The current building stock—more than 300 billion square feet—is the single largest contributor to global warming in the country.
Natural Resources Defense Council has greened their four offices saving over 350,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity each year and annual pollution reductions of 450,000 pounds of carbon dioxide. The LEED Platinum Santa Monica Office showcases water and energy conservation and environmentally sound materials. Courtesy of: Tim Street-Porter.
Buildings are part of the solution: Through its inventory of greenhouse gas emissions in 2006, the City of New York realized how significantly it could reduce greenhouse gas emissions by focusing on improving buildings.
- 62 percent of the city’s government emissions were from municipal buildings
- 79 percent of the emissions citywide were related to operation of buildings.
