Building Green Pays Dividends

A new study finds that building “green” is better for the bottom line than originally thought. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Lester Graham reports this is the first study to compile economic data from green buildings across the nation:

Transcript

A new study finds that building “green” is better for the bottom line than originally thought. The
Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Lester Graham reports this is the first study to compile
economic data from green buildings across the nation:


This study was funded by several California state agencies, but looks at a couple hundred
buildings across the nation that were designed to be environmentally friendly. Gregory Kats is
the principal author of the study. He says because the buildings are more efficient, they save
money in areas such as maintenance costs and energy usage.


“The net benefits are, over a twenty year period, about ten times larger than the additional cost.
So, it represents a substantial opportunity for building investors to have higher financial returns
and create buildings that are more comfortable, higher performance, better for the environment,
healthier work and living environments.”


Kats says that means public officials such as school board members can justify on economic
grounds alone, building “green” buildings, and at the same time know that they’re healthier for
the kids in the classroom.


For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, this is Lester Graham.