Building Codes Assistance Project

This Earth Day, Montgomery County (located in Maryland, just north of Washington, DC ) took a bold step towards reducing carbon emissions and saving energy by adopting the US EPA's ENERGY STAR standards for all new homes.  The county council unanimously approved the bill which will go into effect January 2010.  The move will improve home energy use by 15 to 30 percent above minimum energy code levels.  For more on the story, see the Washington Post article at:

Montgomery County Council members are considering several pieces of climate and energy-focused legislation. As introduced, these bills attempt to address energy consumption, building efficiency, transportation, fuels, climate planning and awareness, renewable energy, and energy and environmental advocacy. Hearings were scheduled for January 17th.