Inside the New Williamsburg Passive House by Loadingdock5

The three-story Brooklyn residence was built in compliance with the German Passiv Haus standards, which emphasizes the heavy insulation of walls and openings, and the precise balancing of interior and exterior temperatures. The building technique cuts down not only on energy consumption and cost, but also on initial construction costs usually allocated to expansive traditional heating and ventilation systems. During most of the year with extreme weather (summer and winter, specifically), the house maintains a very tight seal and all ventilation is done through the Passive House ventilation duct system. But on beautiful spring days when the temperature is mild allow for fresh air and ample ventilation, the house remains open to the outdoor weather in temperate parts of the year.

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Source & Photo: Inhabitat

EPA Launches Online Database of Greenhouse Gas Data

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is, for the first time, making comprehensive greenhouse gas (GHG) data reported from large facilities and suppliers accessible to the public online. EPA's GHG Reporting Program, launched Jan. 11, includes 2010 data from from facilities in nine industry groups that directly emit large quantities of GHGs, as well as suppliers of certain fossil fuels.The data can be sorted by facility, location, industrial sector, and the type of GHG emitted.

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Source: epa.gov

U.S. Exceeds Energy Conservation Expectations

Americans conserved about 112 million MWh of electricity in 2010, 21% more than in the previous year, according to a report released this week. The numbers for 2011 are likely to be even better, says the report by the Institute for Electric Efficiency, a nonprofit organization that promotes the benefits of electricity. Utility energy-efficiency programs as well as more efficient appliances and gadgets are cited as the primary drivers of the savings. Efficiency is considered a good investment because it's cheaper to save energy than to make energy. The report pegs the cost of saving energy at 3.5 to 4.3 cents/kWh.

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Click here to read the report, "Summary of Ratepayer-Funded Electric Efficiency Impacts, Budgets, and Expenditures."

Source: ASHRAE

One World Trade Center to be Tall, Sustainable

When it is completed in 2013, New York's One World Trade Center will be the tallest building in the U.S., and one of the most sustainable buildings of its size in the world. The building is designed to LEED Gold specifications. It will derive about 35% of its power from renewable energy sources. Around 400 fuel cell stacks have been installed. It is one of the largest fuel cell installations in the world. Waste heat from the system will be recycled and used for hot water and heating in the podium of the building and the entrances. Air conditioning will be supplied, in part, by a 12,500-ton (44 000 kW) central chiller plant that will use water from the Hudson River.

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Source: ThomasNet
Photo source: PANYNJ