Two new reports on green building in the US show that the industry has a strong hold on the future, despite–or perhaps because of–the current economic downturn.
More than one in five U.S. cities with populations greater than 50,000 surveyed by the American Institute of Architects (AIA) report having a policy to promote green buildings. The total of 138 cities is up 50% from 92 in 2007.
The new report, Green Building Policy in a Changing Economic Environment, is an inventory of policies and best practices intended to help policymakers advance a more sustainable legislative agenda for growth and development.
The report also contains detailed case studies of the green building programs in Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Boston, Nashville, and Grand Rapids, Mich.
“My passion for sustainability really comes out of the social side of the ‘triple bottom line,’” said Grand Rapids Mayor, George Heartwell. “We have hit a tipping point here in Grand Rapids, as I think that we are at the point now where the arguments around cost, have been proven to be, if not fallacious, at least weak arguments when you look at the long term costs of maintaining a green building.”
“It is encouraging that cities are recognizing the economic benefits of energy-efficient buildings, and equally encouraging that the number of programs across the country are increasing despite such difficult economic conditions,” said AIA Executive Vice President and CEO, Christine McEntee. “Our ultimate goal is to achieve carbon neutrality in buildings by 2030 and that all design projects will be sustainable as a matter of course.”
Highlights from the report include:
- 24 of the 25 most populated metropolitan regions in the United States are built around cities with a green building policy
- The Western region has the most green building programs with 56 cities in just six states
- The Mountain region is second in the percentage of cities with green building programs, with 24% of residents living in those cities
- The Eastern region has seen a 75 percent rise in green building programs since 2007
“The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act is helping to move sustainability efforts forward, with programs such as the Energy Efficient and Conservation Block Grant that are providing an unprecedented opportunity for the advancement of green building efforts nationwide,” McEntee added.
The full report can be downloaded at the link below.
USGBC Report
In a separate report, the US Green Building Council found that despite a challenging economic outlook, green building will support 7.9 million U.S. jobs and pump $554 billion into the American economy–including $396 billion in wages–over the next four years (2009-2013
The study also determined that green construction spending currently supports more than 2 million American green building jobs and generates more than $100 billion in gross domestic product and wages.
The economic impact of the total green construction market from 2000 to 2008, the study found, contributed $178 billion to U.S. gross domestic product; created or saved 2.4 million direct, indirect and induced jobs; and generated $123 billion in wages.
The study also assessed the U.S. Green Building Council’s 19,000-plus member organizations and found that they generate $2.6 trillion in annual revenue, employ approximately 14 million people, come from 29 industry sectors and include 46 Fortune 100 companies.
“The study demonstrates that investing in green buildings contributes significantly to our nation’s wealth while creating jobs in a range of occupations, from carpenters to cost estimators,” said Gary Rahl, Officer, Global Government Market for Booz Allen Hamilton, which contributed to the report. “In many ways, green construction is becoming the standard for development. As a result, it is expected to it is expected to support nearly 8 million jobs over the next five years, a number four times higher than the previous five years.”
The full report can be downloaded at the USGBC website.
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