New Buildings Institute released the Existing Building Decarbonization Code

New Buildings Institute (NBI) has released the Existing Building Decarbonization Code. NBI bills the document as “a new way for jurisdictions to reduce carbon emissions and meet climate action plan goals and interconnected goals around public health and equity.”

New construction represents less than 2% of building activity in any given year, NBI says, “leaving a vast opportunity to update technologies in the current building stock. By requiring existing buildings to be more energy efficient, cities could cut about 30% of all urban emissions by 2050.”

NBI’s released the Building Decarbonization Code—the first off-the-shelf solution for jurisdictions to transform energy codes into decarbonization codes for new buildings—in February 2020. Expanding on that platform, the Existing Building Decarbonization Code adds provisions for existing buildings covering both residential and commercial buildings, including all-electric and mix-fuel energy use pathways.

The new code provisions have been crafted to match reasonable and effective decarbonization strategies with replacement events. The code outlines strategies to pair key opportunities to decarbonize—including change of occupancy, additions, and alterations—with additional efficiency measures.

The Existing Building Decarbonization Code also incorporates trigger events and solutions for the inclusion of grid integration measures including renewable energy production, electric vehicles, and battery storage.

Climate change is having a dramatic impact on urban design, in terms of planning, materials, occupant use, location, and the long-term effect of buildings on the environment. Joining BD+C's John Caulfield to discuss this topic are two experts from the Boston-based CBT Architects: Kishore Varanasi, a Principal and director of urban design; and Devanshi Purohit, an Associate Principal.

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