Buildings are for People: Design Strategies for Occupant Engagement Presinar

By Ryan Duffy, Communications Fellow

About

In this one-hour course, the participant will explore design strategies that encourage beneficial occupant behavior. Consider the impacts occupant behavior changes can have on a building over its lifetime, dispel myths that key occupant behaviors cannot be directed by designers, and learn how these strategies can help achieve LEED certification.

Objectives

  1. Discuss how occupant behavior impacts a building’s environmental performance
  2. Identify design strategies that encourage beneficial occupant behavior in the areas of transportation, energy and water conservation, materials, and indoor environmental quality
  3. Explain how to target strategies by including representative occupants in the design process
  4. Describe how design strategies aimed at occupant behavior can help projects achieve LEED certification

Find out more and register here!

Chapman Construction: Not Your Typical Construction Firm

By Ryan Duffy, Communications Fellow

Chapman is not your typical construction firm. It prioritizes sustainable construction management and consulting services. When it was founded in 1984, the firm's founders set out to create something new: a forward-looking company that was free from the traditional ideas about construction.

More than 30 years later, they're still pushing the envelope and expanding the definition of what a construction management firm can be: delivering work of the highest quality under the tightest of schedules, infusing every project with cost-conscious sustainable thinking, taking care of their employees and their families, and supporting the community focused organizations where they live and work. 


Chapman's commitment to sustainability is its guiding philosophy. Their hadquarters are certified LEED Platinum and their rooftop solar array (shown at right) generates more than 87% of their electricity! If you look closely, you can see their fleet of Priuses that are used to transport staff to jobsites. Not pictured is Chapman's high efficiency plumbing fixtures that have helped them cut their water consumption in half. 

Chapman infuses every project, large or small, with sustainable thinking and a host of standard green practices. All Chapman jobsites follow their indoor air quality program, ensuring a clean and healthy environment for occupants both during and after construction. They’ve also standardized on building materials that are high in recycled content and paints, sealants and adhesives that contain low or no volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Additionally, they designed a waste management plan to encourage salvage, reuse, and recycling. By implementing this plan across all jobsites, they’ve been able to divert an average of 79.6% of construction and demolition debris from landfills each year.

More than 50% of their staff have earned their LEED Accredited Professional designations, as have more than 200 of their industry partners. As USGBC and AIA Education Providers, Chapman offers classes and continuing education seminars for clients and partners who wish to maintain their accreditations or simply expand their knowledge of sustainable construction practices.

Read more about Chapman on their website

Marching Forward with More Green Buildings!

By Grey Lee


Below is the intro section of the March Prospect – our monthly forward-looking newsletter.

Link to the full edition here.

Thanks for reading!

 

 

Gearing Up For a Busy March

Hello Force of Green-ness!
The first two months of 2016 have flown by for us here at USGBC MA, but we don't have time to stop and take a breath because we have a jam-packed and exciting schedule coming up with tons of events and opportunities in the next few months!

I was at a breakfast program this morning, run by another org, linking Sustainability & Property Management. There were great panels moderated by Chapter colleagues Mike Davis and Luka Matutinovic. It is fascinating to note how far our community of practitioners has come in the last 15 years. I remember pitching LEED in about 2003 and developers and owners just could not get their heads around it. Now, we see developers talking about how they only build out LEED space for their commercial projects; how they report in to GRESB because their big money investors like J.P. Morgan want to know; how high-end apartment developers are incorporating sustainability and wellness into their projects because their residents (and not just millennials!) are asking for these features. It is an exciting time – and yet – many projects forego a systematic approach to sustainability and leave money on the table.

It's sometimes unbelievable that we still have so much work to do, but it's awesome that in the global struggle to put an end to wasteful buildings, we are winning! Thanks for participating in this mission and marching together as a community for improved ROI and improved sustainability in our communities. 

On that note, we have a CALL FOR ACTION to support our Advocacy priorities. We are approaching a critical deadline to support Net Metering legislation. We need your help to secure a renewable energy future for the Commonwealth. Please click here to see more in the Advocacy Update.

