isramart : Governors Endorse AIA’s Carbon-Neutral Buildings Goal

Isramart news:
The National Association of Governors this week pledged its support for carbon-neutral buildings by 2030.

The ambitious goal, which applies to new and renovated buildings, is being advocated by the American Institute of Architects and was previously endorsed by the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the National Association of Counties.
“The nation’s governors are committed to maximizing energy conservation and improved energy efficiency,” Washington Governor Chris Gregoire said in a statement. “We can reduce the environmental consequences of greenhouse gas emissions, reduce the operating costs of business and industries nationwide and create thousands of green-collar jobs to compete in a clean-energy economy.”

The NGA announced its support on Monday at its 2009 Annual Meeting in Biloxi, MS. The endorsement also “opens the door” for the AIA to lobby statehouses to adopt a new green construction code due out next year from the International Code Council, said Christine McEntee, CEO of AIA.

The U.S. Department of Energy last year introduced the Net-Zero Energy Commercial Building Initiative, a billion-dollar program that aims to produce widespread zero-energy commercial buildings by the year 2025. It has launched several public-private alliances with real estate groups this year in the program’s first phase.