WNYC’s Leonard Lopate recently covered green building, on the “Please Explain” segment of his radio show. While it doesn’t really get into the technical stuff, I think atleast the first 15 minutes provide a good introduction to the background of the issues. The segment includes a co-founder of LEED, so we know the information is reputable.

Here’s a stream of the audio:

and here’s a link the the mp3.

Notable points from the program:

• The new Bank of America Building in NYC is designed to capture water into storage tanks for mechanical systems.
• The White House has taken steps to improve its energy efficiancy. They recently installed solar hot water heaters, saving taxpayers $300,000 year.
• US Government uses 2.3% of the country’s energy (about $10 billion dollars). Consequently, there are programs in place to make Federal buildings more green.
• Small shallow floorplates of older buildings, using U-and H-shaped layouts, allow more daylight, better ventilation, and potentially greater energy efficiency than newer buildings with 30- to 40-ft floorplates from facade to elevator core. Artificial light and air conditioning enable these floorplates to be practical, but they require more energy.
• More than 5000 “green” buildings in the US today