We have big events coming up: our COP21 Buildings Day Unconference on 3/29; The Building Tech Forum on 4/21/16 and a Resilience Expo in July. Let me know if you like the subjects and want to be involved.

Next week we have two big gatherings for our green building pros: NESEA's “BuildingEnergy16” in the Seaport of Boston. If you need a deep dive on LEED v4 or to explore LEED ND – sessions are Tuesday, 3/8, for your educational needs. Also, hosted by our sponsoring partner National Grid, the Association of Energy Engineers' “GLOBALCON” in Boston's Back Bay.

I hope to see you at one of these upcoming events. It is always good to re-connect with comrades on the trail to More Green Buildings!

Thank you,
Grey, and Celis, Anthony, Ryan and Wenbin

PS: who knows from what ancient military redoubt the above picture was taken?

 

Read the full newsletter here.

USGBCMA Educational Opportunity: Hacking LEED: v4 Innovation and Performance

By Ryan Duffy, Communications Fellow

Register now for Hacking LEED: v4 Innovation and Performance on Tuesday, March 8, 2016, from 10:00am to 1:00pm! 

Attend USGBC MA Chapter focused education sessions at the Pre-Conference Workshops on Tuesday before the main NESEA BE16 Show.

Hosted by the USGBC MA Chapter, this course will cover how to use the updated and mandated LEED v4 to raise the bar on energy & environmental performance in buildings, how to transition from the current LEED 2009 system to the LEED v4, how pilot credits and innovation credits fit in, and how legacy projects registered in v2009 are subject to changing requirements even now.  This year, LEED v4 is here and you'll be using it, so learn from practitioners who are already waist-deep in the v4 waters.   

Register here!

Only a week until the event, hope to see you all there!


From National: District thinking and doing: A path to net zero

By Tom Marseille


A net zero energy goal is becoming increasingly realistic, given current and emerging building technologies and design approaches. But even with a well-charted and proven road map, the majority of projects face inherent building constraints that hinder an aggressive pursuit of net zero at scale.  

Finding the right place

Often, the limiting factor to net zero is that the building or building site becomes an unnecessary boundary. Buildings with high energy or water use intensity (e.g., hospitals or data centers), as well as high-rises that lack sufficient space for onsite renewable energy or rainwater collection, are generally identified as poor candidates. In urban areas, projects may not be able to annualize net zero energy production at the meter if utility network grids cannot safely accept back-fed energy generated onsite.

Climate, too, can affect a project’s candidacy. Highly efficient air- or ground-source heat pumps may not be the most feasible for buildings in cold locations with a significant annual need for heat (which can result in reliance on onsite fossil fuel combustion or electric resistance heat.) Even low-rise office buildings in moderate climates tend to be densely populated—meaning higher internal energy loads.

The district solution

Although it's not new, the idea of an energy district for heating and/or cooling is a strategy increasingly being considered as a path to net zero. Depending on fuel source, a district heating system, while not necessarily energy resource-efficient, could provide a significant advantage in reducing the carbon footprint of those buildings served, even if it paradoxically doesn’t necessarily help the net zero energy equation for those same buildings. Traditionally, college or corporate campuses and some cities have installed centralized utility plants to produce district steam for heating and chilled water for cooling, primarily for economic reasons.

Fortunately, new district paradigms are emerging that are practical and achievable, and far more localized. The concept of heat sharing—harvesting neighboring energy resources that would otherwise be wasted—is one such opportunity, and can enable the step change needed to achieve high performance outcomes. 

Converting waste to energy

Amazon’s Seattle headquarters is one recent example of a local energy district based on synergy within an urban environment. The new building receives heat via water piping that’s interconnected with a large data center across the street. This heat is a natural byproduct of the data center’s server farms and was previously expelled year-round through cooling towers on the building’s roof (consuming more energy and water.) Amazon took on this waste heat, engaging a third party to enable the neighbor-to-neighbor transaction. The headquarters design includes a central plant equipped with pumps that take the low-grade heat byproduct and boost it to temperatures suitable for building heating. As Amazon intends to fully harvest this resource to heat the entire campus, the design weaves multiple buildings together—and will ultimately provide heat for over 3.3 million square feet of space.

