Green Building Guiding Principles
The Plastics Division of ACC endorses the practice of conserving resources and minimizing the environmental and health impacts of buildings.
- Environmental considerations and energy efficiency should become a part of building design and purchasing criteria, consistent with such traditional criteria as product safety, price, performance, and availability.
- Energy efficiency and environmental performance should be evaluated using a “systems” approach during the entire use-phase of a building.
- The process for establishing “sustainable” building/product criteria should include consensus-based decision-making, best available science, transparency, and openness to all relevant stakeholders.
Green Building Guiding Principles Resources
Plastics: Building Material of the 20th Century
Until 1900, writes Robert Bailey, building construction largely involved three basic available materials: wood, stone, and clay (earth). The 20th Century, however, saw the advent of more materials than all past centuries...
Download Resource
Analyzing the Cost of Obtaining LEED Certification
The LEED program (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) represents the efforts of a coalition including the US Green Building Council (GBC) to establish a nationwide standard for constructing so-called “green”...
Download Resource
Energy Efficiency Sweeping the Nation! Two More States Adopt More Efficient Building Energy Codes
Arkansas and Maryland have joined the growing number of states that are committing to a more efficient future. These states recently decided to create better, smarter, more energy efficient housing by adopting new building energy...
Read More
Understanding Insulation R-Values
Determining Insulation R-value Accuracy Every construction/design architect/engineer (A/E) knows a material’s R-value is an important factor when specifying insulation products, with many regulations requiring minimum values...
Read More
Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs): Improving Material Selection Options in the IgCC
The International Green Construction Code The International Green Construction Code (IgCC) is the first model green code to include sustainability measures for an entire construction project and its site. As an overlay code, it...
Read More
