“The greenest building is…one that is already built.” – Carl Elefante
Most of us spend the majority of our lives in some type of building—we may work inside a building and we may come home to another one. According to the United States Energy Information Administration’s Commercial Buildings Energy Consumption Survey, existing buildings 20 years or older make up nearly 72 percent of the total square footage in the United States.
However, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reports that approximately 1 billion square feet of preexisting buildings are demolished annually to make way for new construction.
If you currently manage or own an existing building, it is essential for you to understand the importance of retrofitting and restoring your structure and how doing so can make it inherently sustainable. In fact, working to make existing buildings sustainable may be more beneficial to the environment (and more economical) than any type of new construction project. According to the National Institute of Building Sciences, “With some exception, comparing similar uses, types and locations, the existing buildings reduce climate impact over the newly built. Additionally, the findings suggest that even sustainably-constructed new built structures do not recoup energy outlays for approximately 30 years when measured against a renovated existing building.”
In a nutshell, since preservation takes advantage of existing materials and infrastructure and lessens would-be waste created during the construction process, reusing older buildings and creating energy efficient operations can result in instant and long-lasting environmental benefits. In particular, maintaining and retrofitting an older building’s mechanical systems (HVAC, plumbing, and piping) can greatly reduce energy costs and lessen a building’s environmental footprint.
Commercial buildings have a big impact on our quality of life, comfort, security, and overall health but they also have the potential to consume much of our nonrenewable resources and create large extents of waste.
According to the United States Green Building Council (USGBC), buildings in the U.S. account for:
As would be assumed, green buildings consume much less energy than the average commercial building. Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is a set of ratings that are intended to help building owners and managers be environmentally responsible and utilize resources as efficiently as possible. According to a white paper on Green Building Performance by the General Services Administration (GSA), after evaluating 22 green GSA Buildings, it was determined that sustainable buildings generally:
- Consume 25 percent less energy and 11 percent less water
- Have 19 percent lower maintenance costs
- Have a 27 percent higher occupant satisfaction
- Emit 34 percent lower greenhouse gases
The Green Building Market and Impact Report states that LEED buildings avoided 0.35 percent of total U.S. CO2 emissions in 2011 and that the percentage of CO2 avoidance attributed to LEED buildings is estimated to rise to 4.92 percent by 2030. Those are large percentages and they clearly show the impact that sustainable efforts can and will make.
Sustainable development is about ensuring a better quality of life for everyone, both now and for generations to come. But it does require some effort on our parts.
To help ensure that your existing building’s mechanical systems are operating in an environmentally-conscious and sustainable manner, give us a call today at 301-350-5000 or click here for more information on how we can help.
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