Cities Practice Being Green
Across the United States, many cities are implementing successful green building initiatives.
The city of Austin, Texas, has supported green practices in residential building for about 10 years and now encourages the same for municipal and commercial development. The city of Portland, Oregon requires the recycling of construction waste and promotes other efforts toward a sustainable future. Metro-Dade County, Florida, has partnered with Habitat for Humanity and others to plan and develop energy-efficient and environmentally sound low-cost housing.
The City of Houston also is encouraging green building now more than ever, and green office buildings are beginning to appear on the cityscape.
Cities have the authority and resources to make green building a priority. They can include green building measures in policies and purchasing procedures. City leaders can require that government building projects incorporate renewable energy and energy efficient systems, indoor-air-quality guidelines, and water-efficiency measures. They can organize a multidisciplinary team within the community to develop a green building program and incentives.
Green building is not just a trend, it is a new way of looking at designing
and building that can lead to a more sustainable future and more pleasant
places to live, work and play.