This Month
>JRGBC Monthly Meetings
>LEED-NC; LEED-CI; and LEED-EB Technical Review Workshop
>Funding Green Building:  The Online Seminar Series
>New IRS Guidance on Tax Breaks for Efficiancy in Commercial Buildings
>Green Roofs Design 101 Introductory Course
>Indoor Environmental Quality:  Problems, Research and Solutions
>Green Design Series Comes to PBS
>USGBC Updates
>An Inconvenient Truth - Coming to the Westhampton Theatre
>Save-the-Date:  Second Annual JRGBC Green Building Leadership Awards
>GRTC Summer Challenge
>AGC Environmental Agenda
>Proposed Standard 189
>2006 JRGBC Board

JRGBC Monthly Meetings
Thursday, June 15 , 2006
Integrated Design Process
BCWH Offices ~ 1840 West Broad Street
(click HERE for map and parking)
6-6:30pm ~ Social
6:30-7:30pm ~ Program
7:30-8pm ~ Networking

Barbra Batshalom, LEED AP, founder and Executive Director of The Green Roundtable, Inc. in Cambridge, MA, will be presenting the Integrated Design Process.  Excellence in sustainable design requires new ways of thinking about the process of design and derives as much from the process as the program. Known as the Integrated Design Process, it differs from traditional practice in several ways, but most significantly by involving the owner and the entire design team in discussions and decision making from the earliest stages of the project.  Barbra has provided the vision and strategic thinking to create an organization focused on market transformation and collaborates with cities, institutions and companies to transform their internal practices to improve performance, profitability and sustainability.




LEED-NC Technical Review Workshop
July 20, 2006
8:30am - 5:00pm
Damuth Trane Training Center
1100 Cavalier Boulevard
Chesapeake, Virginia 23323

Hosted by the James River Green Building Council
Sponsored by Damuth Trane and HSMM

Faculty:  Mike Barcik and Bryna Dunn

For more information, click HERE.
To register on-line, visit www.usgbc.org/workshops/register.

LEED-CI Technical Review Workshop
June 16, 2006
8:30am - 5:00pm
National Rural Electric Cooperative Association
4301 Wilson Boulevard
Room CC2
Arlington, Virginia 22203

Hosted by the National Capital Region Chapter

Faculty:  Scot Horst and Gunnar Hubbard

For more information, click HERE.
To register on-line, visit www.usgbc.org/workshops/register.

LEED-EB Technical Review Workshop
June 16, 2006
8:30am - 5:00pm
National Rural Electric Cooperative Association
4301 Wilson Boulevard
Room CC2
Arlington, Virginia 22203

Hosted by the National Capital Region Chapter

Faculty:  John Adams and Steve Piquet

For more information, click HERE.
To register on-line, visit www.usgbc.org/workshops/register.

Funding Green Buildings:
The Online Seminar Series
Program 1:  Federal (2005 Energy Bill) and State Tax Credits and Incentives for Commercial Green Buildings (For-profit and Non-profit Green Building Projects)
Program 2: Funding Green Buildings 101
Program 3: Funding Green Buildings 201
Program 4: Energy Performance Contracting and Service Agreements
Program 5: Funding Green Buildings 301

For more information on dates, times and how to register, please click Here.

New IRS Guidance on Tax Breaks for Efficiency in Commercial Buildings
Source: GreenBiz.com

WASHINGTON, June 6, 2006 - The Internal Revenue Service has posted new guidance on how commercial building owners or leaseholders can qualify for the tax deduction for making their building energy efficient. The notice establishes a process to certify the required energy savings in order to claim the deduction.

The commercial building deduction, which was enacted in the Energy Policy Act of 2005, allows taxpayers to deduct the cost of energy-efficient property installed in commercial buildings. The commercial building deduction provides a tax deduction of $1.80 per square foot of floor area for commercial buildings that use no more than half the energy of a building constructed according to current model building codes. A deduction of $0.60 per square foot is allowed for reducing lighting energy use; heating, cooling, and envelope energy use; or building envelope heating and cooling loads by amounts consistent with the overall 50% savings target. The IRS guidance clarifies procedures for demonstrating that the 50% savings target has been achieved, including procedures for obtaining required certifications from qualified experts.

