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Biden admin to define national standard for zero-emission buildings

Clarification aims to help developers navigate medley of green building laws

Biden Admin to Set National Zero-Emission Building Standard
President Joe Biden and White House National Climate Adviser Ali Zaidi (Getty)

The Biden administration wants to clarify something for the real estate industry.

According to the Washington Post, the White House is to announce its definition of a “zero-emission” building, in effect setting an unprecedented national standard for green real estate. Biden’s zero-emission definition will include “three pillars”: energy efficiency, no on-site emissions, and operating with 100 percent renewable energy, a senior administration official told the outlet.

With this new clarity, the Biden administration hopes to simplify the process of green building development and construction for real estate developers, many of whom have national portfolios subject to a wide and varying range of state and local green building policies. 

“A workable, usable federal definition of zero-emission buildings can bring some desperately needed uniformity and consistency to a chaotic regulatory landscape,” Duane Desiderio, senior vice president and counsel at the Real Estate Roundtable, told the publication.

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In the absence of federal leadership, state and local governments have had to step up to define goals and qualifications for sustainability and climate action in real estate. The result has been a hodgepodge of regulations, such as New York City’s Local Law 97, and California’s recent building code update that cracked down on embodied carbon. 

“Getting to zero emissions does not need to be a premium product. We know how to do this,” White House National Climate Adviser Ali Zaidi told the outlet. “It just has to get to scale, which I think a common definition will facilitate.”

Biden, who has made tackling the climate crisis a pillar of his presidency, faces legal and political hurdles in mandating emission reductions for real estate, according to the outlet. He cannot legally impose compulsory emissions reductions in privately owned buildings, and the Republican-controlled House of Representatives is hell-bent against allowing climate legislation to pass. 

— Kate Hinsche

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Climate ChangeGreen BuildingsJoe BidenPoliticsSustainability