R.I. Adopts Green Building Standard for Public Facilities

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Rhode Island was recently recognized by officials from the International Code Council as the first in the nation to adopt the International Green Construction Code as an option for designing and building major public facilities.

 

The IGCC is a set of building codes created by the ICC, a membership organization that establishes building standards for residential and commercial buildings. 

 

Last year, Rhode Island legislators signed into law the Green Buildings Act, mandating that any public project owned, leased, or controlled by the state, including new construction larger than 5,000 square feet and renovations involving more than 10,000 square feet of occupied space, be designed and constructed to “an equivalent high performance green building standard,” according to the text of the bill. In addition to the IGCC, the ANSI/ASHRAE/USGBC/IES Standard 189.1 — the standard for the Design of High-Performance, Green Buildings — is a compliance option.

 

“The emergence of green building codes and standards is an important next step to provide states and communities with the opportunity to build sustainable and safer buildings,” says Rick Weiland, CEO for the ICC. “For establishing a much-needed set of baseline regulations that are adoptable, usable, and affordable, we are pleased to recognize Rhode Island under the leadership of Governor [Donald] Carcieri as the first state in the nation to adopt the International Green Construction Code.”

 

Rhode Island follows the City of Richland, Wash., which became the first local government to adopt the IGCC last August. The IGCC Public Version 1.0 was released in March of this year. The green building code addresses building energy and water consumption, indoor environmental quality and materials used, surrounding environmental impacts, and other factors.