Built Green
Why chose the BUILT GREEN™ Program?
We care about our children’s future
We depend on the services nature provides for us. Clean air, water and energy sources. Yet human activities are degrading these natural resources. We are heading in the wrong direction if we want to leave something for future generations. The BUILT GREEN™ program promotes practical yet effective environmental conservation solutions which we can integrate into our everyday lives.
It’s the right thing to do
The residential construction industry uses vast quantities of this nation’s resources and has an obligation to be mindful of its impact by constructing homes by using fewer resources. By selecting a “green” future we will choose to build homes that have a reduced impact on the environment and influence the direction of developing technologies and material.
On a per capita basis, Canada is the largest consumer of energy in the world
and the second largest producer of greenhouse gases. We use as much energy as
the entire continent of Africa and contribute 2% to overall global emissions.
Depletion of non renewable resources and increasing energy costs
Next to the mortgage, home energy bills are the largest ongoing expense associated with home ownership. A BUILT GREEN™ home will provide energy savings for the life of the home, creating an economic incentive for the buyer to purchase a certified Built Green™ home. Choosing a “green” future also means that there will be resources left for future generations.
We all want a “healthier home”
Average Canadians spend 90% of their time indoors and that “new home smell” is actually the odor of chemicals that are not healthy. The BUILT GREEN™ Program provides the “green” tools to build homes that speak to this concern, giving buyers a choice in the market place and builders a way to distinguish their product.
The rate of asthma among Canadian children has increased four-fold
over the last 20 years and about 12% of all Canadian children now have asthma.
Asthma accounts for about one-quarter of all school absences.
The BUILT GREEN™ program is flexible and affordable
The BUILT GREEN™ Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum achievement levels present an opportunity for a builder to offer the consumer flexibility in a variety of price ranges. The homebuyer will know that their BUILT GREEN™ home represents their commitment to the environment, future generations and improving the way we live. The BUILT GREEN™ program allows everyone to choose a “green” future. The range of choices allows the consumer to choose based on a combination of financial, health and environmental concerns.
The BUILT GREEN™ program promotes value and competitive advantage through an improved quality product (design and construction) with environmental options and improved resource efficiency. Many builders already embrace and practice these initiatives. The BUILT GREEN™ program gives formal recognition and provides verifiable benchmarks the consumer can identify.
BuiltGreen™ Checklist
The BuiltGreen™ checklist is a list of “green” criteria. It includes an energy efficiency requirement, and a menu of options in categories, addressing a range of “green” items from which the builder can select to meet the Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum achievement levels.
Certification Levels
BuiltGreen recognizes its homes based on the criteria in the checklist and on an energy audit from an independent consulting company. For a house to score a Platinum rating, the Builder has to accumulate enough points on the checklist to fall into the Platinum category and receive an Energuide score of 82 or higher on the independent energy audit.
Energuide for New Houses and Renovation Rating 2011
Bronze 72pts
Silver 75pts
Gold 77pts
Platinum 82pts
Checklist Categories:
I. Operational Systems
II. Building Materials
III. Exterior and Interior Finished
IV. Indoor Air Quality
V. Ventilation
VI. Waste Management
VII. Water Conservation
VIII. Business Practices
