Green Buildings: Boost Business and Neighborhoods

 Seems the green building movement isn't just good for the planet, but for the pocketbook as well.

Developers and commercial building owners are increasingly using sustainable, environmentally friendly and energy efficient practices to lower costs, and the practice is spreading to include entire communities.

The U.S. Green Building Council just announced that the total footprint of commercial projects certified under its LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) green building program surpassed 2 billion square feet. An additional 7 billion square feet is currently in the pipeline across the globe, the council reports.

Roof gardens, systems that recycle a building's heat and water, solar panels and drought-resistant landscaping have all been popular upgrades to older properties and built into new ones.

The trend has boosted business for a myriad of professions and industries. Architects and engineers who have embraced the green building movement are busy designing cutting-edge systems that save water, energy and money. Companies that manufacture or install solar collectors and other forms of sustainable energy have also benefitted from the tilt towards green.

The U.S. Green Building Council predicted that green building will support or create nearly 8 million jobs between 2009-2013 and contribute $554 billion to the U.S. gross domestic product.

Another by-product of the greening effort has been its attraction for tenants. Now there is a higher demand for healthier working space, and a recruiting edge for companies headquartered in green buildings. Improved indoor environmental quality in LEED-certified buildings has contributed to reductions in absenteeism and work hours affected by asthma, respiratory allergies, depression, and stress and to self-reported improvements in productivity, according to a study in the American Journal for Public Health.

The green development movement has expanded beyond individual buildings and has spread to include whole communities, with the U.S. Green Building Council's newest designation, LEED for Neighborhood Development.

The program, funded by a $500,000 grant from the Bank of America Charitable Foundation, aims to reduce suburban sprawl, promote smart growth principles and sustainability, and offers assistance to developers of affordable housing that employ green practices.

(Excerpt of article by Dave Winzelberg of Long Island Business News. NOT AFFILIATED WITH LAMBOO)

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Recent trends show that government officials, city planners, architects and even consumers are becoming much more conscious of the environment and how rapid population growth combined with increased consumption is starting to take its toll. As finite building materials such as aluminum, steel and even slow growing timber resources become much more difficult to source and use on a large scale there will be opportunities for rapidly renewable materials to take their place. Bamboo with its extraordinary strength and performance attributes and its 6-8 year growth rate will be looked towards to carry much of the burden.

Lamboo Technologies through species selection, adhesive bonding, and lamination processes have been able to create the first structural grade bamboo material available to the world that is eligible for up to 4 LEED credits. In addition to LEED certification Lamboo has also orchestrated the inclusion of laminated veneer bamboo (LVB) into the 2012 Annual Book of ASTM Standards, one of the most recognizable and respected certification bodies in the world.