The 2004 Regional Sustainable Development Forum was held at MIT on October 29, 2004. A growing number of organizations and municipalities across Massachusetts are undertaking innovative planning and development projects that embody sustainable development principles and, in the process, are fundamentally changing the way we develop our communities -- physically, economically, and socially. This year's 5th annual forum entitled, Visions of Sustainability, brought together over 250 professionals from the New England region to examine the progress as well as the work left to be done on the sustainable development front. The keynote address was given by Douglas Foy, the Secretary of the Office for Commonwealth Development. Secretary Foy's address, where he outlined what Massachusetts is doing to promote sustainable development best practice, is available here. For proceedings from the forum, please click here.

The Sixth Annual Regional Sustainable Development Forum will be held at MIT on October 21st. To learn more and to register, please click here.

According to the U. S. Green Building Council (www.USGBC.org) that sponsors LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), the foremost green building rating system in the U.S., green buildings are those that are "environmentally responsible, profitable, and healthy places to live and work". Further, green design is that which helps to "significantly reduce or eliminate the negative impact of buildings on the environment and occupants" in the areas of sustainable site planning; safeguarding water and water efficiency; energy and renewable energy; conservation of materials and resources; and, indoor environmental air quality.

The benefits of green design and building are many and noteworthy and include environmental, economic, health, productivity, safety, and community benefits.

The USGBC's goals are to:

" Integrate building industry sectors;
" Lead market transformation;
" Educate owners and practitioners

USGBC has taken the lead in creating a consensus-based set of criteria and a rating system for green buildings called the LEED Green Building Rating System. Over the past few years, LEED's focus has been on newly constructed commercial buildings. This year, LEED is expected to put forward a much-needed rating system for residential buildings and is working on one for greening schools as well. Future LEED additions are expected to include rehab and renovation construction as well.

The USGBC estimates that current commercial and residential building impacts create or consume:

" 65.2% of total U.S. energy consumption
" 30% of total U.S. greenhouse gas emissions
" 136 million tons of construction and demolition waste in the U.S. (approximately 2.8 lbs/person/day)
" 12% of potable water in the U.S.
" 40% (3 billion tons annually) of raw materials us globally

This, of course, does not include other types of buildings such as schools, prisons, stadiums, and the like. Given the staggering environmental impact that current commercial and residential building is having right now, "going green" makes sense from every angle.

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Please check back here for a listing of exciting sustainable development and green design events taking place around the country!

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Did you know?

The following figures are available from the US Green Building Council (www.usgbc.org) and are reprinted from Environmental Building News, Volume 10, Number 5 (May 2001). Subscription information and additional green building resources are available through Building Green (http://www.buildinggreen.com/)

-Percentage of U.S. CO2 emissions associated with residential- and commercial-sector energy consumption, 1999: 36% (including CO2 emissions from cement production)

-Percentage of total U.S. greenhouse gas emissions associated with residential- and commercial-sector energy consumption, 1999: 30% (including building-related share of methane emissions)
Source: “Emissions of Greenhouse Gases in the United States 1999,” Energy Information Administration, U.S. Department of Energy, October 2000

- Number of U.S. commercial buildings constructed annually: 170,000

- Number of U.S. commercial buildings demolished annually: 44,000
Source: “A Characterization of Building-Related Construction and Demolition Debris in the United States,” U.S. EPA, 1998

- Number of new homes built annually (1999): 1.6 million (1.3 million of which were single-family detached)
Source: National Association of Home Builders

-Number of housing units demolished annually: 245,000
Source: “A Characterization of Building-Related Construction and Demolition Debris in the United States,” U.S. EPA, 1998

-Total annual U.S. C&D waste generation: 136 million tons (not including any waste associated with infrastructure, such as roads, bridges, etc.)
Portion from demolition and renovation: 92%
Portion recovered (recycled or reused): 20 to 30%, mostly concrete, asphalt, metals, and some wood
Source: “A Characterization of Building-Related Construction and Demolition Debris in the United States,” U.S. EPA, 1998

-Average house size (1999): 2,250 sq. ft., up from 1,100 sq. ft. in the 1940s and 1950s
Increase in average house size, 1950 to 1999: 105%
Square area of living space per occupant (1997): 800 sq. ft., up from 290 sq. ft.in 1950
Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census

QUOTES:

"The ultimate test of man's conscience may be his willingness to sacrifice something today for future generations whose words of thanks will not be heard." Gaylord Nelson, former governor of Wisconsin, founder of Earth Day

"Earth provides enough to satisfy every man's need, but not every man's greed." Mohandas K Gandhi quoted in EF Schumacher, Small is Beautiful.

"Recycling is a good thing to do. It makes people feel good to do it. The thing I want to emphasize is the vast difference between recycling for the purpose of feeling good and recycling for the purpose of solving the trash problem." Barry Commoner, Orion Nature Quarterly, 1990

"The future belongs to those who understand that doing more with less is compassionate, prosperous, and enduring, and thus more intelligent, even competitive." Paul Hawken

"When you do the common things in life in an uncommon way, you will command the attention of the world." George Washington Carver

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To view the last issue of Field Notes on waste management planning, please click HERE.