A similar example is being developed in the design of a future sports arena in Seattle. In this case, thanks in part to active encouragement and support from local authorities and utilities, the owners are looking to leverage heat from an adjacent county sewer/storm main. Systems designed to harvest heat from sewage are now available on the market and provide a unique opportunity to use what would otherwise be a wasted resource. Also, because excess heat generated by the arena could empty into the sewage stream, the project does not require a cooling tower—saving energy and water, and eliminating the need for additional onsite equipment.

Although there are challenges in harvesting what is otherwise viewed as waste beyond a project’s traditional boundaries, some creativity, applied locally, can bring great results. Success requires the right technical opportunity; the right political climate; and a motivated, cooperative group of stakeholders who can make decisions in the context of projects where upfront dollars are precious and schedules are tight.

Next Week: GLOBALCON

By Ryan Duffy, Communications Fellow


Next week, on March 9-10, the 27th annual GLOBALCON Expo will be held in Boston's Hynes Convention Center!  Along with this year's expo will be a conference, seminars, and workshops that allow attendees to discover new products, techniques, solutions and services, and network with industry professionals.

USGBC MA has obtained free tickets to the Expo for any of our Members that wish to attend, and we also have a handful of remaining discounted tickets to the full conference for a special rate of $595 (which is a $300 discount).  This package would include: admission to the multitrack conference sessions, a pass to attend the exposition, a copy of the Show Proceedings, as well as luncheons in the exhibit hall.  

Lastly, if you plan on attending the exposition, make sure to stop by our booth!  We are also looking for volunteers to man the booth if anybody is interested.  Here is more info about the event, taken from the website:


WHY GLOBALCON

Decision makers from business, industry and government must now seek integrated energy solutions — solutions which assure both a secure and affordable energy supply to meet today's and tomorrow's needs, and effective management of energy and overall operational costs. The GLOBALCON Expo will emphasize four critical areas of leading edge technology and related services:

✓ Energy Management, HVAC and Smart Building Systems
✓ Renewables, Alternative Energy and Onsite Generation
✓ Lighting Efficiency and Integrated Energy Solutions
✓ Plant and Facilities Management

Presented By…

GLOBALCON 2016, presented by the Association of Energy Engineers, is designed specifically to facilitate those seeking to expand their knowledge of fast-moving developments in the energy field, explore promising new technologies, compare energy supply options, and learn about innovative and cost-conscious project implementation strategies.

Hosted By…

National Grid, Platinum Sponsoring Partner to USGBC MA, is committed to delivering safe and reliable energy to customers and communities across Massachusetts, New York and Rhode Island. They work closely across the energy industry, connecting tradespersons, contractors, regulators, and energy supply representatives to deliver quality services to their customers.

Join Us at the 4th Annual Massachusetts Water Forum

By Ryan Duffy, Communications Fellow


We are attending an event next month that we want to share with all our members.. the 4th Annual Massachusetts Water Forum, hosted by Foundation for a Green Future. This event is on Tuesday, March 22nd, in honor of World Water day. The forum will focus on methods to rethink water management as the Commonwealth prepares for a changing climate.  Since we are in Boston, a coastal urban community, water management and climate change are both timely topics, so don't miss out on this great opportunity to learn how we can more efficient and prepared!

More about the Event:

The Charles River Watershed Association (CRWA) will present a game-changing plan to transform the way we manage water in our urban and suburban spaces.  The forum will encourage all participants to pose questions, add their insights, and think about new designs, systems and resource uses. 

Participants may join for one or more segment of this program.

Where:  BSA Space, 290 Congress Street, Boston, MA

4th Annual Massachusetts Water Forum Program

1:00 pm  Secretary Matthew Beaton will open the 4th Annual Water Forum

1:10 pm  Brief greeting by Youth Representatives from the morning's Youth Summit led by Green Schools

1:15 pm  Panel Discussion:  Transforming Our Water and Energy Systems

3:00 pm  Panel Discussion ends. Short coffee break.

