D.C. Paves Way for Environmental Responsibility
Washington, D.C. has quickly become a pioneer for environmental sustainability. The new Nationals stadium, for example, is the first baseball stadium in the country to receive LEED certification. Certification for LEED, which stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, is given by the U.S. Green Building Council, when buildings qualify for a certain number of points in five categories: sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality.
The District already broke new ground when it became the first major city to require LEED certification on all new public and private buildings under the Green Building Act of 2006. The new rules begain applying to building plans submitted to the city on January 1, 2008. Other large cities have implemented similiar, but more lax rules, such as New York City and Boston, which require LEED certification, but only on public buildings. Even before the D.C. law was proposed, the National Association of Realtors headquarters became the first LEED certified building in the city when it was completed in 2004.
The motivation to go green seems to be spreading, with some commercial entities taking on environmental responsibility before the laws have required them to. Yesterday the Legal Times featured an impressive series on actions being taken by D.C. area law firms to reduce their carbon footprints -- and just the sheer number of law firms in the District means their actions could have a huge impact locally. The subscription-only articles mention the efforts by a slew of firms such as Nixon Peabody, Arnold & Porter, Drinker Biddle, O'Melveny & Myers, and Weil, Gotshal & Manges to drastically reduce paper waste, incorporate post-consumer materials, and reduce energy consumption in their offices. Most have formed special "green" committees to enact the changes and encourage environmental responsibility generally within the firm.
The Legal Times also included an article about law firm Mayer Brown, which contracted with developer Vornado/Charles E. Smith to construct a new building with LEED Silver (one step up from regular) certification. Mayer Brown already resides in one of the greenest offices in the city -- the Millenium Building at 1909 K Street, NW, constructed by Tower Cos., the first local developer to make a real investment in green buildings. When the firm decided to make a move, they wanted to bring the environmental features with them, committing to LEED certification before the D.C. law was proposed, and according to Mayer Brown partner Peter Scher in the article, will likely be "the first law firm to go green in a new building in Washington."
The Nationals stadium received its certification by including "energy-saving light fixtures, water-conserving plumbing, drought-resistant plants, and a green roof over the concessions area," in addition to a number of other features, including its proximity to Metro.
Photo of National Association of Realtors building by Grundlepuck