Solar Energy, Formaldehyde, LEED

This past week I've been spending most of my time working at my Non-profit, the Office for Resource Efficiency, or ORE. My main projects right not are doing the solar design and energy efficiency consulting for Crested Butte Mountain Resort's affordable housing project at Prospect, and working on the town codes for the Town of Crested Butte. For the codes, we are trying to allow super efficient woodstoves back in town, as the resource is sustainable and local. The problem is that in the 90's, woodstoves left a brown haze over town on inversion days, so they were basically banned, and switched over to elsewhere polluting devices like electric and gas. With the advent of uber efficient stoves like masonary stoves, there is no reason not to have our cake and eat it to, but there is lots of beaurocracy and education involved to make it happen. We are also trying to work on the outdoor heating problem - proposals presented include banning it, taxing it, or requiring the use of alternative energy (wind, solar, heat pump) to heat driveways, roofs, and sidewalks. The most likely scenario is to adopt a Renewable Energy Mitagation program or REMP, like Aspen has. This program would enable people to use alternative energy or pay a fee that would be used to implement alternative energy on other buildings like a public pool, town hall or affordable housing. The goal is basically to offset the carbon created by the outdoor heating. Hopefully high energy prices will also curb people's appetite for heating the outdoors, as you can only imagine how much three huge boilers heating a driveway in -30F temperatures would cost! The next hurdle is to tackle green and energy efficient building in CB. I helped write the original green points program in 1997, but it needs some updating and also a big push to educate consumers and builders of the toxic materials we build with. Some big problems we would like to tackle are formaldehyde, increased levels of insulation and air sealing, indoor air quality, and moisture and mold problems. Formaldehyde, the binder in plywood, OSB, and MDF particleboards is a known carcinogen and has been banned in Europe for over 20 years. Yet it remains the primary building material for houses to this day. It is also the culprit of Athsma, lower immune systems in especially children, and more. Not to mention the health effects for those cutting the plywood everyday. The other green initiative we wish to pass is requiring all buildings over 15,000 square feet be LEED certified (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design). This would mainly affect large public buildings such as the proposed ice rink and arts center. The biggest advantage to the town and the tax paying public is that not only would these buildings be good for their lungs and the environment, but also will reduce energy bills by as much as 50%. The North Boulder Rec Center is realizing a savings of $56,000 per year with their LEED Silver buidling over the planned traditional construction. Wish us luck. Next meeting with the town is on Wednesday.