U.S. green push: its own buildings

MARCH 9, 2009

Properties owned by government are perfect place to start

By SARI KRIEGER THE WALL STREET JOURNAL ASIA
The U.S. government's huge inventory of properties is likely to be at the forefront of a national green-building push that will serve two aims of the Obama administration: promoting energy efficiency and boosting infrastructure spending as a way to revive the economy.
In a speech Jan. 8 at George Mason University in Fairfax, Va., then President-elect Barack Obama said he wanted to modernize 75% of existing federal buildings. Much of this modernization is likely to be energy-efficiency measures, and the stimulus package signed into law last month includes billions of dollars for such efforts. The government owns or leases more than 500,000 properties, according to the Department of Energy -- a number that could mean a big impact.
Green-building proponents are hoping that the government's effort will help spur more action in the private sector -- and that wider implementation of green practices will help drive down costs. While green building became increasingly popular in the private sector in recent years, the recession has made the upfront capital costs of both new green construction and renovations less attractive these days for some companies.
Green building refers practices such as the use of environmentally friendly materials in new construction and improvements in the energy efficiency of existing buildings through measures such as installing windows that retain or deflect heat as well as more-efficient heating and cooling systems and lighting.
The Obama administration's plans are being helped, in part, by the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, which requires the secretary of energy to revise efficiency standards for all new federal buildings as well as those undergoing major renovations to require the elimination of fossil-fuel energy use by 2030.
"It's not only at a time when the administration is strongly behind doing something, but also the regulations to do something are there," says Bob Dixon, head of the efficiency and sustainability business for Siemens Building Technologies, part of Germany's Siemens AG. "And certainly through some of the stimulus package, we should have some of the funds to support the implementation."
The U.S. Green Building Council, a nonprofit that promotes and certifies green building practices, estimates that green building measures could save the U.S. government billions of dollars in energy costs. "The federal government spends about $4 billion on energy each year for its affordable-housing stock alone," says Jason Hartke, director of advocacy and public policy for the council. "If [the government] were to make...federal affordable-housing stock more energy efficient by 25%, [it would] save $1 billion annually. In 10 years, the government would save $10 billion."
Many experts say the federal government's green building activities could help spur greater adoption of green building techniques by cash-strapped private-sector companies.