Southwest Energy Efficiency Project

Green Building Initiatives

Many state and local governments in the Southwest have adopted or are developing green building programs that increase the efficiency with which buildings use resources (energy, water and materials), while reducing the impacts of buildings on human health and the environment. Many of the programs are voluntary, offering incentives for projects that achieve green building standards that are developed locally or that follow national standards (e.g., LEED). A few municipalities have adopted mandatory requirements for new homes and commercial businesses.

Green buildings are cost effective to the building owner and the occupant. Most projects have nominal first costs (typically less than 2% of the total project budget) and are offset by energy savings, water savings and other reduced operating costs that accrue over the life of the building. On average, a green building uses 25-30% less energy than a typical building.¹ Studies have also shown that green buildings have higher occupancy and lease rates, and improve occupant health and productivity.²

Below are brief summaries of the energy efficiency requirements and criteria of residential, commercial and public sector green building programs in the Southwest, with links to more detailed profiles of selected programs. Information on tools and resources for ensuring that green buildings are designed, built and operated to deliver measurable energy savings is provided in the building efficiency information resources section.

This 3,300 sq. ft. home is located in Boulder, CO and built to the guidelines of the city’s Green Points program. Features include a solar PV system, airtight walls insulated with Icynene, blown-in foam insulation, no-VOC paint, bamboo flooring and dual-flush toilets to conserve water. The homeowners expect little or no monthly expenses for heating and cooling.
Source: Boulder County Business Report

Residential Programs

Residential green building programs establish green building standards or guidelines for new homes, additions, or remodels. The programs typically require homes to achieve a 30% or greater improvement in energy efficiency versus a typical new home. Some of the programs require new homes to achieve net-zero energy performance (e.g., Boulder County, CO) or offset their energy consumption with on-site renewables (e.g., City of Aspen, CO). Many communities have developed their own points-based rating systems that include prescriptive requirements or additional guidelines for energy efficiency, water conservation, and use of on-site renewable energy systems, such as solar PV and solar hot water.

Energy efficiency measures include: high-efficiency heating and cooling systems, enhanced building insulation and envelope sealing requirements, energy efficient windows and doors, low-flow showerheads and plumbing fixtures, and ENERGY STAR rated lighting and appliances.

The adoption of residential programs has accelerated in recent years with more than a dozen of municipalities establishing a voluntary or mandatory green building program. And many other local governments in the Southwest are planning or committed to adopting programs in the near future.

Commercial Programs

Interest in commercial green building projects is growing rapidly in the Southwest, with hundreds of green building projects completed or underway. Many of these projects are market-driven, reflecting the growing demand for energy efficient, environmentally friendly buildings and works spaces. A growing number of states, municipalities in the Southwest are also providing financial incentives, including tax credits, fast-track permitting programs, and other incentives to encourage green building projects. For example, New Mexico and Nevada offer tax credits for commercial green building projects. A few municipalities have developed voluntary commercial green building programs or guidelines, as well as mandatory green building requirements for new commercial construction (e.g., City of Albuquerque, NM and Eagle County, CO).

The Jefferson Green Building, located in Albuquerque, New Mexico, is
LEED-Gold Certified, and uses 45% less energy than a typical office building.

In the Southwest region, several municipalities have adopted commercial programs. Typical energy efficiency features include high-efficiency HVAC requirements, improvements to sealing and insulation, ‘cool roof’ mandates, and ENERGY STAR lighting, appliances and heating and cooling equipment.

Phoenix Convention Center incorporates energy efficiency design in order to achieve 20% energy savings from lighting and HVAC controls technologies, water savings from low-flow urinals, dual-flush water closets, and low-flow lavatories (saving 1.9M gallons per day). Efforts of the construction management team and recycling activities resulted in diverting over 84% (3,100 tons) of material away from the landfill.

Public Sector Programs

Several Southwest states and municipalities have adopted legislation or executive orders requiring all new state buildings to achieve green building certification for state buildings. States that require all new state buildings to be LEED certified or higher include Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. Utah has adopted Advanced Building Design Standards for State-Owned Buildings.³

At the local level, Mayors and other local officials have taken a leadership role in establishing green building initiatives that require all city-owned or certain other buildings receiving city funds to meet high performance standards. Southwest municipalities such as Boulder, CO, Tucson and Scottsdale, AZ were among the first in the nation to establish green building programs – these programs have become national models and many other municipalities have followed suit with their own programs that are based on locally developed green building checklists, or national programs, such as LEED.

Examples of leading programs in the Southwest are provided below.

Green Building Programs Profiles:
- City of Boulder, Colorado
  Mandatory residential “Green Points and Green Building Program”
- City of Scottsdale, Arizona
  Voluntary residential “Green Building Program”
- Town of Telluride, Colorado
  Mandatory residential “Green Building Program”
- City of Salt Lake City, Utah
  Mandatory Silver LEED certification for the public sector
Southwest Green Building Initiatives
View the communities in the Southwest region that have adopted green building programs, and those which are actively developing programs.
Additional Resources
This section provides links to websites, presentations, reports and case studies on developing and implementing green building projects, programs and policies.

¹ Energy Performance of LEED® for New Construction Buildings. New Buildings Institute. www.newbuildings.org/downloads/Energy_Performance_of_LEED-NC_Buildings-Final_3-4-08b.pdf

² The Cost of Green Revisited. Davis Langdon, 2007. http://www.davislangdon.com/USA/Research/

3 http://energy.utah.gov/energy/governors_priorities/
utah_policy_to_advance_energy_efficiency_in_the_state.html

© 2002-2008 Southwest Energy Efficiency Project
2260 Baseline Rd. Suite 212, Boulder, CO 80302
(303) 447-0078 fax: (303) 786-8054 info@swenergy.org

Last Updated: 04/10/2008