Everywhere you turn you hear the word green- whether it's through recycling, the changing of lightbulbs or LEED building design.  With more than 6.7 billion people on Earth, the initiative to reduce the level of carbon in the atmosphere and create a more sustainable way of life has never been greater.  This has initiated an emergence in the movement of the design-build industry, giving way to LEED design and green building practices with codes being an integral element. 

On March 15th 2010, the International Code Council (ICC) released its International Green Construction Code (IGCC), a collaboration between the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) International.  The IGCC incorporated a previous code, Standard 189- a LEED modeled standard unveiled in January by the U.S Green Building Council (USGBC), the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) and the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America (IESNA).  Integrating these codes is welcoming news for architects and engineers, ensuring the consistency in codes and compliances from one jurisdiction to another.  The IGCC and Standard 189 provide standards that can both broaden and strengthen building codes by addressing such objectives as sustainable site development, water and energy efficiency, indoor environmental quality and reducing the overall consumption of building materials. 

The introduction of green standards is just beginning. We can expect green codes to move forward nationwide much more and to involve all aspects of our daily routine, as all industries are trying to do their part for the environment.