These new rules will help Bellingham reduce the greenhouse gas emissions of buildings
New Bellingham building codes came into effect last month to help buildings reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Buildings don’t move or release clouds of smoke, but commercial and residential buildings were responsible for 13% of climate change-fueling greenhouse gas emissions across the country in 2020, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
Bellingham’s Commercial Energy Code, which went into effect Aug. 8, includes these requirements, according to the city’s Sean Angeley:
▪ Restricts the use of fossil fuels for water heating and space (air and heat) conditioning for larger multi-family buildings.
▪ Requires a more efficient building envelope such as adding better insulation .
▪ Includes a solar readiness requirement.
The code only affects new buildings, retrofitting older buildings with cleaner and more efficient upgrades is something the city will eventually be looking at, Angeley told The Bellingham Herald in an email.
“The code ensures that carbon emissions from new buildings are reduced, which is a start, however we know that many existing buildings are contributing to our carbon footprint and those buildings need to be retrofitted at some point to slow their impacts,” Angeley wrote.
Bellingham-based environmental non-profit Sustainable Connections is already working on issues with existing buildings, specifically their source of fuel and their envelope, according to Rose Lathrop, program director for the organization.
To encourage these retrofits, Sustainable Connections and the non-profit Opportunity Council hosts the Community Energy Challenge. It allows commercial or residential building owners to volunteer for a full energy audit.
After the audit, Sustainable Connections or Opportunity Council will offer incentives up to $5,000 to improve the efficiency of the building.
The program has audited 2,147 buildings in Whatcom County since the challenge started in 2009, according to Emily Kubiak, energy and green building program manager with Sustainable Connections.
“It’s like sending your house to the doctor for a full checkup,” Lathrop said.
There are a lot of ways owners can retrofit their buildings, but the easiest changes are energy use, fuel sources and insulation.
Updating insulation is a lot easier than most people realize, as foam can often be pumped into a wall with no demolition and new construction, according to Kubiak.
Energy and insulation changes are a lot more common because people understand them and therefore agree with the retrofit, according to Dan Welch, owner of green building design studio [Bundle].
“It is really hard to sell the public on having a composting toilet in your house,” Welch said. “Whereas putting a couple solar panels and a little insulation in your walls, nobody is going to blink an eye at that.”
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