Green Building

What is Green Building?

Green building is a building procedure that has transformed itself into an economic, risk management, and social issue tackling (among other things) global climate change, an energy crisis, site development selection, construction debris and recycling, sick building syndrome, and global population increases.

Green building as a social movement must be able to sustain the pace of residential building without taking away from future generations sources of building materials and available land for development. In this sense green building is commonly referred to as sustainable building or sustainable development.

What are green built homes?

A green built home is a high performance home that is built to exceed the minimum requirements of the building code, especially in the areas of indoor environmental quality and resource efficiency (including energy, water, materials, and land).

What are the benefits of a green home?

A green home has many high performance features providing for improved heath, safety, comfort, and lower operating costs. Green homes are more environmentally sound including being less polluting and more comfortable for inhabitants.

How are green built homes determined in our region?

The US Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED for Homes) Building Rating System® is the United States voluntary, consensus-based national standard for developing high-performance, sustainable buildings. US Green Building Council's members, representing every sector of the building industry, developed and continue to refine LEED.

LEED provides a comprehensive framework for assessing building performance and meeting sustainability goals. Based on well-founded scientific standards, LEED emphasizes state of the art strategies for sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality. LEED recognizes achievements and promotes expertise in green building through a third-party inspection process offering project certification, professional accreditation, training and resources.

Earth Advantage® is a leader in the sustainable building industry in the Pacific Northwest. At a minimum, Earth Advantage homes are designed to use 15 percent less energy than houses built to standard code practices. Earth Advantage homes adopt the philosophy of holistic sustainability (4-pillar approach) and are accordingly certified for energy efficiency, healthier indoor air, resource efficiency and environmental responsibility. The organization has the ability to certify homes as Earth Advantage® (Gold and Platinum levels exist).

Northwest Energy Star® qualified homes are up to 30% more efficient than homes built to state codes, making them some of the most energy efficient homes available. Performance-tested ductwork keeps the air inside ENERGY STAR homes cleaner and improved ventilation delivers fresh air.