The IRS has had tax deductions in place through the Energy Policy Act of 2005 which allow taxpayers to deduct the cost of energy-efficient equipment installed in commercial buildings they own. But publicly-owned buildings aren’t taxed, and therefore, there is no additional tax savings to the building owner. However, the law allows the designer of the energy-saving portion of a public building to claim the tax credit.
Economics may be the strongest Green Building Element. As much as we would all like to believe that people will somehow decide to reduce consumption…the power of the purse is more dependable than good intentions.
Stanford students protest new water-saving showers (via Jetson Green) (pic at right not from Stanford, but from Kohler, see after the jump.)
Forgive the massive generalization from another part of the country, but aren’t college students, and particularly California college students, supposed to care a whole lot about environmental good intentions? Guess they’re just as partial to their habits as the rest of us, and unable to remember the big picture when it comes to hot water. Yes, if everyone did the small things, they would add up, and make a difference…but everyone won’t, and we should plan for that.
The clever design strategy is to provide solutions that steer the market into good decisions overall.
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