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<br />by Phif �ischer, Director of Marketing Communications, Th� Egan Company
<br />reen is big! And I'rn not talking
<br />about the Packer faithfi�l to our
<br />east ar genera] Green Bay hys-
<br />terics. No, today green is big everywhere,
<br />and getting more so every day, especially
<br />in the construction and building manage-
<br />rnent arenas. Green is becoming the new
<br />Gold Standard.
<br />To paraphrase 3im Bochat of the National
<br />Environmental BalancingBoard, "ifevery
<br />building in America improved its e-fFiciency
<br />by 10%, we wouldn't ha�e lo import a sin-
<br />gie barrel of oil." Wow! Of course it's noi
<br />quite that simple when buildings are old,
<br />impravements are costly, and opinions and
<br />ways oidoing business are deeply rooted.
<br />Enter "the Green Movement." lt's smart.
<br />It's responsible. It's do-able. It's every-
<br />wher�. It includes reshaping everything
<br />on the horizon as it relates to commercial
<br />praperty: energy efficient buildi�ig designs,
<br />construction, operation, maintenance,
<br />recycling and removal. Mast importantly,
<br />it includes reshaping the opinions, beliefs,
<br />attitudes and actions af people inside
<br />those huildings.
<br />According to published figures, buildings
<br />consurne 70% of the electricity produced
<br />in the U.S., generate 6S% of the waste in
<br />land�lis, emit 48%of the green house
<br />gasses, use 1 Z% of the potable water
<br />a�ailable, and account far 39% of our tota]
<br />energy use. Obviausly, we have something
<br />to wark with here.
<br />For architects, designers, contractors;
<br />owners, property rnanagers and residents
<br />oibuildings, there is a responsibility to
<br />learn ta live in a way that is both resource-
<br />ful and respectful ta ihe environment.
<br />At the center of al] this is the United
<br />States Green Bui€ding Counci] (USG�C)
<br />and the Leadership in Energy & Environ-
<br />menta] �esign (LEED) Program. Basicaily,
<br />through the LEEI� Frogram, buildings are
<br />ceitified and peopie are accredited as being
<br />goad players, citizens or stewards of the
<br />planet, aur environment, and its inhabit-
<br />ants as a whole. The goal of all af this is
<br />to promote buildings that are environmen-
<br />tally responsible, profitable and healthy
<br />places to [ive and work.
<br />In order to achieve accreditation s€atus,
<br />countless hours of study, testing and
<br />commitment are required. Still, this is a
<br />goa] many companies feel is im�ortant, in
<br />terms of skill development, market under-
<br />standing, and grow#h potential.
<br />Since the program began in 2061, more than
<br />40,000 people have become LEED Accred-
<br />ited Professionals nationwide. What €his
<br />means, is [hat those who are accredited
<br />have "demonstraied a thorough under-
<br />standing of green building practices and
<br />principEes, and the LEED Rating 5ystem."
<br />Besides the knowledge, qualsfications and
<br />opportunities it provides, it is just plain
<br />the rigl�t and sensible thing to c�o —
<br />being good stewards nf the land and our
<br />resources.
<br />5o is this new movement a trend or is it
<br />here to stay? According to Nationa[
<br />pub[ic Radio, "an estimated �] 0 billion oi
<br />`green buildings' were in the pracess �f
<br />construction during 2007 in the United
<br />States." That number is expected to jump
<br />ciramatically this year. In publications from
<br />The New }'ork 7'imes to The Wall Street
<br />Jow��aal to Twin Cities Business, Fortune,
<br />and even Vanrry FAir, the rriedia have run
<br />countless articles and stories document-
<br />ing the impact. And according to one
<br />report, The Discovery Channel plans to
<br />start a 24-hour channel this year facusing
<br />on eco-frie�idly living, ln addition, the
<br />channel plans to ha]d a"Planet Green
<br />Innovation Conference," wiih business
<br />ieaders, scientists and conservation
<br />experts coming together ta discuss and
<br />promote the subjeci. Sounds to me like
<br />this movement has legs.
<br />On the financial iront, venture capitalists
<br />are seeing green by "pumping more than
<br />GOING GREEN conrinued from page 3
<br />$1 billion inta the fast-grawing clean
<br />technology industry in 2006;" according
<br />to Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal.
<br />And locally, even the rnayors of Minne-
<br />apolis and St, Pau] are jumping on the
<br />bandwagon by exploring ways to turn the
<br />Twin Cities into a green building products
<br />manufacturing Mecca, in order to capital-
<br />ize on construction Erends while improving
<br />our environment. Combine this with the
<br />thousands to millions of dollars that Xcel
<br />Energy is spending through its
<br />"ConservationWise irom �ce] Energy"
<br />commercial real estate effciency program,
<br />and yov see that "Going Green" is deii-
<br />nitely the way ta go.
<br />So far the net results of th.e green move-
<br />ment, while sii]] a little hard to quantify,
<br />Going Gr•een continued on page 5
<br />show trends moving in the rigM direction.
<br />For owners and managers, green bui3d-
<br />ings result in an $% to 9% reductian in
<br />operating costs, and a 2% to 16% increase
<br />in worker productivity resulCing from a
<br />heahhier environment,
<br />Whether it's wind turbines on the prairie,
<br />solar callectors on the roof or environ-
<br />mentally friend�y cleaning supplies in
<br />the janitor closet, green thinking is a
<br />management philosophy worth noting.
<br />One that can lead to a more profitable
<br />and healthy ]andscape. �
<br />Phil Frscher
<br />Dif•ector Markelirtg Communications
<br />Egan Compnny
<br />763-732-7441
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