Major renovations are an opportunity to improve your team’s environmental performance while potentially realizing cost savings. Visit NRDC’s Guide to Green Building, an award-winning website designed for businesses and building professionals thinking about new green buildings or major renovations.
When planning new construction projects, consider the following: can this building consume less energy? Less potable water? Fewer raw and toxic materials? How can access to the building be improved through public transportation, bicycling, walking, carpools, or other environmentally preferable forms of transportation? Can diesel pollution be reduced during construction?
The materials we use for buildings and the energy used to keep them comfortable engender environmental impacts. Green buildings are designed to minimize impacts by using environmentally preferable construction materials and techniques, reducing water and energy use, minimizing waste, and making better use of natural features like shade, daylight, and rainwater. In so doing, green buildings reduce their contribution to global warming, biodiversity loss, water and energy shortages, air pollution, and other environmental pressures.
A Guide to Green Maintenance and Operations
Department of Energy’s Building Toolkit for Design, Construction, and Renovation
Santa-Monica Green Building Guide
New York City High Performance Building Guidelines