San Mateo Green Building Law Starts January 1, 2010

http://www.mercurynews.com/peninsula/ci_13825982?nclick_check=1

Builders will be ringing in the new year with water and energy conservation.

Starting Jan. 1, San Mateo will require developers of most new homes and commercial buildings to use a minimum amount of environmentally friendly materials. The green building ordinance the San Mateo City Council adopted Monday had been a voluntary program for more than a year.
"With these green building standards, residents will enjoy lower energy bills and healthier homes," Mayor Brandt Grotte said in a statement.
Specifically, the law requires a minimum number of green "points" for all new single- and multifamily residential properties, as well as commercial, municipal and multiuse buildings. Small residential renovations and tenant improvement projects will be exempt, while larger construction will require more green aspects.
Builders will be able to pick which eco-friendly elements they want to use in their construction. Each product or design choice will earn them points depending on the environmental effect.
Examples of products that would get builders closer to certification include low-flow toilets, nontoxic paints, wood products that do not emit formaldehyde, insulation made of recycled denim, and high-efficiency showerheads.
Residential products must meet Berkeley-based Build it Green's rating system, while others will use the U.S. Green Building Council's LEED certification standards.
San Mateo resident Rafael Reyes, a directorof the national Sierra Club, called the guidelines the toughest in San Mateo County. He said it could help influence other cities such as Daly City, which is considering a similar measure, to follow suit.
When it comes to green building, the initial costs for the products are often higher than their less efficient counterparts. Reyes said that the rules, however, will help stimulate the local clean energy economy and provide more than just green living for residents and businesses.
"There is clear evidence that green building standards reduce the cost of ownership over the lifetime of a building," he said.
San Mateo County had previously adopted green building ordinances for its unincorporated areas, while Redwood City approved environmentally friendly construction codes a few weeks ago. Reyes said that more than 40 cities in California have green building standards.