The U.S Green Building Council’s (USGBC’s) 2021 World Green Building Trends report shows that building industry firms are looking to make the construction of net-zero/net-positive buildings a top priority.
“This reflects the recognition that only by making the built environment carbon-neutral can the goal to minimize the impacts of climate change be achieved,” according to a USGBC news release. More than 1,200 industry professionals, including engineers, architects/designers, contractors, owners, developers, inventors, and consultants around the world responded to the survey.
The findings also demonstrate a compelling business case for building green. The average reduction in operating costs for the first 12 months in a new green building is 10.5%, and five-year cost savings are 16.9%, according to survey results.
Other findings include:
· The pandemic impacted the green building sector with many respondents saying that messaging about increasing filtered air exchange in buildings directly influenced their choice of HVAC system, and social distancing standards affected building design.
· More than half of those that work on a majority of green projects plan to incorporate resilience strategies into their projects in the next five years.
· Most respondents (82%) are at least aware of the concept of embodied carbon – emissions from manufacture, transportation, installation, maintenance, and disposal of building materials – with contractors and owners less familiar than architects and engineers. The majority (79%) of those building green use at least one metric to track green building performance, an increase of five points since 2018.
· About half of respondents engage in green renovation/retrofit projects, with most investors engaged in this work.
Related Stories
| Aug 9, 2012
ClickSafety, AGC provide online training program for construction professionals
Construction professionals will be able to take a wide range of mandatory and optional safety training programs online through a new collaboration between the Associated General Contractors of America and ClickSafety.
| Aug 9, 2012
Tornado-ravaged Greensburg, Kansas’s new green buildings save $200K a year
The town of Greensburg, Kan., virtually destroyed by a tornado in 2007, decided to rebuild 13 public buildings according to green standards.
| Aug 2, 2012
FBI investigates Turner, Tishman, Skanska, and Plaza Construction for billing practices on public projects in New York
After charges filed against Bovis Lend Lease in April led to an admission of guilt and $56 million in fines for overbilling clients, federal prosecutors are investigating the billing practices of four more New York City construction firms, according to reports.
| Aug 2, 2012
Court ruling may lead to more destructive testing on unfinished Harmon Tower in Las Vegas
A Clark County, Nevada district court judge ruled that the unfinished Harmon Hotel at CityCenter, operated and half-owned by MGM Resorts, could not use extrapolation when requesting damages at a possible trial.
| Aug 2, 2012
NIBS council recommends private and public measures to improve building sustainability
A new report by the National Institute of Building Sciences Consultative Council highlights four several areas that need focus to improve sustainability in buildings and infrastructure.
| Aug 2, 2012
Greenbuild summit will focus on greening affordable housing
A two-day summit focused on green building in the affordable housing market will be held Nov. 13 - 14, 2012 in San Francisco, Calif. at the Greenbuild International Conference & Expo.
| Aug 2, 2012
More than 250 downtown El Paso, Texas buildings don’t meet safety codes, says city’s fire department
A total of 726 buildings were inspected for unsafe conditions, and 266 did not meet safety codes, while 112 buildings were found to be vacant and needed further inspection.
| Jul 26, 2012
Wisconsin may establish stormwater storage requirement for green roofs
Green roofs and other green infrastructure would be required to capture stormwater under a draft state wastewater discharge permit from the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District.
| Jul 26, 2012
SouthPark Mall in Charlotte reopens after heavy rains collapse part of its roof
Code enforcement officials in Charlotte, NC gave the okay for the SouthPark Mall to reopen after two parts of its roof collapsed following heavy rains last week.
| Jul 26, 2012
New NRCA photovoltaic roof systems guidelines released
The National Roofing Contractors Association’s update of its Guidelines for Roof Systems With Rooftop Photovoltaic Components is now available.
