USGBC Asks For More Funding in Light of Report’s Results
-- Consulting-Specifying Engineer, 4/12/2007 8:44:00 AM
The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) Research Committee called for a higher level of funding for research to advance building design, technology and operations that minimize environmental and human health impacts, in light of the findings published in its recent report, “Green Building Research Funding: An Assessment of Current Activity in the United States”.
The report says that research for high-performance green building practices and technologies accounts for 0.2% of all federally funded research—an average of $193 million per year (2002-05) and only 0.02% of all estimated values of annual U.S. building construction and renovation.
The report also says that building operation consumes 40% of energy and 71% of the electricity in the United States, and accounts for 38% of the country’s carbon dioxide emissions, which directly affects global climate changes.
“Funding levels are not proportionate with the level of impact that the built environment has on our nation’s economy, environment and quality of life,” said Gail Brager, chairman of USGBC’s Research Committee. “Elevated research efforts will enable a major shift in design, construction, renovation and operation practices necessary to facilitate large scale improvements to health and environmental conditions.”
USGBC recommends that the National Science Foundation and the National Institute of Health direct at least 2% of their research budgets toward issues related to green building research, development and technology transfer in the near term.
