As a part of America’s economic recovery the General Services Administration (GSA) has been investing in sustainable, innovative technologies. For the last year under Martha N. Johnson’s new leadership GSA has supported sustainable industries including green buildings.
Federal buildings are being made green by modernizing them both externally and internally and equipping them with the latest sustainable technologies. Some of these cutting edge technologies include green and reflective roofs, solar panels, temperature-adjusting envelopes, high-insulation/performance windows, energy-saving heating and cooling systems and low-flow plumbing. GSA reports that these innovations will immediately improve the performance of federal buildings and save millions of taxpayer dollars in the long term.
GSA, which serves as the federal government’s landlord, is responsible for more than 360 million square feet of space and has been working hard to make their buildings more sustainable. “Not only have we put thousands of people to work at construction sites and innovative companies around the country learning new, valuable skills, we’ve also invested in technologies that form the backbone of the country’s emerging green economy,” Johnson said. “That investment is already paying off. We are seeing small, innovative businesses grow and create jobs while we are decreasing energy bills at federal buildings around the country saving taxpayers millions of dollars.”
“We’re just getting started,” Johnson continued. “We are going to continue to make our federal buildings more sustainable and higher performing to ensure that we can meet the president’s goal of reducing the federal government’s greenhouse gas pollution by 28 percent by 2020.”
To help in making these building more sustainable, on February 7, 2011 GSA launched a web based Sustainable Facilities Tool (www.sftool.org), which is an interactive tool that will help building managers identify and prioritize cost-effective strategies to make office buildings and workplaces more sustainable. This one-stop tool allows property managers to learn about sustainable practices and compare renovation options. The website offers a wide breadth of sustainable products and options available for retrofitting and renovating buildings. Sustainability Topics include Materials & Resources, Energy & Atmosphere, Sustainable Sites, Water Efficiency, and Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ)
GSA believes both government and private-sector building managers and developers can benefit from the agency’s real-world experience with proven environmentally preferable materials, technologies, and systems. And I’m sure many would agree. Great leadership GSA!!
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