Green Building Standards

From the BCCT. " 'Builders are finding that a green-certified building is no more expensive than a conventional one as long as it starts from the beginning with design,' Bray said. 'Retrofitting a building to be green can be expensive. Also, down the road, maintenance on these [green] buildings is considerably less expensive and that is where the economic benefits really start coming into play.' ”

Plan would encourage green building standards

By CHRIS ENGLISH
Bucks County Courier Times

LOWER MAKEFIELD -- Next on the list of environmental initiatives in Lower Makefield is a set of green building standards for new construction or renovations on township-owned properties.

Supervisors Chairman Greg Caiola said the Environmental Advisory Council has submitted a rough draft of the standards to the supervisors and solicitor David Truelove. The draft is being reviewed and could be voted on next month or in September, Caiola said.

Sometime before the end of the year, the board hopes to enact a green building ordinance covering new development and renovations, both commercial and residential, on private properties, he said.

“We started with the township itself because we wanted to be setting the example and doing as we say,” said Caiola. “We wanted to be sure we took the lead on the township level before we asked anyone else to do it.”

Building green means using construction techniques and materials designed to protect the environment. They include everything from using renewable energy sources like the sun and wind instead of gas and oil to utilizing non-wood building materials to cut down on tree depletion.

Township officials said they aren't sure if the ordinance governing private development will have strict requirements or just incentives — similar to those adopted in Doylestown — designed to encourage green building but not demand it. Strict requirements might contradict the uniform building code and thus be illegal, said Jim Bray, chairman of the township EAC.

However, green standards for township-owned properties can be strict and the draft guidelines reflect that, Bray said. They require that new construction or renovations on township-owned properties conform to standards of the U.S. Green Building Council, he said.

That includes things like building in a way to take maximum advantage of natural light, recycling waste building materials and using high-efficiency heating and cooling systems.

Some in Lower Makefield already have taken the initiative on their own. An office building on Township Line Road constructed by Liberty Property Trust was built to green standards, and a planned renovation by the Pennsbury School District of its Makefield Elementary School will have many green features.

“Builders are finding that a green-certified building is no more expensive than a conventional one as long as it starts from the beginning with design,” Bray said. “Retrofitting a building to be green can be expensive. Also, down the road, maintenance on these [green] buildings is considerably less expensive and that is where the economic benefits really start coming into play.”

Bray said the township's green building initiatives are being led by EAC member Rick Ewing. The newspaper was unsuccessful in its attempts to reach him for comment.

In Doylestown, a green building incentive system put together by planning director and assistant borough manager Phil Ehlinger can save developers up to 50 percent on their building permit fees.

Points are awarded up to a maximum of 50 for each green building feature. Each point means a 1 percent reduction in the building permit fee, he said. For example, one point is awarded for something as simple as including a clothes line in the plan for a residential project, Ehlinger said. That saves dryer time and thus electricity, he explained.