The amount deductible may be as much as $1.80 per square foot of building floor area for buildings that achieve a 50% energy savings target. The notice provides that buildings below the 50% threshold may, nevertheless, qualify for a deduction of up to 60 cents per square foot of building floor area if they meet a 16% energy savings target.

Before claiming the deduction, the taxpayer must obtain a certification that the required energy savings will be achieved. The new guidance prescribes the content of that certification and the qualifications that must be met by the person providing the certification.

The Department of Energy has also announced it will create and maintain a public list of software that must be used to calculate energy savings for purposes of providing the certification. It also provides a process that software developers must use if they desire to have their software included on that list.

The IRS guidance is available for download online ( PDF ).

Green Roofs Design 101
Introductory Course
Friday, June 30, 2006
8:30am - 5:00pm
Academy of Environemental Development Conference Center
1825 Connecticut Avenue, NW
Washington, D.C.

For more information, click Here.
To register on-line, go to www.greenroofs.org.

Indoor Environmental Quality:  Problems, Research and Solutions
July 17-19, 2006
Durham, North Carolina

This international specialty conference, cosponsored by A&WMA and U.S. EPA's Office of Research and Development, will offer the most up-to-date information on indoor air quality. To learn more, download the Preliminary Program (PDF). The conference will feature:

• General sessions;
• Poster sessions;
• A professional development course;
• A tour of the U.S. EPA's “green campus" and research facilities; and
• An exhibition of related products and services. 

In addition, the conference will offer a welcome reception, and the site is conveniently located near great golf courses, restaurants, shopping, and other entertainment options.

For further information on the conference and exhibition, visit the Web site .  

Limited Number of Booths Still Available!

Fewer than 10 booths remain for this conference!  Don't miss out on the chance to get your company's indoor environmental products and services in front of potential new customers. For more information, download the Exhibitor Prospectus or call Una Kilberg at +412-232-3444 x3136, or e-mail ukilberg@awma.org . 

Green Design Series Coming to PBS
Design: e 2 (The Economies of Being Environmentally Conscious), narrated by Brad Pitt, explores the complex social, political, cultural, environmental and economic issues of sustainable architecture. Traversing the globe, the series chronicles important stories of green architecture as they exist in New York , Chicago , China and into the future. The series is divided into six topical episodes, each a half-hour in length, and airs on PBS in June 2006 (check local listings). Click Here for more details.

USGBC Updates
The Future of LEED
One of the most exciting initiatives currently underway at USGBC is the development of LEED Version 3.0, an advancement of the rating system that will include scientific and technical advancements like bioregionalism, weighting of credits, and life cycle analysis. Instead of treating LEED 3.0 as a separate "event," USGBC is taking advantage of this opportunity to create a comprehensive, continuous improvement plan for LEED. With Seattle-based Paladino & Company as the consultant, the aim is to develop a program of innovations that will improve the technical and scientific foundations of the rating system, decrease costs, and accelerate LEED's adoption by the marketplace.

To kick off this improvement process, we'll be holding a series of workshops throughout the summer and fall to engage leaders from throughout USGBC and the larger green building community. We're especially interested in the needs and ideas of our chapters, and will be reaching out to you as an important part of these workshops.

Tackling the Wood Issue
USGBC's Board of Directors announced on May 23 that it has directed the LEED Steering Committee to address two proposed changes to LEED's wood and bio-based materials credits recommended in a white paper prepared for and accepted by USGBC's Board. As with any change to the LEED rating system, the proposal will follow USGBC's consensus process including being posted for public comment and balloted by USGBC's full membership prior to implementation.  Click here for details.

New Paths to Accreditation
LEED Accredited Professionals now number more than  24,000—and 20 new people add the words "LEED AP" to their business  cards each day. First launched in 2001, the accreditation program distinguishes  professionals with the knowledge and skills needed to successfully steward a  green building project from design to certification, and provides a recognizable,  marketable credential to the market.

Recognizing that different types of building projects  require different skill sets, in fall 2006 USGBC is introducing new exam tracks geared  towards professionals who focus on green building operations and maintenance  (LEED for Existing Buildings) and green interiors design and fit-out projects (LEED for Commercial Interiors). USGBC will also be releasing an updated exam for LEED for New Construction (LEED-NC) Version 2.2.  Each of the exams will lead to earning the LEED Accredited Professional  credential. Current LEED APs won't be required to retake the exam after the new version is launched.

