“Green” construction was one focus of the “Outlook ‘08” conference sponsored by McGraw-Hill Construction. Reasons included:

• Rick Fedrizzi, founding chairman (and still CEO) of the U.S. Green Building Council, was a speaker.
• MHC’s newest publication—which has already won several awards—is the quarterly GreenSource magazine (find it at http://greensource.construction.com).
• Judging by audience response to Fedrizzi’s presentation, the more than 400 attendees wanted to hear about things green.

What’s driving the environmental/sustainable construction movement? There’s much more than hype.

As a result of real-world proof (and some hype, perhaps), green buildings are the hottest thing in construction. See Figure Three. “One estimate for 2006 indicates that 2% of the nonresidential building stock in the U.S. was registered under the LEED criteria issued by the U.S. Green Building Council,” according to Bob Murray, chief economist for MHC.

Note that by “nonresidential building stock,” Murray is referencing all nonresidential buildings standing and in use (including those under construction).

LEED = Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. There is a “LEED-EB” standard for existing buildings, which is why the figure has gotten so high (relatively speaking) so quickly.

But there is more coming. “Since it’s likely some owners are using green materials and design without registering . . . this is viewed to be a conservative estimate. By 2010, it’s expected that green buildings will comprise 5% to 10% of the nonresidential building stock.”

Save the date: If you’re interested in environmentally friendly construction, sustainability issues, electrical goods recycling, and related topics, be sure to see the next issue of Power Outlet—out in Spring 2008—which will focus on these topics in an expanded format.

Reprinted with permission of Rexel, publisher of Power Outlet Magazine. www.rexelusa.com/Poweroutlet.aspx