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"We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors; we borrow it from our children."
- Native American Proverb |
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Please welcome new associates at Energy Ace:
 Joy Wang: Joy is a sustainability engineer, focusing on energy modeling, greenhouse gas inventories, and building commissioning. In the past, Joy helped conduct a greenhouse gas inventory for the City of Atlanta and examined biomass cofiring in Georgia. She has also explored environmental and energy issues in the United States, China, and Sweden.
 Jaimie Cohen: Jaimie is a summer intern with Energy Ace. She is currently finishing her Master's Degree in Urban Planning at the University of Michigan where she is focusing on environmental land use and urban design. After graduate school, Jaimie hopes to return to Atlanta and continue her work in the green building sector as well as urban planning issues in the Atlanta Metro Region. |
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Greenhouse Gas Inventory
Energy Ace offers Greenhouse Gas Inventory services for those cities, counties, colleges and universities who have signed the Mayor's 2030 Challenge, the Cities for Climate Protection Pledge, or the President's Climate Commitment. Please send for our Greenhouse Gas Factsheet.
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LEED Services
The EPA reports that buildings have a massive impact on our environment. They account for 68% of total electricty consumption & 12% of total water consumption in the USA. This is why LEED & Green building are so important in today's society. It's been shown that LEED & Green buildings cut energy costs by 30%, and water costs by 20%. Wow, what an amazing impact!
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Energy Act Creates New Energy Efficiency Standards
Energy Act Creates New Energy Efficiency Standards
The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 signed into law on last December, phases out the use of inefficient incandescent lights and imposes improved energy efficiency standards on a wide variety of products. According to the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE), the new standards for light bulbs require them to use about 20%-30% less energy by 2014, while requiring DOE to set standards for light bulbs to cut their energy use at least 35% by 2020. The Alliance to Save Energy (ASE) calls the act "the most significant energy-efficiency legislation in three decades" and notes that the lighting standards alone will cut electric bills by $13 billion per year, eliminating the need for 60 mid-sized power plants. The same law requires federal buildings to set a goal to cut their energy use by 30% by 2015
Energy Ace says "why wait till 2015?" Why not upgrade your facility lighting and energy efficiency now and enjoy savings immediately. A 30% reduction is not impossible with a good energy audit and retrocommissioning. Contact us for more information. |
Phone: 866-610-LEED
Main Office
114 New Street, Suite K2, Decatur, GA 30030
Parttime Office
178 Orchid Ridge Trail, Whittier, NC 28789 | |
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Do As The Romans Did -
Environmentalism in 100 A.D.
 Ancient Rome is one of the most advanced cities the world has seen but also one of the first to experience severe pollution. You might think of pollution as being a post-industrial problem, but the Romans had such a large population that pollution was bound to be an issue. The Romans called this new pollution "infamous air" or "heavy heaven". This pollution came from burning wood in craft shops, sewage, and leather tanning shops. The Romans were also one of the first to have a problem with garbage disposal and in turn the forward and ingenious thinkers of the group devised one of the original "garbage collection" systems.
Rome also had some of the earliest environmental thinkers and they proved to be way ahead of their time. Water & air were declared public property for the benefit of all & Rome's public health programs were better than most empires that followed. The Romans were one of the first to create and build a sewer system that was constructed throughout the city. Also, the famous Roman aqueducts brought plenty of clean, fresh water to the citizens.
Romans were also some of the first to notice that working with large amounts of lead & mercury was not advantageous to one's health. Lead can cause all kinds of problems, and the Romans protected their average citizens from poisoning by forcing criminal slaves to work in the lead mines & smelters. However this discovery of the ill effects of lead & mercury didn't stop the Romans from adding it to their wine making and using lead cups and silverware.
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Being Green in the Big Easy
In August of 2005, Katrina hit New Orleans and the aftermath was devastating. Since then homeowners, builders, developers and residences have started projects to help rebuild the city. One project called "Historic Green" is helping the Holy Cross neighborhood located in the Ninth Ward become the nation's first zero-carbon community. Preservation Meets Sustainability is Historic Green's goal for the Ninth Ward; they will sustainably rebuild historic houses, parks, playgrounds & community centers.
While preservation is a key goal, renewable energy & energy-efficiency features are being added to the homes. Some of the energy efficient features include radiant barriers in the walls, high quality insulation & compact florescent light bulbs. On the renewable energy side, things such as solar photovoltaic (PV) systems & solar thermal hot water systems are being installed in the homes. In addition to solar PV, studies are also underway to asses the feasibility of using the Mississippi River as a potential power source for the community.
One more unique feature of the Historic Green project is using the neighborhood's park as a way to keep the streets from flooding. The parks will be used as a "rain garden" to allow rain to move through the soil quickly.
This might be a hefty goal, but with perseverance on their side Historic Green knows they will be able to reach their target.
(source: renewableenergyworld.com) |
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LEED + Energy Star
 Third-party certified buildings outperformed their conventional counterparts across a variety of metrics based on two recently released studies. These include energy savings, occupancy rates, sale price, & rental rates.
One study, by the New Buildings Institute (NBI), indicates that new buildings certified by the LEED system perform on average 25% - 30% better than non-LEED buildings, while gold & Platinum LEED buildings can have an energy savings of almost 50%. Just as impressive are the energy savings under the EPA's Energy Star program. Buildings that have earned an Energy Star label use an average of almost 40% less energy than average buildings & emit 35% less carbon. Energy Star is a prerequisite in LEED for Existing Buildings.
The second study by CoStar found that LEED buildings command rent premiums of $11.24/sq over the non-LEED peers and have 3.8% higher occupancy. Rental rates in Energy Star buildings represent a $2.38/sq premium over comparable non-Energy Star buildings & have a 3.6% higher occupancy. On top of that, Energy Star buildings are selling for an average of $61/sq more than their peers, while LEED buildings command a remarkable $171 more per square foot.
The results from both these studies strengthen the "business case" for green buildings as financially sound investments.
(source: Engineered Systems, May 2008) |
SoutheastGreen.com  SoutheastGreen.com is a website for business professionals, commercial property owners, homeowners and concerned citizens who are looking for ways to conserve & protect our natural resources, save energy and save money. Visit SoutheastGreen.com and:
· Improve your office & home environment while using less energy, water and resources
· Find educational resources, articles and services available in the Southeast
· Discover local and regional non-profit organizations offering classes, workshops and events related to the world of green living
· Share articles, organizations and companies that support Going Green - others need to know about them! | |
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