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EPA Green Buildings
Designing, constructing, operating, and maintaining buildings involves large amounts of energy, water, and other resources and creates significant amounts of waste. The building process also impacts the environment and ecosystem surrounding the building site. Even after buildings are constructed, occupants and building managers face a host of challenges as they try to maintain a healthy, efficient, and productive work environment. EPA addresses these challenges by promoting energy and resource efficiency, waste reduction and pollution prevention practices, indoor air quality standards, and other environmental initiatives for both new construction and existing buildings.Typical green buildings often incorporate the following features:
- Careful site selection to minimize impacts on the surrounding environment and increase alternative transportation options.
- Energy conservation to ensure efficient use of natural resources and reduced utility bills.
- Water conservation to ensure maximum efficiency and reduced utility bills.
- Responsible stormwater management to limit disruption of natural watershed functions and reduce the environmental impacts of stormwater runoff.
- Waste reduction, recycling, and use of "green" building materials.
- Improved indoor air quality through the use of low volatile organic compound products and careful ventilation practices during construction and renovation.
- Reduced urban heat island effect to avoid altering the surrounding air temperatures relative to nearby rural and natural areas.
In the United States, buildings account for:
- 36 percent of total energy use and 65 percent of electricity consumption
- 30 percent of greenhouse gas emissions
- 30 percent of raw materials use
- 30 percent of waste output (136 million tons annually)
- 12 percent of potable water consumption
Source: U.S. Green Building Council
EPA's Green Buildings
EPA leases most of its major office buildings. The Agency works to improve the environmental performance of its leased buildings—often build-to-suit projects—through green lease specifications and riders. These amendments to traditional lease language emphasize energy, water, and resource conservation.
To further carry out its green building mission, beginning in FY 2006, EPA required all newly initiated major building construction projects to acheive the LEED® (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design 
) Gold standard. EPA requires other sustainable features for its major new building acquisitions, including ENERGY STAR® building certification; 30 percent better energy performance than
ASHRAE 90.1-2004 requirements; specific water conservation measures; resource conservation, recycling, and use of sustainable building materials; and measures to protect indoor air quality. EPA also uses its Green Buildings Vision and Policy Statement as a guide for a holistic, systems approach to sustainable building design, renovation, and maintenance.
The following EPA facilities are actively pursuing or demonstrating green building principles:
- Boston, MA - Region 1 Office (Renovating office space, LEED® 2.0 Silver or better anticipated)
- Chelmsford, MA - New England Regional Laboratory (LEED® 1.0 Gold certified)
- Cincinnati, OH - Laboratory Annex 2 (New building, LEED® 2.0 Gold certification anticipated)
- Denver, CO - Region 8 Office (LEED® 2.0 Gold certified)
- Kansas City, KS - Science & Technology Center (LEED® 2.0 Gold certified)
- Kansas City, KS - Region 7 Office
- Philadelphia, PA - Region 3 Office
- Research Triangle Park, North Carolina
- Main Building
- National Computer Center (LEED® Silver certified)
- Childcare Facility (LEED® Silver certification anticipated)
- Seattle, WA - Region 10 Office
- EPA National Headquarters
- Northern Virginia (LEED®-NC 2.1 Gold certified)
- Washington, DC - Federal Triangle
- Northern Virginia (LEED®-NC 2.1 Gold certified)