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Initiative on Model Green Home Building Guidelines Launched at Builders' Show

Green building guidelines that will provide a nationally recognized baseline for determining minimum thresholds for resource-efficient, cost-effective home building will be developed by NAHB and the NAHB Research Center, it was announced on Jan. 21 during the International Builders’ Show in Las Vegas.

“The Model Green Home Building Guidelines will take ‘green’ to the mainstream,” said Ray Tonjes, NAHB Green Building Subcommittee chair and a home builder from Austin, TX.

“We will ensure that all home builders, not just a few niche builders, better understand green building techniques and technologies,” Tonjes said. “The home building community around the country can use them for their own specific, regionally distinct green home building efforts.”

The guidelines will provide criteria for land development, site planning, resource efficiency, water conservation, indoor air quality, energy efficiency, operations maintenance and home owner education.

NAHB and the NAHB Research Center will provide technical expertise in the guideline development process and serve as a forum for builders to exchange green building ideas, initiatives and opportunities for potential collaboration.

“Our intent with this initiative is to collect, assess and disseminate what constitutes the best of the best in residential green building today,” said Michael Luzier, president of the NAHB Research Center. “Members of the stakeholders group will represent all aspects of home building, designing and developing, and will provide an essential base of expertise for this project’s development.”

Responding to growing demand for more cost-effective, resource-efficient housing,“home builders began using environmentally responsible and energy-efficient construction methods and materials, now referred to as ‘green building,’ more than 30 years ago,” Tonjes said. “Now, through this effort, new homes today are twice as energy-efficient. NAHB members and all home builders will benefit significantly because all builders will have the necessary tools to build greener."

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