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Built Green®: It Just Makes Sense

Olympia Master Builders' (OMB) Built Green® program continues to grow. Built Green® is a voluntary, market-driven environmental building program that is designed to help consumers find quality, affordable homes and products that provide opportunities to protect the environment, and the health of their families. Built Green®OMB already has builders, associates and government/non-profits as members. So, what is it that these members know that inspired them to join Built Green®?

Why Built Green®? Environment. Health. Savings.

Consumer demand is growing for Built Green®. It just makes sense. Built Green® practices are better for the environment, better for your health, and better for your wallet.

Built Green® ensures that a home has been constructed with the environment in mind, helping to preserve our natural resources and quality of life. Recycled content materials help conserve natural resources. An example of this is plastic lumber made from recycled plastic jugs, can be used for decking, sills and siding, replacing what are traditionally wood products. Rapidly renewable materials such as bamboo, wheat-grass, cork and strawboard can be managed, grown and harvested in a sustainable way, and can replace lumber from old-growth trees. These sustain ably harvested materials and locally manufactured products reduce transportation energy use. Built Green® also emphasizes careful site selection, water conservation, protection of natural features, preventing erosion, and improving water quality.

It is okay to breathe easy, knowing Built Green® homes contain less toxic materials. A Built Green® home is designed to provide superior indoor air quality, leading to improved health. Using low-VOC (volatile organic compound) and low-toxic interior paints and finishes can reduce toxins, effectively increasing a home's indoor air quality. Carpeting can be tacked rather than glued with adhesives that can off-gas over time. Improving indoor air quality can be helpful for residents with sensitivities to allergens.

A Built Green® home can be designed to maximize energy efficiency, making the home more economical and comfortable to live in. Features such as extra insulation, more efficient water heaters, lighting and appliances, plus the use of natural day-lighting techniques all add up to savings. Monthly utility bills, maintenance and replacement costs are lower, so residents will save money over the life of the home.

Benefits of Membership in OMB's Built Green® Program:

As a member of Olympia Master Builders' Built Green® program, you can use the Built Green® trademark and logo within your advertising. This is done in the same way that members of OMB are encouraged to use the Olympia Master Builders name and logo. The ability to advertise as a company that offers Built Green® services will open doors to a wide range of consumers.

Members can benefit from this program through education on what it means to build green. When you join Built Green®, there will be opportunities to attend classes that explain the core principles of the program. For example, the Built Green® program has been awarded a grant by the WA Department of Ecology. With this grant, classes will be funded to help educate builders on what building products and techniques are helpful in obtaining a good finished green project.

Another benefit is networking. When you join Built Green®, you will have opportunities to meet with others in the industry. You can share ideas, ask questions or even find new innovative ways to build green. In addition, your company name will be listed on OMB's Built Green® website at www.builtgreenomb.org.

How You Can Join:

The Built Green® program at Olympia Master Builders is completely voluntary. Annual participation dues are $50 for OMB members, and $250 for non-members. Application forms can be found on the Built Green® website under "Forms".

Once enrolled as a member of the Built Green® program, builders submit a checklist to certify their project as Built Green®. This checklist is an Excel document, and can also be found on the website under "Forms". Built Green® members receive a Field Guide that accompanies and provides a more detailed explanation to the checklists.

The checklist gives points for certain green built criteria. At the conclusion of the checklist, a rating is determined. There are five levels of Built Green within this program. Level One is the lowest, and Level Five is the highest.

Homes built at Levels One through Three are self-certified by the builder. Upon completion of a checklist for a Level One through Three home, builders return the checklist to OMB, along with a certification fee of $100, and that project is certified!

Because Levels Four and Five reach a higher threshold of Built Green®, these are required to have a third-party verification. Olympia Master Builders can put you in touch with a third party verifier to compare the checklist to your home. To reach certification at these levels, the OMB office must receive the checklist, a memo from the third party verifier, and a certification fee for $150. The increased fee for Levels Four and Five reflects the extra fees that OMB pays to the third-party verifier per project.

There is a cap for certification fees. Builders that expect to exceed building thirty homes per year have the option to pay $3,000 in advance. Checklists are still required, as well as third-party verification if the home is at a Level Four or Five.

Now is the time to consider joining Built Green®. Many builders find that by just comparing the checklist to their current building practices, including recycling programs and attention to energy efficiency, they are already building to Level One or Two standards. Why not become part of the program, and take advantage of the extra benefits that being a member of Built Green® offers?

Click Here to print an application Built Green® OMB.