(SI02) Why You Should Be Jazzed About Mandatory Green Building Code

In a world where environmental attitudes tend towards binaries (you’re an environmentalist or you’re not), mandatory green building codes occupy an interesting space.

Take CalGreen for example— the first-in-the-nation statewide building code. Conventional wisdom among green building professionals is that mandatory codes set the bar too low compared to ambitious voluntary certification programs. On the other hand, people who do not identify as environmentalists might be very grudging participants in a green project. In the middle of this dichotomy, mandatory green building code has been a little under-appreciated, and in the process, the industry is overlooking a big opportunity for positive impact.

While mandatory codes may be less stringent than voluntary standards, there are some key reasons why their potential for positive impact should not be discounted. At scale, they hold some advantages over voluntary certification, and ultimately, strengthening one will strengthen the other.

- Three things that make mandatory code easier to implement
1) Code will likely be prescriptive rather than performance based. This saves time, avoids confusion, and can drive the market much faster.
2) Code is based on a pre-determined set of requirements and a pass/fail approach rather than a variable number of points (although there may be voluntary tiers). Teams eliminate all the hours spent deciding what to pursue, because the decision is already made.
3) Mandatory requirements reduce friction among decision-makers: the fact that it’s mandatory takes a moralistic (and often political) argument off the table.

- Three concrete strategies to leverage mandatory code for maximum environmental impact.
1) Broadly: wherever a requirement has been set, it can be raised. While the same is certainly true for voluntary standards, with a state-wide requirement, a smaller turn of the dial could have a bigger impact in GHG emissions, water use, etc.
2) We now know that around 50% of a building’s energy use is embodied (rather than operational). The embodied energy of buildings receives less attention than operational energy, but as the climate crisis intensifies, the time is now: whereas operation energy is expended over 30 or 50 years (the life of the building), embodied emissions all happen now. Green building codes are the place to address embodied energy of buildings. We also know that 3 materials— concrete, steel, and aluminum— account for 85% of buildings’ embodied energy. Imagine if the prescriptive requirements on building materials could informed smarter choices related to just those materials.
3) Leverage aggregated data: capture insights into current conditions, compare across jurisdictions, and evaluate effectiveness of programs.

A world of strengthened mandatory measures in no way reduces the need for robust voluntary rating systems. Voluntary standards, and related organizations, will always lead research, innovation, adoption, and practice. Ideally, mandatory green codes will keep pulling in lessons and strategies from the leading edge.