Connor

Hall
4/30/15
Campbell

Big Buildings Costing Big Money

As technology progresses so do the things around us; cars are getting smarter,
computers have gotten a lot smaller, we even have holograms. However buildings and the
way that they are looked at and built have been the same up until very recently. The
standard wood frame with siding and insulation has been under criticism for the amount
of energy it wastes and the environmental impact that it has. From the harmful materials

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needed to construct one to the amount of waste that one produces from construction. For
example insulation, which irritates any one that breathes it or touches it, PVC has been
known to be harmful and contain toxins, and one that goes unlooked a lot is the mercury
used in our thermostats. With that said there has been a major turn around in the building
code and standards that many construction companies have began to use for building. For
starters they have begun implementing energy saving windows, doors and insulation
reducing the amount of energy consumption the single structure has. These new buildings
are beginning to take the place of old run down homes and wasted space. With all these
old run down homes being upgraded why cant we begin to do the same to the big
skyscrapers that we see in all major cities?

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Today we see buildings everywhere from out in the country to covering the land
in our big cities. These buildings dont seem to be doing much harm, but Bryn Davison
says they contribute to about half of the pollution today, (The Coolest Buildings Arent
Green). About 75 percent of that comes from the big buildings in cities and the old homes
that of which allow energy to be wasted in the heating and cooling of the structure with
thin windows, doors, and insulation. More factors include the way each building is
designed; materials used in the construction of each building and many more. The reason
that these buildings are allowed to have all of these code violations is because they have
been grandfathered in to the code or barely achieve the minimum standard. The question
now is how to come up with a solution that will address all of these issues without
creating more of a negative impact. Researchers today have begun to start to dive into
houses and look at all the materials and design strategies that have been excessively miss
used. The question now is how to come up with a solution that will address all of
these issues without creating more carbon.

Many options come to the table when talking about what to do with old buildings:
A complete overhaul of the building, which means renovating it from the ground up or
one could do a simple renovation and only replace the things that need to be changed the
most. Another option is to demolish the existing structure and build a new building that
would be far more eco-friendly than any normal renovation. Each of these options have
their own downfalls and complications, but there is always a better way of depending on
the specific situation. For example, the first certified passive house in New York City is a
row home that used to be a normal house that of which was old and full of environmental

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problems and complications. To be passive house certified ones house must meet special
criteria. The space heating demand cannot exceed 10W per square meter, the space
cooling is roughly the same as heating but also needs dehumidification, the primary
energy demand cannot exceed 120kWh annually for all domestic appliances, then the last
two are the airtightness of the house and the thermal comfort. Fabrica718, which is a
collaborative design firm based in Brooklyn NY, wanted to preserve its historical
integrity so they decided to renovate the old home. The Tight house is based on an
existing row house that is over a hundred years old and has been extensively retrofitted to
meet the Passive House standard. The current residents reside in an almost air tight space.
However, this wasn't always the case, and the original property required a significant
amount of work to be brought up to satisfactory levels to meet the standards. During the
extensive renovation input from consultants Studio Cicetti, Anastos Engineering, and
ZeroEnergy Design, helped in the addition and design of a new rear facade, an additional
third floor, a roof terrace, and an art studio. The house includes two solar thermal panels,
solar PV panels, all lighting being either LED or fluorescent, and natural light has been
harnessed where possible. Alongside all the advantages of a renovation are the
disadvantages and setbacks. StateFarms article What To Know Before You Renovate
That Fixer-Upper briefly touches on all of the advantages and set backs of renovating an
old house. While a lower sales price, potential for resale profit, and a sense of personal
satisfaction are certainly possible, there can also be a lot of unseen costs associated with
buying a home that needs repair, (Statefarm Employee).

Complete demolition of an old rundown building is on the other side of the

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spectrum from a renovation but in some cases they end up the same way. The Duke
Energy center in downtown Charlotte is a good example of demolition of the old and
building a much better building in its place. For this project, the developers tore down the
existing building and in its place they built a platinum level LEED certified building with
many new benefits to the surrounding areas. LEED, or Leadership in Energy &
Environmental Design, is a green building certification program that recognizes best-in-

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class building strategies and practices. To receive LEED certification, building projects
satisfy prerequisites and earn points achieve different levels of certification,(LEED)
Some of these include the rainwater catch system that provides water for the rooftop

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garden and the park across the street allowing for no water waste. Also, in the basement

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is a water purification system that purifies the contaminated ground water underneath so

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that it can be used in the building. This building was the fist LEED platinum level

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certified building in Charlotte and continues to do its part.

of water will contribute to the ever-growing problem of our polluted waterways.

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Moved up [1]: LEED, or Leadership in
Energy & Environmental Design, is a green
building certification program that recognizes
best-in-class building strategies and practices.
To receive LEED certification, building
projects satisfy prerequisites and earn points
achieve different levels of
certification,(LEED)

However, by adding a rooftop garden this all can change and begin to benefit the

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surrounding areas. Rooftop gardens are a great way to begin to brighten up a dull city

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with color and allow for a relief from the harsh and ever demanding city life. In Great

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Solutions: Green Buildings Robert Cassidy talks about the advantages of green rooftop in

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the city; sloped vegetated roof that will double as a campus lawn for students and the

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public. This project along with many others, are pioneering the green roof sensation

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happening in the Big Apple. Soon enough the green roof space in Manhattan will come

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With the sheer amount of hard surfaces in cities the rainwater that falls simply
runs along picking up toxins until it reaches its destination in a body of water. The drop

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close to the space of Central Park.

We ourselves are responsible for the world around us, and everyday we impact
that in a good or bad way without even knowing. From the moment we wake up and turn
on our light we begin to impact the environment around us, but if we do our part in
building green then we can start to improve our world. One could do a simple act of
recycling the can that was just finished instead of letting it go to a landfill, or you can go
out and start something bigger and become apart of the bigger picture. However, no
matter how we live our lives the things that matter most are the ones around us, so why
not start by improving where you live?

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