TOPIC: California Building Code Turns A Deeper Shade Of Green

As proposed, the labeling system drew criticism from the Northern California Chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council, the organization that has developed the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design standard and its rating system, Build It Green, Global Green, the Natural Resources Defense Council, Environmental Defense Fund, the Sierra Club California, StopWaste.org. Environment California, and the Planning and Conservation League.

The organizations, which lauded several of the mandatory and voluntary provisions in the code, raised concerns that the provisions also create a "quasi rating system," which -- albeit voluntary -- would likely create confusion in the marketplace and undermine tough green building ordinances adopted by cities. The groups said the system also does not provide for adequate verification.

The groups launched a letter-writing campaign to urge that the building standards commission adopt the code without the CALGREEN labeling element and the provisions supporting the quasi rating system that the organizations described.

In releasing material summarizing the building standard commission's actions this week, the state disputed the criticism and said the code requires builders to meet a green standard and enables them to do so "without having to pay costly fees for third-party programs."

The USGBC's LEED rating system, that of Build It Green and other recognized organizations offering green building certification in the U.S. and abroad base their assessments on third-party verification, considered an industry best practice.

And notwithstanding the statement about third-party programs, Calfornia requires its own new and existing buildings to conform to LEED, the dominant green building standard in the U.S. market.

Making buildings more environmentally friendly is a key component of the governor's "Green California" campaign for state facilities and operations, and in the broader efforts to achieve the targets for greenhouse gas emissions reduction that are required by the state's landmark legislation, AB 32. The 3-year-old law mandates reduction of California's GHG emissions to 1990 levels by 2020 and calls for an 80 percent reduction from 1990 levels by 2050.

The California Air Resources Board has estimated that the mandatory measures of CALGREEN will reduce GHG emissions by a CO2 equivalent of 3 million metric tons in 2020.

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