, construction, and operation of high performance green buildings. “By building ‘green’ our development partners have the opportunity to reduce operating costs, create spaces that support healthier and more productive residents, and conserve our natural resources.”

Franklin noted that Metro Atlanta has over 50 Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certified and registered projects totaling more than 13 million square feet.

To promote sustainable development, the city passed an ordinance in 2003 requiring all new city financed construction projects to be LEED Silver-certified. Franklin said, “By enacting this ordinance, Atlanta is incorporating sustainable building design and construction practices into city financed projects and promoting consistent application of sustainable building practices.”

Ron Jarvis, Home Depot’s Vice President of Environmental Innovation, provided brief remarks on The Home Depot’s commitment to sustainability. The Home Depot is the largest home improvement retailer. Included in his remarks was an announcement that the company has joined with The Conservation Fund to offset all carbon emissions from the Home Depot Headquarters in Atlanta. To offset carbon emissions, The Home Depot will plant hundreds of trees in the Atlanta metro area.

Ed Mazria, President of Mazria Inc. Odems Dzurec, presented the keynote address at the opening luncheon and laid out a compelling argument that links buildings to global warming. He praised the nation’s mayors for doing the “right thing,” which was adopting this past June a resolution that calls for all buildings to be carbon neutral by 2030. Mazria stated that this issue needs strong political will and that, “Mayors are in the best position to provide the political will that’s necessary to design and build more energy-efficient buildings.”

Mazria graphically demonstrated what would happen along the U. S. coastlines if sea levels continue to rise. He told Summit participants that buildings consume about 48 percent of the nation’s energy use, and are responsible for 76 percent of electricity use for normal operations. Mazria said, “The U. S. builds five billion square feet of new construction each year, renovates an equivalent amount, and tears down roughly 1.75 billion. Mazria noted that by 2035, 80 percent of our built environment will be new or renovated.”

In concluding his presentation, Mazria outlined three steps that can be implemented now. They include: improving building design and innovation; adding smart energy savings technology; and purchasing renewable energy or certified renewable energy credits.

Local Atlanta developers spoke about how they have been able to build green, energy efficient and affordable residential housing. Moderated by Albuquerque Mayor Martin Chavez, three local real estate developers spoke to the attendees about their respective properties.

Pam Sessions, President of Hedgewood Properties, spoke about the green technology in use with Earthcraft homes on her current developments. “The basic idea of an Earthcraft home is to build a property that is energy efficient with almost zero waste. Everything from construction that is waste is reused right on site.” Sessions told attendees that the properties are also designed to have a maximum amount of green space and designed to be as sustainable as possible.

Many of Noel Khalil, President of Columbia Residential, properties were showcased to attendees, including a few senior adult living communities which were built with the environment in mind. Columbia Residential is well known in the Atlanta region for the construction of affordable properties that are mixed use and allow residence of lower income levels to find a safe and environmentally friendly place to live.

Atlanta has not only a diverse city life but there are also communities outside of Atlanta that strive for environmental excellence. According to Steve Nygren, President of Serenbe Development, 70 percent development will continue in “greenfields.” Nygren said, “It is important to try to save forest and farm areas in order to achieve better air quality for the region.” Nygren told the attendees of his community’s plans to construct higher density areas in the midst of green spaces and rolling hills instead of the typical single family home per three to four acres. “What we think we want and what we really want are two different things. You need to paint a picture of what the development can look like and people will choose it,” Nygren said.

“Meeting the 2030 Building Challenge can be difficult if you are not familiar with designs, innovations or ratings that are currently being offered,” said Conference of Mayors Vice President Trenton Mayor Douglas Palmer. Leading experts in building design, building ratings and building development discussed a number of “green” building issues, including current green building rating systems. Participants included AIA Vice President Norman Strong; The Green Building Initiative Program Manager Vicki Worden; Capital E Managing Director Greg Kats; Vertegy an Alberici Enterprise General Manager Thomas Taylor; and Full Spectrum of NY LLC Chief Operating Officer Carlton Brown.

