Featured Home

Blip Design
This Seattle home in the Phinney neighborhood was recently remodeled with a 3-Star Built Green second story addition by Blip Design Architects. This home features many extra features that promote greater energy efficiency such as constructing the addition using an airtight drywall approach for framing, and performing a blower door test to find possible air leaks around doors and windows. Energy Star®-rated appliances can provide savings on utility bills for the homeowners. Extra attention was given to providing high quality indoor air for a healthier indoor environment for the residents. Low toxic materials were installed, along with a highly efficient ventilation system that was also tested for performance. Recycled content and durable materials were used such as HardiePlank siding that is warranted for at least 50 years. View case study.

To see other previously featured virtual tours, click here. Virtual tours created by Northwest Property Imaging.

New Members

As a member of Built Green, your company name will be designated in the MBA’s 2006 Membership Directory as a Built Green member. For further information on the Directory, email Larry Chimenti or call him at (425) 460-8238. Your company also is listed on the Built Green website.

Welcome to our newest member companies!

American Standard
Bath and kitchen faucets and fixtures

Detec Systems
Structure monitoring technology

Fusion Partners LLC
Creative marketing, communications and media

Great Northern Land Co. LLC
Highest quality single-family homes and town homes

H2O Solutions South
(206) 465-2265 in Arlington

Wild Radish LLC
Healthy living by design

View our current members.

Events

Visit the Built Green Washington website for green home building courses and events across the State of Washington.

Saturday, September 16 to Sunday, September 18
Kittitas Valley Tour of Homes will feature a partially completed Built Green Showcase Home located in the Suncadia Resort near Roslyn, WA, among many other fine homes. For more information, call (800) 492-9422 or click here.

Saturday, October 1
Built Green Showcase Home
The Washington State Solar Tour will be held in conjunction with the American Solar Energy Society’s National Solar Tour, which showcases solar, renewable energy, green building, energy efficiency and more! For more information, please contact Pamela Burton via e-mail or call (206) 706-1931. Online Solar Tour

Thursday, October 6 to Sunday October 9
Seattle Home Show 2
The Seventh Annual Seattle Home Show 2 will be held at Qwest Field Event Center October 6 to Sunday, October 9. Built Green will have a staffed booth again this year, where we’ll answer questions about green building, products and technologies, and provide examples of green materials. We’ll also have our website available at a kiosk, and will play a continuous slide show about Built Green, with seating provided for the convenience of visitors. Vehicles with four or more people park for free at several show-designated lots near the event! Plus, free Metro bus shuttles are provided from Bellevue, Northgate and south Renton. Show sponsors include Kitchen Plus and the Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish Counties. For further information click here.

Wednesday, October 19 to Thursday, October 20
Northwest Environmental Summit
The Northwest Environmental Summit is brought to us by the Association of Washington Business and the Northwest Environmental Business Council to provide updated information on environmental quality issues in the Northwest. To register online click here.

Friday, October 21 to Sunday, October 23
Northwest Ecobuilding Guild Annual Member Retreat
The Northwest Ecobuilding Guild is holding its Annual Member Retreat at Pilgrim Firs Conference Center outside Port Orchard, WA, Friday, Oct. 21 to Sunday, Oct. 23. For further information or to register online visit the website.

Monday, February 20 to Thursday, February 23
Erosion Control Annual Conference
The International Erosion Control Association (IECA) is holding its annual conference and expo -- Environmental Connection -- in Long Beach, CA, Monday, February 20 to Thursday, February 23, 2006. Courses will include NPDES compliance, how to select and install BMPs and how to write a SWPPP. Each year the event averages 2000 attendees and 150 exhibitors making it the world’s largest soil and water event. IECA is a non-profit organization dedicated to minimizing accelerated erosion through education. For more information visit the website.

MBA Calendar of Events is posted at the bottom left of the homepage. For more information, contact James Cadungug at (425) 460-8213.

Courses

Visit the Built Green Washington website for green home building courses and events across the state of Washington.

Friday, September 9, Tacoma
Energy Efficient Construction
Energy Efficient Construction will be taught by Bruce Carter in this all-day seminar at the Pierce County Master Builders Association in Tacoma. Call (253) 272-2112 or visit the BIAW website for more information.