3:15 pm  Breakout Sessions

                 Breakout Session 1:  Infrastructure for a Livable Future

                 Breakout Session 2:  Design and Legislation

                 Breakout Session 3:  Resilient Water Systems

5:00 pm  Breakout Sessions end.

5:30 pm  Keynote speaker, Wenonah Hauter and Cocktail Reception.

The 4th Annual Massachusetts Water Forum is brought to you thanks to the following partners:

The Office of Representative Chris Walsh
Boston Society of Architects
Charles River Watershed Association
City of Boston
MWRA (Massachusetts Water Resources Authority)
Boston Water and Sewer Commission (BWSC)
Massachusetts Rivers Alliance
Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC)
Green Schools

Forum Participants:

Foundation for a Green Future has the privilege of welcoming the Commonwealth's Secretary of Energy and Environmental Affairs, Matthew Beaton. Representative Chris Walsh of the 6th Middlesex District will serve as Moderator. Panelists include:

  • Bob Zimmerman, Executive Director of Charles River Watershed Association (CRWA)–  Bob will present a game changing way of treating water in our cities and towns which will be set up through CWERCs – Community Water and Energy Resource Centers.  The Forum continues into two breakout sessions.  The first will delve more deeply into the establishment of CWERCs and the second will look at ways our legislators and designers can support this transformative process.
  • Austin Blackmon, City of Boston's Chief of Energy,Environment and Open Space
  • Wenonah Hauter, Executive Director, Food & Water Watch
  • Bradley Campbell, Executive Director, Conservation Law Foundation
  • Carter Craft, Sr Economic Officer|Water and Resilience, Consulate General of the Netherlands in New York
  • Charlie Jewell, Director of Planning and Sustainability, Boston Water and Sewer Commission

Breakout Session 2:  Design and Legislation

  • Led by Senator Jamie Eldridge of the 5th Middleesex and Worcester District and Representative Carolyn Dykema of the 8th MIddlesex District

Breakout Session 3:  Resilient Water Systems

  • Led by Julie Conroy, Senior Environmental Planner, Metropolitan Area Planning Council

GUEST KEYNOTE SPEAKER from Washington,DC:  “Water and Energy,” Wenonah Hauter, Executive Director of Food & Water Watch, author of Frackopoly

WHEN
Tuesday, March 22, 2016 at 1:00 PM

WHERE
I – 290 Congress Street. #200. Boston, MA 02210

To register, or see more about the event, visit the website


Our Signature COP21 Paris Climate Talks Unconference

By Ryan Duffy, Communications Fellow


This March, in just a few weeks, the USGBC MA chapter will be hosting a special COP21 Paris Climate Talks Unconference to revisit these important international conversations.

This is a unique opportunity to discuss the historic 2015 United Nations Congress of the Parties (COP21), held this past December in Paris, France.  The provisions and commitments reached in the agreement have global implications for sustainability, climate change, and green building, and certainly warrant a closer examination, extensive analysis, and more discussion.

For this reason, we have put together a half-day event featuring a community of experts from a variety of organzations and firms. Panelists who attended the Paris climate talks will be present, with break-out groups led by local issue experts.

SIGN UP NOW

Partnering Organizations: 

  • Sierra Club
  • CABA, Climate Action Business Association
  • Foundation for a Green Future
  • ELM, Envoronmental League of Massachusetts

Our Paris Panelists:

  • Michael Green, Climate Action Business Association
  • Christopher Mackey, Payette
  • Professor John Sterman, MIT System Dynamics Group

Our unConference Discussion Leaders:

  • Josh Craft, Environmental League of Massachusetts
  • Henrietta Davis, former Mayor of the City of Cambridge
  • Elizabeth Saunders, Clean Water Action

 

 


More about the Event:

More than 30 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions are buildings-related, and emissions could double
 by 2050 if we carry on business as 
usual. Inaction increases risks and vulnerability of countries, regions and local communities from climate change. Yet:

  • The buildings sector offers one of the most cost-effective and economically beneficial paths for reducing energy demand and associated emissions while at the same time supporting adaptation and resilience to climate change.
  • Many low-energy, renewable and deep- renovation solutions are available. Proven policy, finance and technology actions exist.
  • The economic, health, and social benefits of sustainable buildings are significant. Buildings provide shelter, places to live, work, learn and socialize, directly affecting our daily lives.
  • Buildings are long-term ventures. Today’s new buildings are tomorrow’s existing stock. Failure to act now will lock in growth in GHG emissions for decades.

