Thanks to new building construction spawning across the U.S., a promising upward trend in ultra-low energy (ULE) buildings is taking form.
Also spreading to existing building retrofits, a growing number of ULE building retrofit projects exist in more than 20 states.
The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) point out in a blog post that today’s buildings consume roughly 40% of all energy used in the United States. To create a future of sustainability, setting goals to meet the ULE standard of reducing commercial building energy intensity by 60-70% is the baseline.
ACEEE published Energy Codes for Ultra-Low-Energy Buildings: A Critical Pathway to Zero Net Energy Buildings December 17, 2014, which established qualifications for a Zero Net Energy (ZNE) building.
“By addressing these areas, we can establish the foundation for ZNE by 2030 while providing energy savings and related benefits in the interim,” says the ACEEE report.
Public K-12 educational facilities in the state of California are living examples of ZNE savings, where schools from San Diego to Sacramento implemented modern certifications such as those from the International Living Future Institute to save energy and reduce their bottom line.
