BOSTON (November 18, 2008)– LEED 2009, the long-awaited update to the internationally recognized LEED green building certification program, has passed member ballot, and will be introduced in 2009 as the next major evolution of the existing LEED rating systems for commercial buildings. It includes a series of major technical advancements focused on improving energy efficiency, reducing carbon emissions, and addressing other environmental and human health outcomes.

The first section of solar panels has been installed atop the Atlantic City Convention Center. The power system is to be the largest single-roof photovoltaic system in the U.S., with some 13,321 panels capable of generating 2.36 megawatts. The panels will cover 290,000 square feet, or two-thirds of the venue's roof.

Zero carbon building is going to be the standard in the UK as of 2016. By that time all new buildings will have to be carbon neutral, the government decided awhile back. In the meantime, there’s a lot of activity going on in the housing sector to prepare for this rather close deadline.

Last week, ENN was invited to join roughly 360 members, celebrities, dignitaries and special guests dressed in black tie gathered at the American Museum of Natural History among the dinosaur bones and under the globe of the planetarium, to honor NY Mayor Bloomberg, Council Speaker Christine Quinn, the President of Related Companies and the President and CEO of NBC for their efforts to make NYC green.

Go Green Expo, a business-to-business and consumer showcase for green living products and services, has announced a four-city tour beginning in January 2009 that includes Los Angeles, Philadelphia, New York City and Atlanta. The event debuted in New York this year during Earth Week.

“It’s not how efficient the building is but how much energy it really uses that matters.” That’s the gist of many comments in a thread on BuildingGreen’s blog (and, simultaneously, on several email discussion groups) about how to measure the actual energy performance of LEED buildings.

Last week, the Sustainable Endowments Institute released its 2009 Green Report Card. As GreenBiz reports, it compiles the green and not-so-green aspects of 300 colleges and universities through the United States and Canada. The Report Card was designed to identify those schools that are leading by example through their commitment to sustainability initiatives on campus.

Builders have known for decades that white roofs reflect the sun's rays and lower the cost of air conditioning. But now scientists say they have quantified a new benefit: slowing global warming.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Home buyers increasingly want architects to give them green features like extra insulation instead of extra room to host in-laws, an architects' trade group said.

The sewer systems we use today are entirely ineffectual and unnecessary. The primary flaw in our design is that we use freshwater to dispose of feces. This is perhaps the most ineffectual thing to do with human manure — it pollutes fresh water, and it requires municipalities to maintain extremely costly sewage treatment infrastructures. Even after treatment, sewage can still wreck havoc on rivers and groundwater.

Hardcore greenhouse gas (GHG) geeks will recall that cement is a huge source of greenhouse gas emissions, with approximately 1 ton of CO2 equivalent emitted into the atmosphere for every 1 ton of cement produced. Damn. Forget your carbon guilt from flying, people! Cement is responsible for 5% of the Earth’s CO2 emissions, and it’s the third largest source of greenhouse gas pollution in the US according to the EPA.

A trade group that promotes green building design is urging state legislatures to form caucuses to support environmentally sustainable schools. The U.S. Green Building Council, the Washington, D.C.-based group that promulgates the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating tool, is spearheading the "50 for 50" effort to lower school energy and maintenance costs and bolster student learning and health.

The world's leading certification system for sustainable architecture is set to undergo its most sweeping changes in 2009. The proposed revisions encourage designs that would reduce a building's impact on global climate change.

U.N. climate talks in Ghana are making progress on ways to help developing nations slow deforestation and have eased disputes over use of greenhouse gas targets for industrial sectors, delegates said on Monday.

Developers recently broke ground on an Earth-friendly, $600 million mixed-use skyscraper in Lower Manhattan that will include condominiums, retail, a boutique hotel and meeting space. Located at 50 West Street, the 580,000-square-foot tower is expected to achieve LEED Gold certification when completed in 2011.

Several major U.S. utility companies may accelerate plans to integrate solar power into their electricity mix following a fact-finding trip to Germany. Twenty-three electric utilities were represented on the trip to Germany, the world's leading producer and installer of photovoltaic (PV) solar cells. All of them may now advance solar projects in the United States, a trip leader said, further expanding a growing solar market.

Despite the narrowing gap in cost between green building and traditional "to-code" building, most builders and home buyers still perceive the green option to be significantly more expensive. The reality is that due to increased builder education and an influx of affordable green building products, a building can be built green within the same budget as a non-green building. According to Clark Wilson, CEO of Austin based Green Builders, Inc., "It’s our job as builders to find those green products that don’t drive up the price of the home."

The California Building Standards Commission announced on Friday the unanimous adoption of a statewide “green” building code, the first in the nation. The new standards will call for a 20% improvement in water use efficiency for both residential and commercial plumbing fixtures as well as target a 50% increase in conservation for water used in landscaping. The new code will also require all new construction to reduce energy consumption by 15%.

I recently noted that Hawaii has enacted a law that requires all new homes to install solar water heaters. Eventually, Hawaii may have as many water heaters as Israel, where 90% of homes have solar water heaters installed. When viewed from above, the Jerusalem often glitters with the shine of the thousands of solar heaters that adorn rooftops.