Interest grows in codifying green standard for homes

To be certified under National Green Building Standards, buildings are rated by an independent third party in each of the following areas:

• Lot and site development: Placement of building and landscaping, type of landscaping (native, hardy, no maintenance).

• Resource efficiency: Using local, recycled and repurposed materials; minimizing construction waste.

• Energy efficiency: Includes exterior, insulation, lighting, mechanical and electrical systems, heating and ventilation.

• Water efficiency: Use of rainwater, water-saving fixtures, smart sprinkler systems.

• Indoor environmental quality: Environmentally friendly paint, carpet, flooring (doesn’t emit toxic fumes).

• Operation, maintenance, and building owner education: Knowing how to maintain the building and run the equipment.

The points are tallied for the building’s rating of bronze, silver, gold or emerald (from lowest to highest). Points must be scored in each area for a NGBS rating, not just one or two. The Home Innovation Research Labs out of Maryland oversees and regulates the overall process.

Imagine owning a house with a sprinkler system that monitors the weather and carpets made from recycled milk jugs.

Imagine having rooftop solar panels generate so much power that the utility company sends you a check.

It’s green living, and that’s life for Salmon Creek-area residents Mike and Robin Mooney. In 2013, they bought their four-bedroom, 2½-bath home with an “emerald” rating, the highest possible score under the National Green Building Standard.

“It’s a well-built house that’s comfortable,” said Mike Mooney, 49, an IT engineer. “It’s probably the best home I’ve ever owned as far as performance. … It’s about being sustainable.”

“I just like knowing we’re doing something for the environment,” said Robin Mooney, 48, a registered nurse whose severe allergies are alleviated by the home’s medical-grade air exchange system.

Meanwhile, Vancouver city officials want to help homeowners and builders who want to voluntarily adhere to the National Green Building Standard within the city. The City Council on Monday will hear a proposal to add the standards to city code, providing guidelines for the design, construction and operation of green buildings and a uniform way to measure their performance. A public hearing and council vote on the proposed ordinance will follow April 27.

Sree Thirunagari, Vancouver’s building official, said the city wants to be socially responsible and reflect community values of sustainable development and efficient use of resources. The city wants to help people who want to build, remodel or live in an eco-friendly house through the design process, he said. The city also will record the home’s National Green Building Standard certification in its permit files so the information will be available to future property buyers.

‘A holistic approach’

“I think it’s amazing that the city of Vancouver is moving forward with it,” said Troy Johns, owner of home builder Urban NW Homes and chairman of National Green Building Standard’s newly formed national board of directors. “It sends a message to the builders that the city stands behind it, and they’re comfortable with it, and that endorses it for the builder.”

Under the National Green Building Standard, a code for residential buildings written by the International Code Council and the National Home Builders Association, homes must accumulate a certain number of points in several areas — not just energy efficiency — to be certified green by an independent third party. Homes are rated on a color-coded scale: bronze, silver, gold, and emerald.

“You’re looking for a holistic approach to green building,” Johns said. “That’s what makes this standard different from any other standard, and that’s why it’s been adopted internationally.”

The Building Industry Association of Clark County support the city’s adoption of the standards, which Clark County set in place in 2010 on a voluntary basis. According to the association, homes built to National Green Building Standard standards are better for the community because they lower the impact of the home on the environment, save water and energy, reduce construction waste and support local business (there’s an incentive to source building materials within 500 miles of the project site).

“It is a market-based solution that will enhance housing choice and quality in Vancouver without any new public burden,” Jack Harroun, BIA president, stated in a March 5 letter to the City Council.

Building expertise

The Mooneys’ house, in the 15000 block of Northwest 25th Avenue, was the first green home Johns ever built. Johns, 42, became interested in green homes because family members suffer from respiratory issues.

It’s taken him three years to figure out how to bring down the price of a National Green Building Standard house to less than $200,000, said Johns, who has built homes in the $1 million-plus range.

“We’re taking it to a whole ‘nother level now,” said Johns, who has finished building 25 National Green Building Standard-certified homes and will complete 75 more by the end of the year.

According to Johns, green buildings command roughly a 10 percent higher price on the East Coast than the West Coast, where the market has been slow to catch up.

That’s partly because appraisers and real estate agents need special education to understand what they’re dealing with, he said, noting that Clark County has only three green-certified appraisers.

The houses are extremely durable, built to last 100 to 150 years, according to Johns. Among their features are cork floors, quartz counter tops (no radon, Johns explained), marmoleum flooring, heat recovery ventilators, recirculating gas hot water heaters, exterior drain planes, rusted metal siding and more.

These attributes come at a price. When Mike Mooney looked into building his own green home, he discovered it would cost almost 30 percent more than a conventional house, said Mooney, who paid $390,000 for his 2,300-square-foot house, according to county tax records.

But the utility bill savings add up. Over the course of a year, the Mooneys sold $1,500 worth of power back to Clark County Public Utilities, according to their records.

The Mooneys, who moved here from Madison, Wis., said part of what attracted them to green homes was the ability to supply their own energy,

“Coming from an area where heating bills were $400 a month, you kind of pay attention to that,” Mike Mooney said.

His only complaint is the house is built so tightly (and has a ductless ventilation system) that they have trouble receiving a wireless signal upstairs or outside. But that also means the house is a consistent temperature throughout, with no cold spots.

“I just like knowing we’re doing something for the environment,” Robin Mooney said. “It’s worth it.”