USGBC Releases the Top 10 States in Nation for LEED Green Building

According to this article on CleanLink.com, Minnesota has recently been added to the top 10 list of states in the Nation for LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Green Buildings with 1.55 square feet of LEED space per resident. As part of Pure Water Window & Building Cleaning Systems, Sky Pro does its share in helping contribute to this cause. 

Tim Evanson, Flickr.com

The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has released the Top 10 States for its LEED green building rating system. The list highlights the regions around the country that are at the forefront of sustainable building design and transformation. Utilizing less energy, LEED-certified spaces save money for families, businesses and taxpayers; reduce carbon emissions; and contribute to a healthier environment for residents, workers and the larger community.

“The list of the Top 10 States for LEED is a continuing indicator of the widespread recognition of our national imperative to create healthier, high-performing buildings that are better for the environment as well as the people who use them every day,” said Rick Fedrizzi, president, CEO and founding chair, USGBC. “As the economy recovers, green buildings continue to provide for jobs at every professional level and skill set from carpenters to architects. I congratulate everyone in these states whose contributions to resources saved, toxins eliminated, greenhouse gases avoided, and human health enhanced help guarantee a prosperous future for our planet and the people who call it home.”

To continue reading, click here.

Major Cities Unite to Cut Building Pollution

Minneapolis isn't the only city "going green". This Buildings article sheds light on what other cities are doing to help the environment.

Doug Kerr, Flickr.com 

The mayors from 10 major U.S. cities announced they will undertake a united effort to significantly boost energy efficiency in their buildings.

The mayors will be participating in the new City Energy Project (CEP), an initiative from the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Institute for Market. The following 10 cities will be CEP’s first participants: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Denver, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Orlando, Philadelphia, and Salt Lake City.

HOW IT WORKS
Through this new project, the cities will develop their own locally tailored plans to advance energy efficiency and reduce waste in their large buildings, which can represent roughly 50% of their citywide square footage. These plans, which will include multiple integrated strategies, can make more progress in each city than any one program or policy could alone.

The CEP will offer energy expertise to help guide the cities through the planning, designing, and implementing processes. The energy efficiency solutions that CEP will help the cities develop are flexible to each city’s unique situation, supporting the following goals:

To read the full article, click here.

Testing Chemical-Free Cleaning Efficacy

According to this article on cleanlink.com, some studies show that the effectiveness of sanitizing technologies produce differing results when tested in working environments vs lab tests. 

soapylovedeb, Flickr.com 

Vince Elliott, president and CEO of The Chemical Free Cleaning Network, Baltimore, Md., and author of “Extreme Green Cleaning,” is no stranger to water-activated cleaning solutions; he’s been studying their efficacy for some time.

Recently, Elliott connected with a custodial cleaning executive overseeing a high-traffic facility to examine the following questions:
• Do the various water-activated sanitizing technologies actually reduce Reflective Light Unit (RLU) levels as measured by an ATP meter?
• How do the differing technologies compare to each other? Does one perform better or worse, or are they all basically the same?
• What differences in efficacy are there between plain tap water and water-activated technologies?

While Elliott’s research is ongoing, he has tested 760 surfaces in the facility so far and has learned a thing or two about the sanitizing products being used.

Click here to read more. 

One World Trade Center Officially U.S.’s Tallest Building

The One World Trade Center in New York will be the 3rd tallest building in the world upon completion. Look at what else this buildings.com article has to say about the new construction. 

Chicago’s Willis Tower can no longer lay claim to being the tallest building in the U.S.

Shannon, Flickr.com 

The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat convened its Height Committee to rule on the official height of One World Trade Center (1WTC) in New York. The committee reached a consensus that the New York building’s height to its architectural top is 1,776 feet.

The two issues regarding the true height of the building were:

The nature of the mast structure on top of the tower.
The datum line (bottom point) from which the height to architectural top was determined.

Due to design changes that resulted in the removal of the architectural cladding around the mast at the top of the structure, it became unclear whether the structure was in fact a “spire” – a vertical element that completes the architectural expression of the building and is intended as permanent, or whether it was an antenna – a piece of functional-technical equipment that was subject to change.

To read more from this article, click here.

What You Need to Know About the FDA-Proposed Rule on Antibacterial Soap

From an article posted on issa.com, the FDA is reevaluating "active ingredients" in antibacterial soap due to its widespread use and pressing concerns from certain health care groups. 

Soap Bubbles, The Italian Voice 

After more than 20 years in the making, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) sought to bring closure on its rulemaking regarding antibacterial hand and body soaps by issuing a proposed rule in the December 17, 2013, edition of the Federal Register, the official journal of the federal government of the United States.

The FDA’s proposed rule would require manufacturers of antibacterial hand and/or body washes to demonstrate that their products are safe for long-term daily use and are more effective than plain soap and water in preventing illness and the spread of certain infections. Under the proposal, if companies do not demonstrate such safety and effectiveness, these products would need to be reformulated or relabeled to remain on the market.

The scope of the proposed rule is limited to antibacterial hand and/or body washes that are intended to be used with water. Hand sanitizers not intended to be rinsed off with water, antibacterial wipes, and antibacterial products used in health care settings will be the subject of future FDA rulemakings.

Click here to read the full article on issa.com 

Use Disinfectants Wisely

The Great Clean Up by zepfanman.com via flickr.com

An extended winter season means concerns about spreading cold and flu in your buildings are higher than ever. This excerpt below is from an article on cleanlink.com about using disinfectants wisely, and with less risk. 

Cold winter weather, now gripping most of North America, usually means cold and flu season is here and likely sticking around for a few months.

Many cleaning professionals may be asked to use disinfectants this time of year more frequently than at other times. While disinfectants can be helpful because of their ability to kill germs and bacteria, they also can pose a risk to cleaning workers, building users, and the environment.

Charlotte Products/Enviro-Solutions, a manufacturer of traditional and green cleaning products, has offered the following tips on how to use disinfectants wisely:

-- Use only disinfectants that have been registered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; the EPA registration will be clearly printed on the label.

To read the full article, visit cleanlink.com

Caring More Deeply About Safety

Safety Sign by David Person via flickr.com

"How can we get workers to care about safety?" might not be the right question to ask to improve organization safety, says Terry Mathis in an article on EHSToday.com. 

Leaders of organizations constantly are reminded that safety must start at the top. They also have learned that it can't stop there – it must permeate all levels of the organization.

More and more leaders want to know how to do that – how to turn a workforce on to its safety potential. As one executive put it: "What is the key to getting workers to care more deeply about safety?"

This question illustrates the root of the problem: We're asking the wrong question! Why have we assumed that workers don't care enough about safety, and that making them care more is the solution? Of course workers care about safety. They are the ones who get injured when it doesn't work. Their families are the ones who have to learn to live on reduced pay and juggle medical bills while nursing a breadwinner back to health.

Read the full article on EHSToday.com.