Green building; environmentally friendly construction is gaining momentum

New Mexico Business Journal, August-Sept, 1999 by Gail Sutton

There's a new era dawning in the nation s home building industry and New Mexico is playing a prominent role. It's called "green building" and it s beginning to revolutionize home building. Green building is affecting the entire building process from putting the house on the property to selecting building supplies and landscaping. Home builders are working toward reducing their impact on the environment and creating a longer-lasting, energy-efficient home.

"Green Building goes beyond the sticks and bricks of the building," said Scott Bealhen, president of the Home Builders Association of Central New Mexico and owner of Bealhen Construction. "It is more than just water conservation or the reduction of the use of energy, although those are very important. It is a new consciousness in the home-building business." Developers and builders across the United States are working together to plan the homes and the sites that the homes will occupy in a much more environmentally sensitive way, he said.

The Green Builder Program, created nearly two years ago by the HBA, is attracting attention locally and nationally. It has been selected by the National Association of Home Builders as a template for other associations around the country. With the knowledge that 300,000 homes a year are torn down and put in landfills across the country, the HBA also wrote the first Green program in the country for remodeling homes.

The association's Green Builder program is one of six pilot projects across the country that are partnering with Fannie Mae to build environmentally friendly, energy-efficient homes. Banks are now supporting the concept by loaning more money for environmentally sensitive homes. Jim Folkman, executive vice president of the HBA, said his association believes that "within the next 10 years all homes will be built with environmentally sensitive methods and materials."

Folkman said there are four components to the program:

* Water conservation, which is a high priority in New Mexico. This includes using low-flow toilets, showers and faucets; dishwashers with a water-saving cycle; and a hot water recirculation pump and timer.

* Energy conservation, which includes windows with a specific levels of insulation called R-values; heating, cooling, insulation and appliances that conserve energy; ceiling fans; and ceiling insulation with specific R-values.

* Use of recycled and improved materials, such as new products made from recycled materials) from decking to carpeting to cabinets. Using steel framing instead of wood is a priority. To frame a 2,000 sq. ft. home, it takes six recycled cars or 40 old-growth trees. All steel products today contain 60 percent recycled content.

* Recycling construction waste, which is 40 percent of the waste going into landfills. Sixty percent of the construction waste is recyclable. All homes built under this program must recycle any leftover on-site framing lumber.

So far the program has registered more than 600 homes in the Albuquerque area constructed by 34 builders. Another 34 suppliers have embraced the program. Builders have to be certified and licensed under the program.

To make the program available to the widest range of home buyers, the association created the 4 Star Program, which has four categories. The number of stars a home is awarded increases as the criteria becomes more rigorous.

"The one- to four-star categories makes it work at all price ranges. We have to be able to market it and sell to the public. People really want to lessen the damage to the environmentally sensitive land today," said Bealhen.

The one-star category focuses on making the home affordable. Eighty percent of the homes registered in the program are in the one-star category. This is a unique aspect of New Mexico's program.

Some housing developments in the Albuquerque area are being built entirely under the Green program. One is the Artistic Homes Desert Homes project on the southwest mesa, which numbers more than 200 homes. Another is the Tres Placitas subdivision adjacent to Cottonwood Mall on the west side. The 251 homes were built by Jerry Wade in conjunction with the association's not-for-profit affordable housing initiative, which has built over 420 homes in the Albuquerque area.

A one-star development that is receiving attention in Washington, D.C., is on the Santa Ana Pueblo. Vince DiGregory, second vice president of the HBA and president of Amity Construction, spoke with President Clinton about the Santa Ana Pueblo project during a recent visit to South Dakota. DiGregory is building one-star Green homes at Santa Ana Pueblo that are providing jobs for the pueblo's youth. Eight prototype houses are being finished, with 70 houses slated to be built.

There is some cost difference for the home buyer of a Green home versus a regular home. Building a one-star Green home costs $300 to $1,500 more. This doesn't take into consideration future savings in energy bills. For a three- or four-star Green home, a buyer can spend an additional $8,000 to $12,000.