Tuesday, September 13, Bellevue
Introduction to Built Green
This free seminar provides an introduction to the Built Green™ program from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. on Tuesday, September 13 at the MBA Housing Center in Bellevue. Learn how to certify a project, find out what "green" means, how the Built Green program works and other resources. The seminar presents examples of projects and covers how to fill out the Built Green checklist. This seminar fulfills the course requirement to certify homes as Built Green. For further information, contact (425) 460-8238 or via email.

Thursday, September 15 Olympia
Nuts & Bolts of Built Green I
This half-day workshop offers residential builders an overview of the Built Green rating system and an introduction to basic green building approaches, for contractors, designers, developers, project managers, and other allied professionals. Contact Built Green of the Olympia Master Builders Association for more information at (800) 456-6473 or visit their website.

Friday, September 16, Tacoma
Green Building Is Your Business
Green Building Is Your Business will be offered by the Pierce County MBA at 1120 Pacific Ave., Suite 301 in Tacoma, on Friday, Sept. 16 from 8 a.m. to noon. For more information call (253) 272-2112. The cost is $50 for members or $75 for non-members.

Snohomish PUD

Planet Power for Snohomish County Customers
Did you know that one block of Planet Power purchased monthly for one year offsets the same amount of CO2 as planting a half-acre of trees or taking a car off the road for 2,756 miles? The Planet Power program is a voluntary program that increases the demand for electricity generated from environmentally friendly resources, such as wind and solar, often referred to as "green power." Planet Power is sold in 150 kWh blocks at a cost of $3 per month. Click here for more information.

Snohomish County

Sustainable Development Task Force
If you'd like to incorporate sustainability into your Snohomish County project, but need some assistance, help is a click or a call away. The Sustainable Development Task Force of Snohomish County maintains a list of local resources that can provide technical expertise. To request assistance, please contact Chris Fate, Snohomish County PUD, at (425) 783-8274 or email. Chris can also help if you're interested in hosting the portable, professionally designed information kiosk or interested in joining the task force. The Sustainable Development Taskforce Steering Committee meets the third Friday of each month from 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. in the EDC Offices at 728 134th St. SW in Everett. Directions.

From the Director

A Changing of the Guard
Since joining Built Green as the first director in March of 2003, the program has experienced many changes, growth and successes. I've had the pleasure of working with teams of volunteers that work tirelessly on myriad issues to improve constantly this beacon of hope for residential sustainability in the Northwest.

We created the 4- and 5-Star levels of the program that provide additional recognition for builders with considerably higher environmental achievements in the homes they build. We developed standards for third party verification and established a code of ethics for verifiers and members of Built Green. For many months, experts have painstakingly reviewed our certification checklists in the first major overhaul since the program's inception (anticipated launch in early 2006).

Built Green membership has grown from 63 members in March 2003 to more than 250 members today, including 96 participating builders. Our website is receiving more interest than ever before with approximately 5,000 unique visitors per month. The new virtual tours and case studies enable visitors to see and read about what comprises green homes. The award-winning monthly electronic newsletter, Built Green News, is distributed to more than 3,000 people and is posted on the website, providing a unique service to those interested in green home building.

Collaborating with other Built Green programs in the state, we've developed a plan to work together as a coalition and recently launched a website devoted to statewide green building. Partnering with City of Seattle, the recent Seattle Built Green Design Competition had an unprecedented 34 entry applications in one of the first such design competitions in the U.S. In conjunction with our 2005 Built Green Conference, we held the first Green Homes Tour, one of very few such events in the nation.

There's still tremendous growth potential and many opportunities for improvement. Although I remain committed to the Built Green program's sustainable goals, I have decided to implement those goals on the front line. On Sept. 12, I'll join the Built Green member company of Otak, an architecture, engineering and planning firm that shares the goals of designing and developing communities for long-term sustainability. I'll also remain on the Built Green steering committee.

With this major change to the program, I am confident that the new leadership will continue the work that so many have invested thus far. As most of you know, the executive officer of the MBA, Sam Anderson, carried his "green" vision for the building industry – along with many other community leaders -- to inspire the creation of the Built Green program in 2000. He has been a terrific mentor and remains strongly committed to Built Green and its many members and volunteers. I appreciate his ongoing efforts on behalf of the MBA to make our communities better places to live and work. I also thank the many of you who've provided support to the program and to me – we could not have achieved our successes without you. Wishing you all the best!

