Advocates aiming to prompt Pennsylvania legislators to update the state’s building codes erected two icehouses on the steps of the state Capitol in Harrisburg to make a point about energy efficiency.
One 8-foot-by-8-foot icehouse was built to current code; the other was built to passive house energy efficiency standards. In about three weeks, the project’s designers expect that the half-ton of ice in the less efficient shed will have melted completely, while the block in the high-performance building will still be about half of its original size.
Pennsylvania has not updated its energy codes since 2009. Advocates also want state lawmakers to reform the process for adopting new codes.
The Senate and House passed bills this spring to revise the state’s building code adoption process. A 2011 law requires an advisory board to approve each code change with a two-thirds vote.
Related Stories
| Aug 8, 2013
Boston reaching for solutions to threat of rising sea levels on waterfront development
While Boston officials consider whether to enact new building codes to resist flooding stemming from climate change-induced rising sea levels, developers are already boosting resiliency on new projects.
| Aug 8, 2013
EPA’s National Stormwater Calculator aids developers
The Environmental Protection Agency has released an application called the National Stormwater Calculator that uses soil conditions and rainfall records to estimate annual rainfall and runoff for any location in the U.S.
| Aug 8, 2013
Bipartisan bill would strengthen model building codes to boost energy efficiency
The Energy Savings and Industrial Competitiveness Act, a bipartisan U.S. Senate bill, would strengthen model building codes to make new homes and commercial buildings more energy efficient.
| Aug 2, 2013
Design of world’s tallest wood skyscraper would be more sustainable than steel alternative
Architecture firm C. F. Møller has proposed building the tallest wooden building in the world in Stockholm, Sweden.
| Aug 2, 2013
Texas law expected to help reduce construction payroll fraud
Texas lawmakers want to get tough on construction companies that commit a certain form of payroll fraud, passing a new law recently signed by Gov. Rick Perry.
| Aug 2, 2013
Surveys show parking space requirements far in excess of what is necessary
Officials in the Northwest’s large metropolitan areas have sent survey takers out at night through apartment and condominium lots and garages, recording empty and full spaces, and comparing their tallies with the number of apartments.
| Aug 2, 2013
Netherlands Institute of Ecology built to zero waste principles
The Netherlands Institute of Ecology was designed and built to be the most sustainable building in Holland and incorporate the zero waste principles of Cradle-to-Cradle design.
| Aug 2, 2013
Threat of more powerful coastal storms could curtail development
Led by Stanford University’s Natural Capital Project, researchers mapped the intensity of hazards posed to communities living along America’s coastlines from rising seas and ferocious storms now and in the decades to come.
| Jul 26, 2013
AGC launches new coalition to help bring tax relief to construction sector
Associated General Contractor of America (AGC) has launched the Coalition for Fair Effective Tax Rates to bring tax relief to the construction sector.
| Jul 26, 2013
Legislation would revamp federal contracting policy impacting small design and construction firms
Legislation was introduced in the U.S. House of Representative this month to ban reverse auctions when an agency determines small businesses are qualified to bid on the solicitation.
