Generally speaking building "green" is
the efficient use of our resources to create healthier homes,
protect the environment and provide long term cost savings.
What Makes a Home Green?
A green home is designed, built, renovated,
operated, or reused in an ecological and resource-efficient
manner. Green homes are designed to meet certain objectives
such as protecting occupant health; improving productivity;
using energy, water, and other resources more efficiently;
and reducing the overall impact to the environment.
What Are the Economic Benefits of Green
Homes?
A green home may cost more up front, but
save money long term through lower operating and utility
costs over the life of the home. To take advantage of this,
home builders need to incorporate the objectives at the start
of the design process to ensure maximum potential for savings.
Some benefits, such as improving occupant health, comfort,
productivity, reducing pollution and landfill waste are not
easily quantified. Consequently, they are not adequately
considered in cost analysis. For this reason, consider setting
aside a small portion of the building budget to cover differential
costs associated with less tangible green building benefits
or to cover the cost of researching and analyzing green building
options.
Even with a tight
budget, many green home measures can be incorporated with
minimal or zero increased up-front costs and they can yield
enormous savings (Environmental
Building News, 1999).
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