– Robin Rogers, Outgoing Director of Built Green

Product Spotlight

Issaquah Highlands Fire Station Awarded LEED Silver Certification
Using a Mutual Materials™ red brick finish, Issaquah Highland's Fire Station No. 73 was designed to exceed current energy codes and minimize environmental impacts. Fire Station No. 73 received a Silver LEED™ Certification, the first in the nation, from the U.S. Green Building Council for the use of environmentally friendly materials and energy efficient construction. RH2 Engineering and TCA Architecture, with the city of Issaquah, Eastside Fire and Rescue, Port Blakely Communities, and Sierra Construction designed and constructed this 11,800 square foot fire station for the residents of the Issaquah Highlands community. View the Fire Station case study.

For information on how to list your "green" products* in this space, please contact MBA Sales & Marketing Director Pam Worner by phone at (425) 460-8217, or via email.
*Products must be able to meet at least one Built Green credit (see the four Built Green checklists on our website) to qualify, and the company must be a member-in-good-standing of Built Green.

New Certifications

Congratulations to Wild Radish LLC for certifying a 3-star Built Green multi-family project in Seattle; to Yale Avenue LLC for certifying a 1-Star Built Green multi-family project in Seattle; and to Tennyson Homes for certifying a 3-Star Built Green single-family project in Kirkland!

EnviroStars

EnviroStars
EnviroStars certifies businesses for their efforts in preventing pollution and reducing hazardous waste. The EnviroStars program is a service of the Local Hazardous Waste Management Program in King County, and is also available in Jefferson, Kitsap, Pierce and Whatcom counties.
To find an EnviroStar business in King County, you can search the organization’s online directory. For more information about the regional EnviroStars program, visit the website. If you’d like your company to become an EnviroStars business, contact the representative for your county.

Vendor Lunch

Vendor Lunch for the Built Green Showcase Home at Suncadia a Success

The vendor lunch drew 100 attendees

A vendor lunch in August for the Built Green Home at Suncadia was a great networking event as more

than 100 vendors attended to exchange ideas, products and services that could be included in this Five-Star Built Green showcase house. Scheduled for completion in the spring of 2006, the home is located at Suncadia in Roslyn, WA. The builder, Contracting Management Inc., will open the unfinished home to the public during the Kittitas Valley Tour of Homes from Friday, Sept. 16 to Sunday, Sept. 18 so that visitors can see what the underlying systems of a Built Green look like, from the ICF foundation walls to the framing and insulation, and from the geothermal heat pump to radiant floors. Current project participants include Suncadia, Puget Sound Energy, Whirlpool, Contracting Management Inc., Energy Star, Associated Earth Sciences, Environmental Home Center, Alexander Lighting, Richard A. Fisher Architects, The Frause Group, the Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish Counties and the Kittitas Chapter of the Central Washington Home Builders Association. It will be the first Built Green project in the eastern part of Washington state! If you are interested in the many sponsorship opportunities, contact Sales & Marketing Director Pam Worner via email or by phone at (425) 460-8217. Track the construction progress on the Built Green Home at Suncadia Blog.

Donations Accepted

Building Materials Donations Accepted

Salvaged bathtub and terra cotta detail are examples of reclaimed products

You are invited to make building material donations to Habitat for Humanity of East King County through Second Use Building Materials, an member of the Master Builders Association and Built Green. Habitat for Humanity works with Second Use Building Materials to divert recyclable and reusable materials from landfills while reselling materials at affordable prices to the public. Donations like doors, windows, countertop and cabinets are most welcome. On some occasions, Second Use will pick up donations directly from your home or project. When materials are sold to the public, 50 percent of the profits are given to Habitat for Humanity. Please call the Habitat line at Second Use to discuss your material donations at (206) 763-5575 or visit their website.

Built Green Hats

Built Green assistant Amanda Reed takes her Built Green hat for a little walk – straight up Mount Pilchuck! You, too, can order hats with your own logo or the Built Green logo from Twin Peaks Embroidery.

