Green building used to be a fringe activity in the Northwest.
Fifteen years ago a few diehards built houses with straw bales or experimented with solar power. But for the mainstream builder and homebuyer, the concept barely registered.
That’s not true anymore.
Green is seeping into every aspect of the local building industry. Chances are, if you plan to build, buy or improve your home in the next decade, you’ll encounter green building practices and products.
Right now, consumers already can.
Interested in buying a green home? The Northwest Multiple Listing Service recently added a feature that allows homebuyers to search for certified green homes. Want to use building materials that are healthier? The Environmental Home Center in Seattle sells products such as low-toxic paint and recycled fiber carpets.
“It’s going more and more mainstream,” said Pam Worner, owner of a Bothell consulting firm that promotes green building practices. “One of the real forward thinking builders involved in green building said to me, ‘In 10 years, this isn’t going to a way to build, it’s going to be the way to build.’”
Builders and developers, even larger companies, are taking interest.
Hundreds in the building industry are expected to attend a Built Green Conference at the Everett Events Center on Tuesday, the first such event held in Snohomish County.
Builders, developers, architects, engineers, real estate agents, government types and others will spend upward of a $150 each to attend sessions on topics such as green construction techniques and marketing green homes.
The term “green building” covers a lot of ground, including design, materials and building practices.
An architect might design a home that’s smaller and more energy efficient. A builder might choose to use paints and finishes that emit fewer toxic fumes, choose recycled materials or develop land in a way that minimizes erosion. Green building encompasses measures the homeowner will never see, such as workers recycling materials at the job site.
This isn’t just about being kinder to the earth. Green-built homes are healthier to live in, last longer and cost less to maintain, Worner said.
“Fifteen years ago, green building was something you did for the environment in the same way you might have been a vegetarian,” she said. “Now it’s seen as a way to produce houses that perform really well.”
In the same way someone might want to buy a sleek, stylish car with some umph under the hood, a homeowner might want a beautiful home that uses less power and water and lasts longer, Worner said.
Indeed, “high performance home” is one of the buzz phrases of the green building movement. The Built Green Conference even offers a seminar on “Building Tomorrow’s High Performance Home.”
Built Green, a nonprofit program associated with the Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish Counties, developed a rating system to measure greenness by examining factors such as water conservation, energy efficiency, indoor air quality and materials.
The greenest homes receive four- and five-star ratings and require an independent consultant to verify the project meets Green Built requirements.
A three-star rating still indicates meaningful, sound practices, said executive director Aaron Adelstein. The group certified more than 3,000 area homes last year, many at the three-star level.
What’s included in that rating could vary widely but it might include energy-efficient appliances and lighting, low-toxic paint and finishes, and low-impact development practices such as using drought-tolerant plants in the landscape, he said.
Consumers may think green measures are expensive, but a three-star home doesn’t cost more to build than a traditional home, Adelstein said. And energy-efficient measures save the homeowner money over the long term, he said.
The up front cost of a four-star home is between 2 percent and 7 percent more than a traditionally built home and a five-star home costs 5 percent to 15 percent more, he said.
“There’s a whole range of green options,” Worner said. “Some are expensive and take a serious commitment and some are easy and cost the same or even less than traditional options.”
The variety of new products and cutting-edge techniques allow people to choose the features that matter to them, she said. A family with an asthmatic child may focus on indoor air quality. Someone else may want to focus on energy efficiency or supporting local business.
Adelstein predicts every large-scale builder in the area will be participating in the Built Green program by 2010. The Built Green network already includes a list of members dozens of pages long, including private organizations and public ones, such the Snohomish County PUD.
Reporter Debra Smith: 425-339-3197 or dsmith@heraldnet.com.
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