The Delaware Valley Green Building Council Wednesday announced in PlanPhilly it is leading the formation of Philadelphia 2030, a private sector-led initiative to reduce energy use, water consumption, and transportation-related emissions from the building sector 50 percent by 2030 at a district scale.

The program is based on a Policy Framework For Advancing Green Building in Philadelphia published in January.

By doing so, Philadelphia will be joining Los Angeles, Toronto, Pittsburgh, Austin, San Francisco and 10 other cities participating in 2030 District, a project that already covers almost 300 million square feet of new and existing commercial building space.

“This is a strategy to mitigate climate change, ultimately,” Katie Bartolotta, DVGBC’s policy and program manager told PlanPhilly.

Buildings are the single-greatest source of carbon pollution in Philadelphia, according to the City of Philadelphia Office of Sustainability, and are responsible for 60 percent of citywide carbon emissions.

“Right now, buildings are contributing to the problem, but strategies for reducing energy use in buildings is part of the solution,” Bartolotta said. “The city has a goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 80 percent by 2050. If you want to make strides in reaching that goal, reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the building sector is a really good target area to focus a lot of resources on.”

For more information on programs, initiatives and upcoming events, visit the Delaware Valley Green Building Council website.

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Delaware Valley Green Building Council Initiative To Reduce Energy Use 50% By 2030

[Posted: Jan. 18, 2017]

1/23/2017