News & DeltaCasts
Regional Green Building Case Study Project (October 2009)
Over the last year and a half, the Delta Institute has served as a steering committee member for the Regional Green Building Case Study Project, a collaborative research study looking at post occupancy results of LEED Buildings in Illinois. The Regional Green Building Case Study Project: a Post-Occupancy Study of LEED Projects in Illinois report summarizes the first year of this multi-year study to analyze the post-occupancy benefits of 25 LEED® certified projects in Illinois related to: energy use, greenhouse gas emissions, water use, construction and operating costs, cost of building green, health and productivity impacts, and occupant comfort. The study found that sustainability does not stop with building design and construction. While a building may be designed to be sustainable, it is often ongoing operational issues that affect the amount of energy, water, and other resources it consumes. Accordingly, ongoing performance evaluation is a key component of long-term sustainability. The study was funded by the Grand Victoria Foundation and is a collaborative endeavor between the USGBC-Chicago, U.S. EPA Region 5, the City of Chicago, Delta Institute, and the Center for Neighborhood Technology, which was the lead researcher for the project. For more info on the study and to download the report, visit the USGBC-Chicago website.
DeltaCast #1 and #2 (August 2009)
Valuing trees in a new way:
|
| Part 1: |
Alternative content |
| Part 2: |
Alternative content |
Trees have value to their owners when they are cut down for lumber. But they have another, perhaps more beneficial role. As they grow, they absorb huge quantities of carbon, and play a significant role in reducing atmospheric pollution.
Now, thanks to the innovative Delta Carbon program, trees are earning their owners money as they improve the environment.
In the first part of our visit with Todd Parker of Delta’s Michigan office, we discuss the science of carbon sequestration. In the second part, Todd discusses the politics and the economics of forestry offset credits, and explains how some landowners have already made thousands of dollars just by registering their property for credits.
DeltaCast #3 (August 2009)
Encouraging deconstruction over demolition
The ReBuilding Exchange can save you money on valuable vintage building materials
Alternative content
Delta’s new ReBuilding Exchange warehouse in Brighton Park is the place to go if you’re hoping to score perfectly good old-growth lumber, re-usable windows, doors, cabinets and fixtures.
When a house or other building must come down, deconstruction – the careful dismantlement of the structure – is always preferred over bulldozing. It results in greatly reduced volumes directed to landfills, and it fills the ReBuilding Exchange with really valuable materials that can be re-used in other projects.
In this DeltaCast, we talk with manager Elise Zelechowski about how the ReBuilding Exchange works, and offer some ideas for ways to use these great products to build furniture or help in your next remodeling project.
Gaining Ground Enewsletter Vol. 4, No. 2 Summer 2009.
Delta Institute participates in Becoming a Rain Gardener: The Challenges and Opportunities of Implementing Low Impact Development (webinar, April 2009).
Thanks to all who joined us at Partners In Change 2009 for an evening of networking, eating and learning about the intersection of the economy and the environment.
Gaining Ground Enewsletter Vol. 4, No. 1 Spring 2009.
Gaining Ground Enewsletter Vol. 3, No. 1 Fall 2008.
Thanks to all who attended Delta Institute's 2008 Partners in Change Annual Fundraiser is on June 25th, 2008. (more...)
