Category: ZNE
Zero Net Energy and Zero Carbon
Top 10 states for LEED green building in 2020 show strong adoption by offices, schools and healthcare
The USGBC has released its annual list of the top 10 states for LEED green building with Massachusetts ranking first in the nation. LEED is the world’s most widely used green building program and was created by USGBC to set standards and define best practices for high-performing, healthy, green buildings. The top states in 2020 certified a remarkable 1,171 projects with more than 60% representing offices, education and healthcare facilities.
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Nationalarenan 3 – Scandinavia’s first ‘Plushus’ hotel
Scandinavia’s first zero-energy hotel, Nationalarenan 3 in Arenastaden, is now in the final stages of completion. The building produces as much energy as it consumes and has now achieved FEBY ‘Gold Plushus’ certification. FEBY’s purpose as an organization is to increase and develop energy-efficient construction.
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HGA-designed Westwood Hills Nature Center in St. Louis Park, Minn., on track to achieve Zero Energy Certification
Sitting on 160 acres of forest, marsh and restored prairie in the heart of St. Louis Park, Minnesota, is the new Westwood Hills Nature Center interpretive center. As a demonstration in support of their Green Building Policy and Climate Action Plan, the City of St. Louis Park, challenged HGA to create a zero energy building to serve as a teaching tool, demonstrating passive and active strategies for energy efficiency and stormwater management, in addition to showcasing interpretive exhibits highlighting Minnesota’s landscape and wildlife habitat. The project reinforces the city’s long legacy of environmental stewardship.
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Sustainable Energy Fund’s new net-zero energy office building designed by Ashley McGraw Architects
Working with the goal set by the Sustainable Energy Fund (SEF), a new net-zero energy office building was designed and built to demonstrate that a net-zero energy approach can be used for a leasable office building for a similar development cost to comparable office buildings. “This project provides a blueprint for achieving net-positive energy within the financial structure of a speculative building,” said Andrew Schuster, Ashley McGraw Principal and leader of the firm’s commercial architecture practice.
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AIA releases latest 2030 Commitment results
The American Institute of Architects (AIA) announced today that architects and engineers participating in the AIA’s 2030 Commitment are reporting the greatest reduction in predicted energy use (pEUI) in the program’s 10-year history. The report—2030 by the Numbers: The 2019 Summary of the AIA 2030 Commitment—amalgamates predicted energy use data in buildings from 311 companies participating in the 2030 Commitment and analyzes design phase data from more than 20,300 projects.
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