Panelists shared their views of different design standards, rating systems and innovative projects. “LEED was successful because it tracked quantifiable aspects of sustainable design and building performance as well as covers all kinds of green projects. It is well defined, trained professionals verify your LEED progress and it is the most widely used ratings systems,” said Strong. He also noted the newly created partnership between the AIA and the Conference of Mayors.

Worden and Kats spoke about the two widely used ratings systems: LEED and the Green Globes rating program. Meeting participants were told that regardless of which system is used, they should set goals for existing building stock and benchmark building performance data. Thomas Taylor closed the discussion on rating systems by noting that performance is the key to sustainable buildings. He said, “A building should not be labeled as ‘sustainable’ or ‘high performance’ until it has been put into operation and the building’s performance has been measured against its own design criteria and the performance of other buildings in its class.”

Carlton Brown closed the session by stating, “Meeting the 2030 zero carbon goal is more than simply applying appropriate technology; it requires a total commitment to the development of sustainable communities.”

The evening’s keynote speaker, Ray Anderson, Founder and Chairman of Interface, Inc., and a self-professed recovering “plunderer of the earth,” aimed to create a context for the mayors’ interest in green buildings and energy issues. Further, he wanted to convey how he came to understand the importance of sustainable development in a shifting industrial paradigm.

Anderson noted that by changing the way his company did business – from adopting a manufacturing process that understands a “cradle to grave” life cycle of its products, that is, tracking a product’s raw material origins through its use and ultimate disposal, Interface became a leaner, cleaner and much more profitable corporation. By using more recycled content, healthier materials, improving the working conditions of its employees and producing less waste, Interface has proven that corporate responsibility toward the environment and the communities in which it operates is more profitable than the business as usual model. Anderson likened the Interface business model to why a city should adopt the 2030 challenge: costs down, profits up. Or, more somewhat less succinctly, “We comply, that’s not a vision; extinction – the death of birth, now that’s a vision.”

Guido presided over the event, which involved a discussion about designing, building and maintaining green buildings, as well as a tour of the site.

According to Stephanie Blank, who provided an overview of the foundation’s operations and the building’s underlying philosophy, Arthur Blank envisioned a building that would not only survive future generations, but would do so in a way that minimized environmental impact and preserved resources for the future.

Prior to a tour of the building, which was completed in 2004, Blank expressed that, “There are many ways to accomplish good, in terms of environmental impacts on the community. I hope, as leaders, you’ll take this message back to your cities.”

Blank touted many of the office’s unique features, such as wood flooring reused from an old barn and other recycled construction materials, landscaping with indigenous flora, high efficiency building engineering products and processes, and overall low water use.

Known as an energy leader in the state of Texas, Conference Energy Chair Austin Mayor Will Wynn, who served as moderator, spoke to attendees about the advances Austin is doing in the areas of energy and carbon neutrality. “The city of Austin is trying to build, what we consider Zero Energy dependant homes, single family homes that don’t depend on a drain in energy resources when built or occupied, and are an economic savings for Austin residents,” said Wynn. Not only is Austin excelling in the areas of wind farms and photo voltaic paneling, but the city is working towards the goal of achieving a 70 percent reduction in energy usage on all single family homes by the year of 2015.

In his opening remarks, Syracuse Mayor Matthew Driscoll said, “I wholeheartedly endorse and support the Conference’s 2030 Challenge and want to encourage all mayors to pursue sustainable policies as outlined in the proclamation. The goals are absolutely attainable by any municipal leader who sets their sights on preserving our environment – one meaningful step at a time.” In describing building a sustainable way of life in Syracuse, Driscoll stated that they integrated three key strategies into their municipal policies: economic growth and development, environmental conservation and the use of natural resources, and social equity. Through its efforts, Driscoll noted that Syracuse “…has achieved its goal of reducing the city’s energy usage 20 percent by 2006 and are well on our way to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 20 percent in 2010.”