Recommended Reading

Green Remodeling: Changing the World One Room at a Time
This comprehensive book, Green Remodeling: Changing the World One Room at a Time, discusses simple green renovation solutions for homeowners, focusing on key aspects of the building, including foundations, framing, plumbing, windows, heating and finishes. Room by room, it outlines the intricate connections that make the housework as a system.

Green Living
From the editors of E-The Environmental Magazine comes Green Living, a comprehensive, user-friendly guide to living lightly on the earth.

Upcoming Awards

Upcoming Awards
Get Recognized for Saving Forests
The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is accepting entries for its Designing & Building with FSC Award. The award is open to owners, architects, interior designers, general contractors, builders, consultants and other professionals who have completed a project in 2002 or later and featured council-certified wood. Projects can be commercial, institutional, mixed-use and residential buildings. One award will be given to a project team who used a significant amount — at least 50 percent — of council-certified wood by cost. To submit a project, click here (pdf).

Completed applications should be sent to Terry Campbell, by 5 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 16. All submissions will be listed on the Green Building section of the FSC website and each entering project team will receive two complimentary tickets to the FSC-US GreenBuild Reception in Atlanta.

Natural Land Clearing

Land Clearing the Natural Way
Do you have some land that needs to be cleared of brush for development or building, or you just need to get rid of blackberries? Instead of mowing or applying chemicals or herbicides, you can hire a herd of professional goats. Healing Hooves offers vegetation removal, weed control and ecosystem management with its 300 nannies and kids traveling to your site for feasting on the undesirable (to you) plants! Read a recent article about this unique service.

Puget Sound Energy

Built Green and Energy Star Join Forces at Issaquah Highlands!
Issaquah Highlands has long been a development that prides itself on being environmentally friendly. Last month Realtors at Issaquah Highlands took some time out of their busy schedules to learn more about Built Green Four-Star and Energy Star homes. Diane Glenn of The Construction Consultants and Sheila McElhinney representing Puget Sound Energy teamed up to show real estate agents how Built Green and Energy Star can work together to give their homes more sales appeal. Agents also learned about how these programs fit into the overall "Living Green" philosophy of the Issaquah Highland Development. By using the house-as-a-system approach, an Energy Star home carefully considers the interaction of all the systems in a home. This helps an Energy Star home perform better and save more energy than a standard Washington code-built home. For more information on how Energy Star and Built Green can help sell your homes, call a PSE Energy Advisor at (800) 562-1482.

King County

King County Announces New LinkUP Partner, American Roofing Recyclers
American Roofing Recyclers is the newest partner in King County’s LinkUp program. The company, located in Snohomish, WA, recycles about 600 tons of roofing materials each month, primarily asphalt composition, cedar shake and composition/wood roofing. When the roofing material arrives at the site, it is inspected, shredded and screened. Cedar shingle roofing may be recycled into landscaping chips or sold as boiler fuel. The asphalt roofing is divided by size and sold for a variety of products including road base material or for trails and walkways. The company is also working to develop fuel cells from compressed asphalt.

About 95 percent of the material accepted at American Roofing Recyclers comes from roofing and construction companies in King and Snohomish counties; the rest is delivered by homeowners. The company charges $50 to $55 per ton to recycle clean roofing material, a savings in comparison to the $75 to 85 per ton charge in King County to dispose of this material in a landfill.

Launched in 2000, the LinkUP program develops partnerships with both manufacturers and material processors to improve and expand markets for recycled materials. The program, sponsored by the King County Solid Waste Division, offers free, customized technical and promotional support to selected businesses.

LinkUp is currently accepting applications for new partners. For more information about the LinkUp program, contact Kris Beatty at (206) 296-3740 or visit the website. For more information about green building incentives contact the King County Green Building Program at (206) 263-6037 or online.

Resources

Satellite image of Edmonds shows level of detail available

Google Maps
Google Maps is a new beta tool recently launched online. It’s useful in looking at land, buildings and location, and includes satellite aerials and street maps, as well as hybrids of the two.

Green Building Pages
Green Building Pages is a new sustainable building materials database and design tool for the environmentally and socially responsible designer, builder and client.

Contact Built Green

Master Builders Association
335 - 116th Avenue SE
Bellevue, WA 98004
P: (425) 460-8238
F: (425) 646-5985
builtgreen@mbaks.com
www.builtgreen.net
Directions

Master Builders Association Calendar of Events

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