What’s your carbon footprint?

Carbon calculators have been out for a few years now but they are easier to use and more accurate than ever. Take a look over at Carbon Fund’s website for an accurate calculator for household, car, mass transit, flights and events. You no longer have to feel bad for not investing in a hybrid car when you can get that same “warm and fuzzy” feeling with carbon offsets.

My stats were:

• House:   5.33
• Car:        2.53
• Planes:   0.95
• Total:      8.81 tons/year

8.81 tons roughly equates to 17,600 pounds. According to the CarbonFund site, the average American produces 50,000 tons/year.

inici group project receives honors

The American Institute of Architects awarded the Providence North Portland Clinic and the OHSU Peter O. Kohler Pavilion for national health care design. An article in the DJC Oregon states that these medical centers offer better lifestyles for everyone who uses the building. Whether that be the staff who now have creature comforts to support their 12 hour shifts or the patients who will have better quality of life and shorter stays.

More on this award can be found on the DJC Oregon website.

Energy use at work and home

While some may not have the time or the resources to implement a recycling or purchasing plan at an organization, buying energy efficient office equipment the can be made easier thanks to EPEAT. EPEAT is a fairly easy to use website that can give you valuable and easy to find information about how efficient your electronic devices are. The site only computer related products currently but will be expanded to contain TV’s, servers, and other popular electronics.

New building efficiency rating system

The two biggest standards on energy efficiency ratings have been Energy Star and LEED. However, a new rating system developed by the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration, and Air Conditioning Engineers that could be the new standard. The ASHRAE rates buildings on letter grades concerning only energy efficiency. Possible grades range from an A+ (totally self-sustaining building) to a C (building that uses 30 percent less energy than one that meets the general code). Some building owners and designers are not excited about the new rating system as it could create more complications to an already sophisticated design area. However, by having more specific certifications that take the whole buildings life cycle into account could push us to reach the 2030 goal even quicker.

More about the ASHRAE can be found on their website and an article in the DJC Oregon

Adventist Medical Center new accreditation

Adventist Medical Center, an inici group client, announced that they have received the Cycle II Chest Pain Center Accreditation. AMC has been working hard and investing in the latest technologies to provide the highest quality of care to their patients. The AMC Heart Center is only one of two medical centers in all of Oregon to receive this accreditation from the Society of Chest Pain Centers.

More information about this accreditation can be found in this press release

How much can you sell your LEED building for?

Cascadia recently released an interesting study that deciphers the true value of a green building. More specifically, it raises topics whether the additional costs outweigh the environmental savings and how these energy saving features are evaluated in comparison to a standard building.
While its a fairly lengthy article, its worth the read.

Cascadia Report