A new free online tool, developed by the Center for Neighborhood Technology for the US Green Building Council, adds the effect of transportation and indirect emissions to the sustainable building equation.
Julie Wernau talks to a number of professionals working in green building who've come to realize that missing the impact of commuting in your calculations is a big mistake:
"Experts say the ability to quantify the energy spent getting to and from a building could force businesses to reconsider what it means to be "green." Transportation emissions account for 29 percent of total U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the newly quantifiable data could spur development in urban areas served by public transportation over so-called greenfields."
The Transportation Energy Index online tool will be available in early 2011.
Thanks to Emily Robinson
Read the full story: New building tools detect varied shades of green
Opinion: Transportation Funding Priorities Are Outdated
Investing in technology and promoting innovation in the transportation sector can further the Biden administration's goals of reducing carbon emissions and improving public transit.
The Search for a New Green Building Standard
The need to slash emissions from buildings is increasingly urgent, and critics say LEED won't get us there.
Kerfluffle Over Green Building Rating Systems
The latest dust up over green building rating systems, especially their efficacy relative to each other, highlights the danger of mixing the ideals of environmentalism with the self-interest of running an environmentalist organization.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Amtrak, CN end decades-long dispute with eight-year agreement
The new operating agreement establishes an updated framework for the companies to work together, including processes to resolve disputes.
Northwest rail fans eager for Sept. 30 debut of Amtrak’s Airo fleet
Get ready for that new train smell and more seats. But they won’t go faster or run more frequently on the Cascades route in Washington and Oregon.
LAX SkyLink opening delayed again, contractor won’t commit to new deadline
The project was supposed to open its doors to the public in 2023.
Caltrain may slash over one-third of its stations
If Bay Area voters reject two transit tax measures, Caltrain, BART and AC Transit will see steep service cuts.
A 'dangerous' precedent: North Carolina successfully pressures communities into voting for toll roads
Two mayors resigned from the Charlotte Regional Transportation Planning Organization after it voted in favor of the toll roads.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
City of Thousand Oaks
City of Wisconsin Rapids
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello