From Guest Blogger Dixie Somers: Eco-Friendly Construction–How This Big Trend Is Making Big Waves in the Construction Industry
The “green” building movement has caused dramatic changes in the construction industry over the past few years. As consumers became more aware of the impact of traditional construction activities on the environment and the use of resources such as wood, water and energy, they have sparked a revolution in the industry. This trend is quickly gaining traction and making waves, and could be a huge indication of the future of the construction industry.
LEED Building Standards Dominate
The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design standards, often called LEED, began in the year 2000. The goal of the new standards was to drive innovation in the construction industry toward increasing environmental efficiency in a number of areas:
- Ensure that building materials do not impact on human health in a negative way
- Minimize carbon emissions into the environment and reduce overall environmental impact
- Improve efficiency of products used in construction
- Reduce energy consumption from shipping by use of local materials
The LEED standards are proven to be an effective way to increase eco-friendly building and retrofitting in communities and to improve building efficiency for owners. This method has become increasingly popular for companies who want to show that they are environmentally friendly, as well as institutions that want to employ cutting edge and eco-friendly building techniques.
Eco-Friendly Gains in Many Types of Projects
The market for energy-efficient, green construction is not confined to residential construction. Commercial and institutional building is seeing significant increase in green building projects. The highest demand for eco-friendly building techniques are in educational projects, healthcare projects, and office projects. The current popularity of this trend leads some to believe that these regulations will someday become norms in the construction world.
Top Ten States For LEED Compliant Construction in the U.S.
If you haven’t heard much about green construction methods or LEED compliance, it may be because your area hasn’t quite jumped on the bandwagon. However, a number of areas in the United States are leading the way in eco-friendly construction:
- California
- Virginia
- Massachusetts
- Maryland
- New York
- Illinois
- Colorado
- Hawaii
- Oregon
- Minnesota
As you can see, the implementation of green construction is widespread, and quickly gaining popularity with both residential and commercial projects.
Financial Incentives Boost Green Building
In many western countries, financial incentives provide another reason to become knowledgeable in LEED standards for building. State and local governments may provide significant tax breaks for construction, as well as rebates for inclusive of energy-efficient equipment in new construction. These incentives also affect the growing retrofit market for green technology, which will continue to grow as older buildings become involved in remodeling projects.
Worldwide Increase in Demand for Eco-Friendly Construction
The demand for green building construction techniques is not just focused on the United States and western countries, countries from the Middle East to the Far East are all looking for green building standards to solve a number of environmental issues that have recently come into play due to their growing economies.
The demand for eco-friendly building construction is expected to grow significantly in the coming years. Smart construction firms will prepare for the increase in business by utilizing not only today’s methods, but also innovative methods that are certain to be developed in the future. The information for this article was provided by the professionals at T. Luckey Sons’ Inc. who specialize in support restoration technologies and soil stabilization in Ohio.
