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Calif. Green Building Code Arrives in January

GARDEN GROVE, Calif. — California cities will begin enforcing the new California Green Building standards Code on January 1. California’s Building Standards Commission and the Department of Housing and Community Development finalized the new code earlier this year.

According to text from the code, CALGreen will “improve public health, safety and general welfare by enhancing the design and construction of buildings through the use of building concepts having a reduced negative impact or positive environmental impact.” The code is also encourages sustainable construction practices in planning and design, energy efficiency, water efficiency and conservation, material conservation and resource efficiency and environmental quality.

CALGreen targets energy efficiency, indoor air quality, water conservation, development and waste disposal and recycling and promotes the use of green materials intended to reduce exposure to indoor pollutants such as volatile organic compounds and formaldehyde.

The new code allows California cities to impose an optional measure to implement additional green building measures such as requiring 15 percent additional energy efficiency on top of the CALGreen Code. Burlingame and San Mateo, both located in the San Francisco Bay Area, have chosen to implement the optional measures.