For more information visit www.usgbc.org or email exam@usgbc.org .

An Inconvenient Truth
Coming to the Regal Westhampton Theatre
5706 Grove Avenue, Richmond, VA 23226
(800) 326-3264
Friday, June 23, 2006

A brief description of the film:
Humanity is sitting on a ticking time bomb. If the vast majority of the world's scientists are right, we have just ten years to avert a major catastrophe that could send our entire planet into a tail-spin of epic destruction involving extreme weather, floods, droughts, epidemics and killer heat waves beyond anything we have ever experienced.

If that sounds like a recipe for serious gloom and doom -- think again. From director Davis Guggenheim comes the Sundance Film Festival hit, AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH, which offers a passionate and inspirational look at one man's fervent crusade to halt global warming's deadly progress in its tracks by exposing the myths and misconceptions that surround it. That man is former Vice President Al Gore, who, in the wake of defeat in the 2000 election, re-set the course of his life to focus on a last-ditch, all-out effort to help save the planet from irrevocable change.

With wit, smarts and hope, AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH ultimately brings home Gore's persuasive argument that we can no longer afford to view global warming as a political issue - rather, it is the biggest moral challenges facing our global civilization.

For more information about the film: http://www.climatecrisis.net

Second Annual JRGBC Green Leadership Awards Luncheon
Wednesday, November 29, 2006
University of Richmond ~ Jepson Alumni Center
10am-Noon ~ Trade Show Exhibits
Noon-2pm ~ Lunch, Program & Awards
2-3pm ~ Trade Show Exhibits
More Information to Follow ~ Mark Your Calendar

GRTC Summer Challenge
You have choices. You Decide.
Carpool, vanpool, ride the bus, telework, walk, or ride your bike. You have choices. You decide.

RideFinders, a Division of GRTC Transit System and the region's rideshare agency, is challenging Central Virginia citizens to take the RideFinders Summer Challenge . Participants pledge to do one or a combination of the following: Ride the bus, carpool, vanpool, ride your bike, telework, or walk at least two days a week for any two months between May and September, and submit a monthly commuter log .

The first 125 commuters to register and are not currently registered with RideFinders will receive a brand new iPod shuffle. Those eligible to receive an iPod shuffle will be notified, and will be able to pick up their iPod shuffle at the Clean Commute Day event.

Click here to register , call 643-RIDE, or visit the RideFinders Commuter Store at 1111 East Main Street in downtown Richmond

The deadline to register is Friday, June 30. No purchase necessary. Must be at least 18 years of age to participate.

AGC's Environmental Agenda Commits to Further Environmental Performance of Construction Industry
Washington, D.C. --The Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) announced that it has completed a comprehensive agenda for further improving the environmental performance of the construction industry, which "recognizes that the construction process affects the environment," and commits AGC "to helping construction contractors minimize and mitigate the environmental impacts of their . . . challenging activities."
For more information, visit www.agc.org/hottopics .

Proposed Standard 189
The USGBC; the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE); and the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America (IESNA) have agreed to co-sponsor the development of a new ASHRAE/USGBC/IESNA minimum standard for high performance green building - Proposed Standard 189, Standard for the Design of High-Performance Green Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings. 

Click HERE for the press release (pdf) and HERE for Frequently Asked Questions (pdf).

2006 JRGBC Board
Bryna Dunn, Chair, Moseley Architects
Patrick Farley, Vice-Chair, Watershed
Andrew McBride, Treasurer, University of Richmond
Don Guthrie, Secretary, McKinney & Company

Matte Anderson, Director, Trane
Karl Bren, Director, GreenVisions Consulting
Matt Carr, Director, American Hydrotech
Chris Earley, Director, Timmons Group
Scott Kyle, Director, BCWH
Sandra Leibowitz Earley, Director, Sustainable Design Consulting
Scott Wheeler, Director, BCWH

Chapter Events are On-line
Have you checked out the Calendar? Feel free to use it to keep up to date on what s coming up in the region related to green building. If you know of an event related to green building and environmental education that you think our membership would benefit from, please tell us about it via email.

Have You Joined the Local Chapter?
If your company is not a member of the USGBC yet, please convince them to join. You can Join locally as an individual through the JRGBC Website. There is a discount for National Members and for students.