With overwhelming support on Friday the 20th of November, the WA State Building Code Council voted to move a package of energy conservation code changes forward that will tighten up standards for new home construction beginning July 1, 2010. This was the deciding act of a body of individuals that had heard countless hours of testimony, received dozens of mailings and daily emails in favor and opposition of increased code stringency in the midst of our economic recession. When all was said and done, it was clear that the Council voted not only to promote green building practices but also to stand up to threats, insults, slander, libel and fear-mongering hurled at them to do so. So please excuse the mixed pop references in the title, but it accurately describes the events of the day.
The Council is a body of industry experts who are not for the most part political professionals, just well-meaning citizens who want to make a difference in their sphere of influence. It is a volunteer activity for most of the members that can demand part time job hours and unwavering dedication in exchange for little recognition and no money. The persons who are paid to be on the Council can participate and make motions, they simply can’t vote on them – those are the professional politicians. Of note in the package of adopted changes are:
• tighter automatic controls for lighting, heating, and air conditioning,
• accurate accounting of energy use in buildings through the addition of meters,
• much greater accountability in home building through testing, inspection and materials specification, and
• mandates for building practices that encourage new and renewable technologies.
If the package of roughly 90 amendments to the code continues on to implementation, WA will once again lead the nation in new green building practices. That is the good, green news. However, don’t think for an instance that the mud-slinging is over - it has only just begun. The lobbyists were up and out of the room as soon as the votes were done, plotting how to thwart this effort and redirect Washington’s new building pathway toward the brown fields of the evil empire of energy waste and technology stagnation.
It is time to involve the public at large, not just the ones who get paid to be involved. The citizens of WA need to speak up and let their legislators know how they feel about green building practices. More importantly, tell them that we can’t let the economic recession have a doubly negative effect on the present and future of our society. Assure them that we can still have principles and integrity with respect to our environment during the worst economic collapse in recent history. Wall Street sold us out for a short-term buck; let’s not sell out the environment for one.
There is one final hurdle in the 2010 legislative session – your legislators will have to vote on this package to move it forward. If you would like to comment on this, contact your legislator at http://www.leg.wa.gov/ , the Building Code Council at http://www.sbcc.wa.gov/ or the state energy office at http://www.energy.wsu.edu/ . It could be that the people of WA really do care about a greener future just as much as they care about the few dollars that they have left in their pockets.
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