Maryland is leading the green building revolution. With several municipalities, notably Baltimore City and Howard County, mandating all new commercial projects achieve certain standards for energy efficiency and environmental design, the state is at the forefront of legislating green building.
“Green is the new black,” said Stuart Kaplow, a Baltimore attorney concentrating in land use and environmental law. “The State of Maryland is on the cusp of becoming the green leader.”
City Councilman Jim Kraft plans to introduce new green building bills at Monday?s City Council meeting, including offering a 10-year tax credit for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Silver buildings and offering a tax credit dealing with the use of solar energy in commercial buildings, Kaplow said.
Baltimore City last year introduced what Kaplow called “among the strictest Green Building laws in the nation.” In short, the law requires nearly all newly constructed buildings, with permits filed in 2009, to achieve a LEED Silver rating, the third-highest green building rating.
The requirements will be phased in the second half of 2008, giving developers a chance to “get up to speed with LEED,” said David Pratt, chair of the Baltimore Regional Green Building Council.
“It?s going to be very significant. The number of buildings it?s going to affect will be in the hundreds each year,” Pratt said. “It?s going to be a bit of a challenge. We don?t know quite yet the impact or the effects on developers.”
In Howard County, private developers must go through the process toward achieving certification in nationally accepted LEED techniques. Publicly funded buildings of more than 10,000 square feet must be certified.
Montgomery County has also passed green building legislation, and Annapolis is currently considering similar green initiatives.
“The onus is on developers to make sure they understand the regulations,” Pratt said. “Maryland now is in a really good position to receive a lot of national attention with these programs.”