Here is how the morning will pan out:

8:30 – 9 Registration and networking
9 – 9:15 Keynote and opening
9:15 – 10:30 Breakout (unconference)
10:30 – 10:40 Break + Networking
10:40 – 12:00 Paris Panel with questions from audience

Both the panel and breakout sessions will focus on the following topics and will provide perspectives from various professional backgrounds:

  • Value Chain Transformation: is the building sector capable of massive deployment of low emitting buildings and deep renovations? How will building sector stakeholders better work together to scale up solutions adapted to local circumstances?
  • Bridging the investment gap: how ready is the finance sector to increase investment in building efficiency?  How will we address the critical need to scale up the public and private financing of EE and sustainable buildings. We will explore how buildings and EE can contribute to realizing MA's carbon goals and how the financial sector can help support that.
  • Public Policies: what is the readiness to implement long term action plans to address the key role of local jurisdictions to organize and facilitate integrated policy packages and collaborative approaches that shift to a low carbon and resilient built environment. 
  • Building rating & reporting systems: how do they support the COP21 momentum?  

Please join us as a community of advocates and practitioners as we explore how to leverage the public awareness and policy momentum generated by COP21 to drive policy gains in Massachusetts.

SIGN UP NOW

Guest blog post: another take on our Policy Podium for Net Metering

By Anthony Lucivero, Advocacy Fellow

We have a special cameo blog post from Caroline Higley, a Tufts University student, and member of the Tufts Energy Group. Here is her take on our Policy Podium for net metering that we hosted on 2/25. Take it away, Caroline!

In the past five months, the Massachusetts solar industry arrived at a critical crossroads, as two policies reached capacity. With the net metering caps being reached in August 2015, and the SREC-II large-generation program being filled in late February 2016, the pressue is on for state legislators to reach a compromise before development grinds to a halt.  Over 15,100 individuals are employed in the Massachusetts solar industry, and approximately $800 million was invested in Massachusetts solar installations in 2014.  These figures indicate the importance of an immediate compromise to maintain and support the solar energy economy in Massachusetts (“Massachusetts Solar.” Solar Energy Industries Association, 2015. Web. 28 Feb.)

This week, the U.S. Green Building Council – Massachusetts Chapter (USGBC MA), hosted a “Policy Podium” event to discuss the status of the legislative gridlock on net metering and solutions to move forward.  Panelists included four professionals: David Colton, Easton Town Administrator; Charles Harak, National Consumer Law, Tim Roughan, National Grid; and Matt Shortsleeve, Solect Energy. Overall, these individuals were directed to answer two questions: “What does the MA Chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council need to know to be effective advocates for net metering?” and “What is one strategy USGBC MA can adopt to promote a compromise?”

Panelists first gave an overview of the factors affecting legislative compromise. Conversations on Beacon Hill seek to address priorities in order of urgency, which include lifting the net metering caps while determining the future structure of net metering and incentives.  A dynamic conversation followed, in which panelists discussed: the solar incentives program, the distribution of costs to support solar, project sizes, the justification to change legislative terms and eliminate certainty for grandfathered projects, the rates at which projects are compensated, the impacts to the grid, and the value of increased access to solar via community solar. Each panelist advocated for different combinations of the solutions, indicative of their individual experiences.

Panelists were encouraged to answer the two guiding questions throughout the debate. As agreed upon by panelists, the ultimate strategy for the USGBC MA is to advocate for the completion of a value of solar study. Panelists reinforced that the costs of solar are unclear, the benefits of solar are unrecognized, and that legislators will need hard facts and figures to reach a decision.

