What is a green building? It might be better
to ask what it is not. All of us, contractors
and workers alike, have been constructing non-green
buildings for over a century. Until recently
that meant installing, maintaining and repairing
systems whose only object was to meet a specification
and satisfy a customer. In other words, to bring
water, heat, and take away waste in the most
efficient, safe, and economical manner. Doing
this was, and remains, our business. It is why
we exist.
The green building concept has largely developed
over the past decade. Fundamentally it means
the practice of increasing the efficiency of
buildings and their use of energy, water and
materials, while reducing impacts on the environment.
This is done through a conscious effort over
the entire building cycle, from design through
construction, operation, maintenance and even
demolition or removal.
The difference
between these two approaches and their methods
is actually quite small. For professionals in the
field it is merely another series of options—familiar
choices about materials, installation and tools.
On the other hand, because of the increasing popularity
of green building, and the rising number of projects
whose specifications include green building provisions,
thinking, bidding and working green is becoming
profitable; in the future it is likely to become
the only reliably profitable mode of operation
in a large part of the construction industry. Today
green building practices are encouraged and sometimes
required: in the future they will increasingly
become mandated as part of industry codes and specifications.
Of course, every segment of our industry is already
acquainted with conservation of energy and material;
after all, that’s what plumbing, piping,
heating and cooling are all about. Building green
is simply another expression of the same effort
and work.
New
Practices for New Goals
Green
building standards are rapidly being adopted in
both the public and private sectors, for work as
varied as a simple faucet replacement to the design
and construction of major facilities. Most contractors
are familiar with these standards as elements within
a larger set of specifications; for instance, as
a local requirement for the use of graywater in
the irrigation system of a public park. It is becoming
increasingly common for customers and awarding
agencies to establish or to refer to standards
which are comprehensive in scale—ranging
from particular origins and composition of construction
materials to the type and use of tools and methods
of installation, all the way through to the elements
of the final punch list, and occasionally beyond.
One significant difference is that the green building
is perceived as a set of ongoing functions rather
than a temporary challenge of construction to be
accomplished and left for another job. These functions
often begin before the traditional scope of construction
work and end beyond it, too.
