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Earth Day Celebrations Cite Advancements in Green Building

The nation’s home builders celebrated Earth Day last week by commemorating 30 years of advances in resource-efficient, environmentally sensitive residential construction.

“Green building is arguably the most exciting and significant development in home building in the past three decades,” said NAHB President Bobby Rayburn. “Through the efforts of environmentally conscious builders, home buyers can enjoy the benefits of reduced home maintenance costs, improved environmental quality and increased home value.”

More than 32,000 green homes have been built since 1990. And houses built today are twice as energy-efficient as they were 30 years ago and demonstrate progress in a number of areas:

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• Between 1978 and 1999, use of low-E coated glass grew by almost 30% and use of insulated glass increased from 68% to nearly 87%.
• Insulation levels in walls and attics have increased significantly, making homes more resistant to energy loss, lowering energy bills, reducing pollution related to energy production and saving natural resources.
• The period has seen the advancement of water-saving appliances and plumbing fixtures that reduce residential water consumption and the amount of energy needed to heat water. Dishwashers manufactured in 1997 use 40% less energy than 1972 models. Toilets installed in 1999 use only 1.6 gallons of water per flush compared to four gallons per flush in the 1970s, and the amount of energy to run washing machines has declined by 45% since the 1970s.

“Specialized, niche home builders began constructing resource-efficient, environmentally sensitive homes in the early 1970s,” said Rayburn. “Today, green building is a quiet revolution that is vital to our nation’s environmental and economic interests.”

For more facts and figures about green building, click here to visit NAHB’s Web site and download a copy of “Building Greener, Building Better.”
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