Is It Easy Being Green?

By Luis Ramirez, Crystal Hall and Caitlin Wittlif

Kermit the Frog once said, “It’s not easy being green.” But can you blame him? Imagine living in a world where practically everything is green. Not necessarily the color, but a place that utilizes the latest technologies in green building. Fortunately for Kermit, one program has made this dream more attainable for the city of Austin and other cities across the nation, by encouraging and implementing the use of energy efficient, green technologies from residential living to municipal construction.

Beginning Green Initiatives

Austin Energy Green Building™ was the first program designed in the US to promote and initiate green living. The goal was to maintain current societal and environmental needs without compromising the needs of future generations. The program evolved from the Energy Star Program® and for the past 19 years has educated Austinites and community leaders on the benefits of and steps to “going green.”

In 1998 Green Building merged with Austin Energy and created the multi-family tool designed to rate a buildings’ “greenness.” This initiative became so successful that two years later over 3,000 homes were rated for their quality.

Patricia House of Austin Energy says last year was the first year they gave out their highest rating for a commercial building’s “greenness.”

“Our first five star, which is our highest commercial rating in our history, was awarded to the Dell Childrens’ hospital,” House said.

Shortly after, the American Consortium for an Energy Efficient Economy recognized the Green Building Program as exemplary, indicating that the peak demand for electricity was reduced by 6.5MW and electric consumption by 11,698 in 2000.

More importantly, later that year it was shown that hazardous emissions from Austin power plants, which threatened to chew up our ozone layer, were reduced by over 10,000 tons.

A Green Economy

In a nation bombarded with economic crisis and hardship, why even bother choosing to go green? View our video report on students going green here.

Professor Jules Elkins believes that going green does not have to put a hole in your pocket book. “I don’t think it actually is all that much more expensive, if you are the one paying the utility bill, its very much in your interest to build a green house because you pay a lot lower utility bills,” Green said. Studies also show reduced cost in utility bills and improvement in ones health.

These technologies require less maintenance, meaning a better bang for the dollar. Austin Energy returns nearly 1.5 billion dollars in profits to the community annually, helping finance local community services such as fire, police, EMS, parks, and libraries.

Solar Energy for The Future

So what’s next for Austin Green Building? Recently the city council agreed on a plan that would give the state capital the nations’ leading solar system, and among the 10 largest ever created in the world, by December of 2010.

Suntech polycrystalline silicon solar panels used by the system will be ground-mounted in groups on single-axis trackers, giving them the ability to rotate east to west with the sun on a daily basis maximizing the production of power.

Gemini Solar Development Company, LLC, is among 15 companies rivaling for the monumental task, and would build, own and maintain the cutting edge facility. Over 320 acres of photovoltaic solar panels will produce sufficient energy each year for roughly 5,000 homes. Austin Energy will pay about $10 million annually for the power supplied. Costs of the project were reduced by federal investment tax credits. The companies will also apply for further funding made possible through the stimulus package.

This project is a significant step towards the councils’ goal of developing 100 megawatts of solar capacity for Austin by 2020. The council also aims to provide nearly 30 percent of the power delivered to customers by Austin Energy from green resources by the year 2020. Construction on the solar system will commence in March of 2010, with a projected completion in December. The project will help stimulate the economy by creating nearly 600 local jobs in construction.

All these groundbreaking initiatives will help insure that “being green” isn’t so difficult after all.

Watch: Is It Easy Being a Green Student?

Discover: Green Apartments in Austin