Joining the mayors for this session was Jim Hunt, Chief of the Office of Environmental and Energy Services, Boston. Hunt outlined Boston’s Green Action Plan, which includes a number of energy and environmental cost saving programs. Hunt said, “The city now has 450 diesel vehicles that run on ultra low sulfur fuel, and 500 school buses retrofitted with pollution control technologies in an effort to achieve Boston’s sustainability agenda in the area of air quality. We have also installed a green roof on city hall, retrofitted our traffic lights with low energy LED’s and worked on achieving municipal energy management with the addition of wind turbines and photo voltaic paneling to our portfolio.” He noted that Boston has become the largest municipal purchaser of green electricity in New England, with 8.6 percent supplied by renewable sources.

Experts representing the private and nonprofit building development sector held a discussion regarding how mayors can work with them to promote energy efficient and carbon-neutral buildings. The session, moderated by Burnsville (MN) Mayor Elizabeth Kautz, featured Roger Platt of the Real Estate Roundtable, Paul Saccone of Equity Office Properties, Karen Penafiel of the Building Owners Management Association International (BOMA), and Dennis Creech of Southface Energy Institute.

The speakers talked about a host of ways that mayors could promote green and carbon-neutral buildings including:

• providing a high-ranking city staff member to work and help educate the building industry;

• leading by example;

• creating effective and realistic energy efficiency building codes;

• providing expedited permitting;

• providing direct and indirect (through the utilities) energy efficiency incentives;

• publicly recognizing green building development;

• changing density allowances;

• lobbing for competitive access that will promote energy efficiency in the generation sector; and

• lobbying for and requiring fair interconnection standards and rate structures that promote combined heat and power and the associated energy and environmental benefits.

Platt outlined how current conditions created a “perfect storm” – an energy and climate change crisis along with greater public attention – that offered an opportunity to change current practices.

Platt said there were there were three opportunities for reducing greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) – new buildings, owner-occupied buildings, and working with a major tenant in multi-tenanted buildings. According to Platt, current available technologies for new buildings can cost-effectively save 30-40 percent of energy use and roughly similar amount of GHG emissions. However, given the durable nature of buildings, most opportunities for savings come with existing stock. The toughest challenge, Platt warned, was multi-tenanted leased spaces due to fact that tenants only focused on “total rent” and that owners are not focused on “pass-through” costs.

Saccone serves as Vice President of Corporate Engineering and Energy for Equity Office Properties that owns and operates the largest number of office buildings (600-) in the nation. Saccone said that energy comprises 15-18 percent of their operating expenses, representing the single largest good purchase. By implementing conservation measures and not spending any capital, they realized a savings of 4.5 percent. They invested $18 million over the course of two years and now realize a $6 million savings each year.

Penafiel pointed out that different building owners have different priorities. Corporate/Owner-Occupied Buildings have the expectation of occupying a building for 10- years and so therefore a three to five year payback period makes sense. However, for commercial investors it is not uncommon to buy a property to “flip” one year later and therefore a three to five year payback is a tougher sell because the tenant, not investor, recoups the savings. Penafiel said that the market is starting to shift in favor of green buildings due to the fact that the market is slowing which is causing owner to hold properties longer, tenants are starting to care, and energy costs are continually rising.

Creech serves as Executive Director of Southface, an Atlanta based nonprofit that provides education, technical assistance, and applied building sciences. Southface has been given credit for assisting with much of the green building development in the Atlanta. Creech’s told the mayors to be a champion for “green” while trying to removing barriers, provide incentives and to lead by example.

Kautz secured the continued support of the panelists. “As the mayors of this nation move forward in developing sustainable energy and environmental policies that will impact the building industry, we want to continue to work with you to develop sound policy that moves us in the right direction,” Kautz said.

For more information on this and many other topics associated with the 2nd Energy and the Environment Summit, visit our website at usmayors.org/uscm.