March 29, 2007 The United Nations released a study Thursday stating that improved architecture and energy savings in buildings could do more to fight global warming than the curbs in greenhouse gases set forth by the Kyoto Protocol.

Simple improvements in heating and cooling, lighting, and better use of building materials could save billions of dollars in an area that accounts for 30 to 40 percent of world energy use.

“The savings that can be made right now are potentially huge and the costs to implement them relatively low if sufficient numbers of Governments, industries, businesses and consumers act,” said UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Executive Director Achim Steiner.

“By some conservative estimates, the building sector worldwide could deliver emission reductions of 1.8 billion tonnes of C02,” he added. “A more aggressive energy efficiency policy might deliver over 2 billion tonnes or close to three times the amount scheduled to be reduced under the Kyoto Protocol.”

The Kyoto Protocol set legally binding emission reduction targets for 35 industrialized countries in the 2008-to-2012 period.

The report states that energy consumption comes mostly from homes, before offices, shops, and other business structures.

Buildings suck up 70 percent of all U.S. energy, according to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), and use 12 percent of all potable water, according to the United States Geological Service.

Reductions in water consumption can be achieved by such means as replacing shower heads with low-flow alternatives and installing new toilets that use less gallons per flush.

The DOE breaks down home energy use, with half going to space heating, almost a quarter going to lighting, and the remainder going to water heating, air conditioning, and appliances, in that order.

The challenge in developed countries like the United States is to implement emission reductions in existing buildings.

Home improvements can dramatically lower long-term energy costs. Replacing an average incandescent light bulbs with a corresponding compact fluorescent bulb can save the consumer $25 to $45 over the life of the bulb and reduces energy consumption up to 75 percent. (For more, see Amanda Griscome Little’s May 2007 Code Green Column, “Screw the Right Thing”). Adding smart windows and sky tubes to save on heating and lighting costs can also add dramatic long-term savings.

The construction market in the United States accounts for more than 14 percent of the $10 trillion dollar GDP, according to the U.S. Green Building Council. The council’s membership has increased ten-fold since 2000 and green building products and services in the United States are expected to exceed $12 billion this year.

In developing countries like China, where two billion square meters of new building space is added every year, green improvements should be implemented as the buildings are going up.

UNEP head Steiner told Reuters that the initial cost to implement energy saving improvements are relatively low compared to the long term environmental and energy bill savings.

“Energy efficiency, along with cleaner and renewable forms of energy generation, is one of the pillars upon which a de-carbonized world will stand or fall,” Mr. Steiner said.

For more ways to conserve energy, pick up the Special Edition April Green Issue of Outside and for a tour of the ultimate eco-chic crash pad and tips on Green living, click here .

• • •

• • • • • • • • • •