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NAHB Green Building Program offers scoring tool
1867 Confederation building LEED-certified model
PrecisionCraft launches green-building awards program
New green standard for log homes
The NAHB's National Green Building Program is now in full swing with a written National Green Building Standard and a new website that features a scoring tool for builders to determine the green-ness of their homes.
The National Green Building Program is an education, verification and certification program that will help builders create homes that can be certified green by the NAHB.
The program features a dynamic online scoring tool at www.nahbgreen.org, which shows the builder how to accrue points in seven categories: Water, energy and resource efficiency; lot and site development; indoor environmental quality; global impact and homeowner education. Four levels of certification can be achieved: Emerald, Gold, Silver and Bronze.
"This launch has a direct affect on the log-home industry thanks to the hard work of Emad Faddoul of Gastineau Log Homes and Rob Pickett of Rob Pickett & Associates for ensuring a direct recognition of log homes within the standard," said Jeremy Bertrand, executive director of the Building Systems Councils and the Log Homes Council. "For the first time in a green building standard, log homes will have the opportunity to receive green credit for simply being a log home.
"This and many other inherently green qualities of log construction will provide log-home companies with a leg up on the competition as consumers look more and more toward homes that are green."
The National Green Building Standard is expected to be approved by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and published by NAHB and the International Code Council (ICC) early this spring.
Don Carr, Green Building Certification Program Director for the NAHB Research Center, will be speaking at the LHC's President's Tour, set for April 6-8 in Appleton, Wis.
1867 building LEED-certified model
1867 Confederation Log Homes has an April log raising and hopes for an October completion of a model home that will be LEED certified.
Bob Tribus, 1867 Confederation's Northeastern U.S. distributor, has been working with New Jersey-based environmental and resource consultants EAM Associates to manage and certify the process. The consultants help ensure that the entire building process and finished product meet the maximum possible requirements of sustainability under the requirements of LEED certification.
Based in the Pocono region in Milford, Pa., an hour from New York City, the model home will be in the Milford Sales Court. It will also be featured in the July 2008 issue of Country's Best Log Homes.
"Each 1867 Confederation Log Home is precisely engineered and pre-built in-shop, assembled and inspected to maintain precise consistency of product," said Napier Simpson, 1867 Confederation's East USA director of business development. "Bob Tribus is taking it a step further by providing homebuilders with pertinent information on sustainable building, not only our processes as manufacturer and designer, but including land-use conservation, resource conservation (Energy Star) and optimization of water use, solar energy, ground source heating and the steps involved to attain certification."
1867 Confederation Log Homes is based in Bobcaygeon, Ontario, with dealers throughout North America and Europe.
Companies invited to Green Log Awards
PrecisionCraft and Mountain Architects, two names that the companies say have "stood for innovation and excellence in environmentally sound home building and green living," have launched the Green Log Awards, Inc., a non-profit organization.
In accordance with a distinguished expert advisory panel from ENS, the Environment News Service, Green Log Awards has commenced the inaugural 2008 Green Log Home & Lifestyle Awards.
"Today's headlines, news feeds, and Web sites—like the Environment News Service news feed at www.ens-newwire.com—are replete with stark reminders of the challenges that confront our planet in the years ahead," said PrecisionCraft's Jennifer Heatherington, who is running the Green Log Awards program. "The 2008 Green Log Home & Lifestyle Awards were founded in part to put some good news back in the headlines by recognizing outstanding companies and/or websites that have demonstrated a commitment to doing exactly what the awards' tagline proclaims: 'Building a greener tomorrow one home at a time.' "
Through nationwide news outlets, from print to video, Green Log Awards will be bringing national attention to distinguished nominees and sponsors. It is the mission of Green Log Awards to educate, motivate and inspire Americans to "Go for the Green" by looking to products and websites like Green Log Awards nominees and sponsors. Public voting will determine finalists for the awards and ENS will select the Winner's Circle from the finalists.
For more information, visit www.GreenLogAwards.com or contact Hetherington at (208) 493-2650 or jhetherington@greenlogawards.com.
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