Going Green: Tips, Tools and Examples from the Field

A successful green project means different things to different stakeholders. From a sustainable design standpoint, the goal of building green is to decrease or eliminate a building's environmental footprint. From an economic perspective, a successful green building should produce incremental returns through cash flows and disposition. The main objective of this research project was to understand when, if and how various green strategies could be used to improve the sustainability of a building while still meeting financial hurdles for return on investment. Based on results from a technical survey, economically feasible practices were identified for:

• Vehicular pavement
• Pedestrian pavement
• Irrigation
• Windows
• Roof
• HVAC
• Interior Lighting