Remodel or Build New? The Debate Continues
Remodeling or building new - which is greener? This is a debate that has been raging on for years, and it seems that remodeling is starting to come out on top. In addition to using less newly harvested and manufactured resources, remodeling exisiting buildings is now proving to be an intelligent investment as well.In a recent feature article on GreenerBuildings.com, Tilde Herrera discusses the green makeover that an 80-year-old art deco office building in Seattle is getting, thanks to the Jonathan Rose Companies.
The trend toward retrocommissioning existing commercial structures using green building principles is quietly taking shape behind the louder activity of the new construction sector. More than 5,000 new buildings await LEED certification, compared to 480 existing buildings on the waiting list, according to the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). Only 7 percent of buildings that have earned LEED certification are existing buildings.
Using the existing building inventory goes to the heart of a core sustainability argument: it is often more wasteful to tear down and replace buildings, even if the replacement is green, than it is to improve what’s already there. “One of the most beneficial aspects is you’re using existing infrastructures and not adding to sprawl,” said David Lehrer, director of partner relations and communications at Center for the Built Environment (CBE) at the University of California, Berkeley.
Does this mean that we will be seeing a lot less new green construction? Not by a long shot, but it could mean big business for all variety of renovators and remodelers - this an unspoken area of sustainable building that deserves much more public attention and growth.
