Environmental Law In New York: An Introduction to Passive House Principles and Policy

An Introduction to Passive House Principles and Policy

The drive for greater energy efficiency in buildings has intensified with rising concern over climate change caused by carbon emissions. The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) estimates that buildings account for approximately 40% of all energy consumption in the United States. Meaningfully reducing carbon emissions therefore will require new design and construction approaches for new buildings as well as for retrofits of existing buildings. Policymakers are slowly but surely taking heed, and are gradually transforming the approaches to setting code, policy, and incentives from prescriptive to performance-based strategies. The difference between these approaches will be discussed later in this article.