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Generally standard practice, anyway
In general, complying with this prerequisite is standard practice in most urban and suburban areas, where most or all of the EPA Construction General Permit (CGP) requirements have been adopted and implemented at the state or county level. Regulators at those levels often threaten heavy fines for not complying with CGP requirements, so most projects do so without the added incentive of the LEED prerequisite.
A Wider View of Social Justice
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In October, we published an article on social justice and green building. We've gotten several responses, including a letter from Raphael Sperry of Architects/Designers/Planners for Social Responsibility (below).
Sperry makes several good points, and is right that a proper discussion of social justice and the built environment includes much larger inequities than any single building can fix.
Alex Wilson and Peter Yost Interviews
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These shorts were filmed at West Coast Green; for more like them, see revision.tv.
link to video link to videoMore on Passivhaus
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As a follow-on to The Great Passivhaus Face-off, take a look at this commentary from a couple years ago in the wake of a visit to Passivhaus examples in Germany by a couple well-informed British authors and researchers — The Passive House: thoughts and reflections. It begins, "There were a couple of moments when the PassivHaus study tour seemed to lose all contact with normality and enter int
Update on a Wood Chip CHP Plant for Brattleboro
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A little over a year ago I reported on the efforts of a local organization, Brattleboro Thermal Utility (BTU), to develop a wood-chip-fired "combined heat and power" (CHP) plant for the town. In that column I reported that BTU, on whose board I sit, was trying to identify a company to carry out a preliminary feasibility study for the project; we were also seeking funding for that study.
Overheard (live from Greenbuild)
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Two guys were walking down the hall. Professional-looking guys, architectorial. One of them said to the other, "It's called, um, energy... recovery ventilator." BAM! That's what it's about. Yeah, there's greenwash, there's cynicism, there's impatience. But there's also people finding their way forward. We're all spread out along the learning curve, and that's something I have a difficult time keeping in mind. It's easy to feel like everything's too-little-too-late, and hard for me to give credit for good intentions where it's due. And with that, I'm going to break with the blogging.