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The Masonry Society
Sustainability E-News
April 30, 2010 Volume 2, Number 8 SPONSORED EDITION
From the Editor Many work hard in the masonry industry to promote the sustainable benefits of masonry construction. Oftentimes their work goes unnoticed, but this edition of Sustainability E-News sheds some light on their efforts. Below you will find several links to articles written by members of The Masonry Society’s Sustainability Committee. As I have said before, active participation in the development of green building standards is vital to having the benefits of masonry recognized. After years of frustration experienced with the LEED® process, the masonry industry has been successful in participating in the development of the Green Globes standard, the National Green Building Standard, and the International Green Construction code. This has resulted not only in provisions within these documents, but now also in changes to LEED®, as the USGBC adopts what has become accepted in other arenas. Read more about the Addenda to LEED® below. And as always, remember to submit your comments and participate! The International Green Construction Code (IGCC) public comment period deadline is May 14, 2010.
Christine “Tina” Subasic, PE, LEED AP
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ARTICLES The links below include articles by TMS members Shahnaz Jaffari and Bob Thomas, and a blog on the proliferation of green codes. ~Tina
Why Green Masonry Matters This article by Shahnaz Jaffari, Rocky Mountain Masonry Institute, appeared in the May 2009 edition of Masonry magazine.
The Sustainability of Block This article on masonry and sustainable design by Robert Thomas, National Concrete Masonry Association, appeared in the December 2009 edition of Masonry magazine. (Note: Masonry Magazine recently experienced difficulty with their website. If you have trouble accessing these links, please try again soon.)
Will Green Building Codes Leave You Seeing Red? This is an interesting blog on the proliferation of green codes.
Jaffari Recognized for Work on Sustainability TMS Member Shahnaz Jaffari was recently honored with a 2010 Sustainability Champion Award by a consortium of Colorado organizations for her efforts in sustainable building design. To read more, click here.
LEED® NEWS USGBC has finally incorporated specific language recognizing masonry flooring products as being VOC-free in recent addenda to LEED. Now we just need to get the same provision included for walls. ~Tina
LEED 2009 Addenda Adds Masonry Products In recently released addenda to LEED 2009, Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) credit 4.3 for flooring now specifically notes that “mineral-based finish flooring products such as tile, masonry, terrazzo, and cut stone without integral organic-based coatings and sealants….qualify for credit without any IAQ testing requirements.” See page 3 of LEED 2009 for New Construction Addenda. Similar provisions are found in the addenda for LEED for Schools and the other LEED rating systems. For more information on LEED 2009 Addenda click here.
LEED Regional Materials Credit to Disappear? Other LEED news, Material & Resources Technical Advisory Group has been reviewing proposed changes for the next version of LEED. Recent minutes indicated support for plans to eliminate the current Regional Materials credit (MR Credit 5). Contact USGBC for a copy of the February 26, 2010 MR TAG meeting minutes. (Warning: USGBC uses the term “meeting minutes” loosely and provides scant information of the details of what was discussed.)
LEED 2009 for Neighborhood Development Has Launched
Registration for LEED for Neighborhood Development is now
officially open. Project teams are now able
to register their projects in
LEED Online and download forms for the
Smart Location & Linkage (SLL) prerequisite review.
At this time, projects will not be able to submit for
full certification; full functionality is anticipated for
release in late 2010. For additional
details, please visit the
GBCI website.
IGCC The public comment period for the International Green Construction Code is now open. Make a difference. Submit your comments! ~Tina
As previously announced in this newsletter, the IGCC Public Comment Period closes May 14, 2010. Submit your comments now!
IGCC Annouces Public Comment Hearings and Registration Public Comment Hearings on the IGCC Public Version 1.0 comprise the next essential step in the Code Council’s code development process. These hearings will be held August 14 – 22, 2010 at the Westin O’Hare in Rosemont, IL. For advanced registration to attend the Public Comment hearings, please visit the IGCC registration website. Comments received will serve as the agenda for the Hearings and will be posted on the Code Council web on July 2, 2010. For additional information please visit Public Comment Hearings page.
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