A comprehensive study might make a decision more conspicuous, but I would argue that we already know the value of solar. Several renewable energy analyses have been executed in states throughout the country, and cite the solar industry’s job creation, the elimination of emissions, improved public health, local independence, alleviation at peak demand, price stability, and resiliency as few of many positive externalities. These studies have quantified cost benefits of solar, and can be applied in a framework to Massachusetts; however, political interests here have deterred this from happening.

Rather than delay action by advocating for a study, I would call forth Massachusetts residents to focus on the bigger picture. As active citizens looking to our futures, our goals should include a move away from fossil fuels to meet the Green Communities Act standards and to set a national precedent following the Paris Accord. As clean energy leaders, we must learn from the mistakes that other states have made (ex. Nevada’s decision to forestall  their solar industry), while learning from the successes of other states (ex. Rhode Island’s program to promote home efficiency updates prior to solar installation).  Widespread solar growth can only be a positive trend, and residents must remember the values upon which we pride ourselves in this state. When these sentiments are expressed to, and then mirrored by, our legislators, a decision might come a little easier.

Our next Policy Podium will be an evening with Senator Benjamin Downing and solar industry professionals, where we will discuss the future of solar energy and green jobs in Massachusetts. Don't miss out! Monday, March 14th, 6:00pm – 7:30pm, 50 Milk St, 17th floor, “Milky Way” conference room, Boston, MA, 02109. Register now!

 

Our very first Policy Podium on Net Metering!

By Anthony Lucivero, Advocacy Fellow


This morning marked the inaugural Policy Podium event, with the focus being on net metering in Massachusetts.  We had 90 minutes of dynamic and informative discussions, led by our four panelists: 

  • David Colton (Town Administrator of Easton)
  • Charles Harak (National Consumer Law Center)
  • Tim Roughan (National Grid)
  • Matt Shortsleeve (Solect Energy)

Special thanks go out to USGBC MA Advocacy Committee member David Bliss for bringing these four panelists together. 

The intention of this Policy Podium was to answer one question: What can the USGBC MA Chapter do to support net metering and solar energy development in Massachusetts?  When one aspect of net metering is being discussed, it opens up two cans of worms, so kudos go to our Executive Director, Grey Lee, for keeping the conversations on-track and ensuring audience participation. While the discussions between panelists and audience members were empassioned, everyone attending was there to listen and learn.  This was an important step in each side coming to the table to hear the other out. 

The main takeaway for the Chapter was to support raising or eliminating the net metering caps, or solar development will be dead in the water. However, short-term cap increases are not the solution.  We must build legislation that grows with solar development, or we will run into this problem every few years. 

However, there were many other takeaways from these discussions:



Solar load management through grid modernization will be key to the future of solar. When the grid is able to give utilities the full amount of details, this will result in making solar more cost-effective. 

  • Grid modernization, including virtual net metering and community solar, must be undertaken.  Tim Roughan stressed that grid modernization must come before, not after, solar development.
  • Transparency in the financial models of solar developers is needed; if installation costs are going down, is the money going to the right place? 
  • A comprehensive study for the value of solar energy must be undertaken, and not just for solar users. How can solar energy benefit the NON-solar user (even through indirect means, such as cleaner air)?
  • The next SREC incentive program must place a fair price on solar, and should include different classes of solar customers to determine varying levels of value. 
  • We must ask the legislature why there is no transparency in the politics of solar, and question them on their priorities for energy generation, distribution, and net metering pricing. 
  • Highlight the challenges facing building-level solar (structural restrictions, shading, mixed-use buildings), and give the solutions. 
  • Compromises must be made by utilities AND solar developers & users; utilties should pay-out more for solar generation, while solar users & developers should pay their fair share in supporting grid modernization.

This event was a resounding success, and we are already looking forward to our next Policy Podium with Senator Benjamin Downing, one of the core legislators in creating a future for renewable energy in Massachusetts. 

Special thanks to Celis Brisbin who served as the clerk of the works for this event, which was actually on his birthday! Yay Celis!