By Jennifer Evans
Madison Magazine
Special To Channel 3000

In Madison, where only six months ago Mayor Dave Cieslewicz kicked off the citywide MPower campaign to reduce CO2 emissions by one hundred thousand tons by 2011, big-picture solutions to reduce global warming can't come fast enough.

Josh Arnold, member of the board of directors of the Wisconsin Green Building Alliance, says building or retrofitting an office space to be more "green" provides a major opportunity to reduce Madison's carbon footprint, while improving the workplace environment and maximizing a company's financial, social and environmental gains.

According to the U.S. Green Building Council, buildings in the United States represent sixty-five percent of the country's electricity consumption, thirty-six percent of its energy use and thirty percent of its greenhouse gas emissions.

In addition to guzzling energy and pumping out carbon dioxide, Arnold says buildings have a major impact on the quality of public life.

"People spend more than ninety percent of their time indoors," Arnold says. "There are huge opportunities for businesses to build energy-efficient buildings that contribute to a healthy indoor environment."

Thanks to the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system--a tool for assessing a building's level of sustainability, indoor environmental quality, materials, water efficiency and design--businesses interested in "going green" don't have to look far for ways to build or retrofit offices.

New and existing buildings can apply for LEED certification, where a third-party member will rate and verify the operation of a building according to its green features, such as high quality of air and amount of natural light.

Arnold says studies show increased access to properly managed daylight in offices and schools correlates with higher levels of employee productivity and student performance. Another way to improve quality of life is by reducing the amount of chemicals known as volatile organic compounds, or VOCs, typically found in paints and finishes.

"Studies show if you eliminate the use of VOCs, you reduce the amount of sick and personal days used by employees," Arnold says.

To read the rest of the article, click here: Going Green At Work