Full Description

Existing buildings present the biggest opportunity to dramatically reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the built environment in the near term, but most building renovations today do not prioritize energy efficiency or decarbonization due to lack of resources and information. Building Performance Standards (BPS) are emerging as a powerful policy instrument that presents a first-of-its-kind opportunity to decarbonize existing buildings by requiring them to meet energy-based and/or GHG performance targets throughout their lifetime. These Performance Standards are being established as state and local laws and ordinances to require existing buildings to achieve prescribed minimum levels of measured energy or climate performance, depending on the goals of the jurisdiction. Several states and cities in the United States, including New York City, Washington DC, Boston, Washington State, and others, have recently adopted BPS for commercial and multifamily buildings and are in the early stage of implementation. In addition, over 20 states and cities have committed to adopt similar policies by 2024 as part of the National BPS Coalition initiated by the White House, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and U.S. Department of Energy. In this paper we introduce the status of BPS in the U.S. and provide an overview of the best practices from states and cities with these policies already in place. We discuss the policy drivers behind BPS, introduce the technical issues that have impacted the existing BPS policies, and provide jurisdictions with the necessary technical knowledge for the development of an informed BPS policy that can have long-term success. We consider the advantages and limitations of different performance metrics and targets, the technical, financial, and equity challenges for policy development and implementation, and opportunities for ASHRAE members to support building owners in compliance. The paper concludes with recommendations for core program components and how to connect a BPS to codes that regulate energy performance in new construction and existing building renovations, enabling both new and existing buildings of all covered types to meet performance targets consistently and predictably. We will also preview ASHRAE's efforts to develop a Technical Resource Guide to be published in 2022.

Product Details

Published: 2022 Number of Pages: 8 Units of Measure: Dual File Size: 1 file , 4.2 MB Product Code(s): D-94056-C09 Note: This product is unavailable in Russia, Belarus