For those of you who haven’t heard there is a new Green Building Code coming in January 2011. The State of California (at the direction of Gov. Schwarzenegger) has adopted a new mandatory Green Building Standards Code, named CALGREEN.
Essentially it appears to be a modified version of the current green building code but now applies to everything and sets more standards. These standards include things like mandatory inspection of energy systems, reduction of waste consumption, separate water meters for interior and exterior uses, and of course new inspections and reviews by government agencies.
One key thing to note from the press release is that its seems this code will apply to all occupancy types – residential, commercial, hospitals and schools. I am still searching for more information but wanted to get the word out. Below is a link to the press release and information.
http://gov.ca.gov/press-release/14186/
http://images.emaildirect.com/clients/govpressoffice847/GreenBuildingCodeOnepager.pdf
A quick summary:
Allows for performance and prescriptive approaches for compliance
Local agencies may adopt more restrictive requirements through the normal building ordinance process. The more restrictive elective requirements that may be adopted may be found in the appendices. Local jurisdictions may create and adopt their own requirements, as long as they are more restrictive than the State code.
3rd party certification of compliance is OPTIONAL, not mandatory
State agencies have adopted the standards. However, refer to the adoption matricies at the beginning of each chapter to confirm which requirements apply to your specific project
A tiered rating system is used (CALGREEN Tier I & Tier II). Do not confuse it with other rating systems by other agencies or organizations (ex: USGBC)
A recent letter from the AIACC explains some of the issues raised prior to adoption, and has a reasonable explanation of the new standards. See http://www.aiacc.org/site/docs/big0111.pdf