COTE (Committee on the Environment)

About the Committee on the Environment

The Committee on the Environment was formed to promote the benefits of environmentally-conscious design and construction within the building professions and the community at large. We hold monthly meetings with the Maryland Green Building Network, and welcome your participation. We are involved in a number of projects, some in partnership with community organizations, to promote a healthier, more sustainable environment in the Baltimore region.

What is "green" architecture or sustainable design?
A few thoughts from the Committee on the Environment of AIA Baltimore

Defining the problem

Americans consume 30% of the world’s resources, yet we comprise only 5% of the world’s population.

A person in the U.S. causes 100 times more damage to the global environment than a person in an non-industrialized country.

Our society is so highly inefficient because we use a linear mode of thinking, which drives our design, manufacturing, distribution and use practices. When we make a product, only 7% of the resources involved actually becomes the product; the other 93% is treated as "waste."

Using the construction industry as an example, buildings consume at least 40% of the world’s energy. They thus account for about 1/3 of the emissions of heat-trapping carbon-dioxide from fossil-fuel burning, and 2/5 of the acid-rain-causing sulfur-dioxide and nitrous-oxides.

The good news is that climate-sensitive design using currently available technologies in the U.S. would cut energy use by 60% in commercial buildings.

Building for the Future: Incorporating Ecological Values into Architecture

Benefits of green design

Healthy, productive workforce
The largest employer expense is payroll, far greater than operating and maintaining the building. Natural light, a sense of connection to the outside world, and thermal comfort all contribute greatly to employee well being and reduce absenteeism.

Reduce energy costs, for long-term savings
Current, available technologies allow far greater energy efficiency than is required by codes, with little or no up-front increase in cost.

Reduce solid waste disposal costs
Recycling can be integrated within the building and training will encourage occupants to participate. Construction and demolition debris can be recycled at the jobsite, saving the contractor money at the dump.

Less resource-dependent
Using renewable energy sources, such as active solar or fuel cells may allow an export of excess energy back to the power grid. Rainwater can be stored and used for irrigation or even fire protection systems.

Educational
The building itself can serve as a living laboratory, setting a tangible example for students, faculty and the wider community to learn from.

Positive PR within the institution and in wider circles
Broadcast the message that the institution takes a long view, and is responsible to the community and to future generations.

Flexibility for future change
The idea of "sustainability" is that the building will continue to serve and be adaptable as needs change.

Did you know . . .

The Economist magazine cites environmental issues as one of the most important business issues for the first half of the new century, stating, "For far-sighted companies, the environment may turn out to be the biggest opportunity for enterprise and invention the industrial world has ever seen."

A survey by consulting form Arthur D. Little found that 83% of North American and European business leaders believe that they can derive real business value from implementing a sustainable development approach to strategy and operations.

American Demographics magazine reports that approximately 50% of American consumers look for environmental labeling and actually switch brands based on environmental friendliness.

The energy saved by recycling one aluminum can could power a television for three hours.

Decrease in cost of photovoltaic (solar electric) cells since the 1970s: 95%
Growth in sales of photovoltaic cells from 1996 to 1997: 43%

Worries about the effects of pesticide use on human health has propelled the organic industry into a surge of expansion. For the last six years, organic sales have increased by more than 20% per year, from a total of $2.8 billion in 1995.

"Sick Building Syndrome" is a major liability in U.S. office buildings. Health problems caused by poor indoor air quality cost 150 million workdays and about $15 billion in lost productivity each year in the U.S. Lawsuits over "sick building syndrome" are increasing each year. The EPA has ranked indoor air pollution as the 4th largest of 31 environmental concerns. Sick building syndrome is a problem in 30% of new buildings.

Companies spend an average of 70 times as much money (per square foot per year) on employee salaries as on energy. They spend about 6 times more on salaries as on rent. Productivity gains of 6% to 16%, including decreased absenteeism and improved quality of work, have been reported as resulting from energy-efficient design. These savings can mean higher lease rates and greater return on investment if tenants understand the benefits.