Washington, D.C. – The National Institute on Building Sciences, with critical input from the International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials (IAPMO), this week released its 2010 Consultative Council Report, a collection of findings and recommendations on high-level issues impacting the building community presented to President Obama and subsequently delivered by the president to Congress.
The Consultative Council established topical committees consisting of representatives from many industry organizations to prepare a report on each of the following issues: Defining High-Performance and Common Metrics; Energy and Water Efficiency; Codes and Standards Adoption and Enforcement; Sustainability; Education and Training; and Existing Buildings.
IAPMO Director of Special Programs Pete DeMarco served as facilitator on the topical committee examining Water and Energy Efficiency. The United Association’s Larry Bulman facilitated the committee on Education and Training. The Water and Energy Efficiency topical committee presented nine findings and recommendations, including:
• The federal government should redouble its leadership efforts and urgently work with construction community stakeholders to develop widely acceptable energy and water efficiency metrics to be deployed in developing future codes, standards and efficiency programs.
• Investment in energy and water-related infrastructure is desperately needed. Programs aimed at repairing and replacing aging infrastructure would vastly improve efficiencies and create jobs.
• The President and Congress should prioritize, coordinate and support development of a national water strategy.
• Congress and the Administration should continue to fund successful labeling incentive programs like Energy Star™ and WaterSense™ and support retrofit incentive programs aimed at removing inefficient consumer appliances and plumbing fixtures from the marketplace.
“IAPMO is proud to have helped facilitate the development of the water and energy efficiency recommendations contained in the Consultative Council’s annual report, recommendations we believe are vital to the United States’ future as it relates to improving the efficiency of our nation’s building stock,” DeMarco said.
The Consultative Council has already convened discussions toward 2011 and has begun working to prioritize actionable items from this year’s report. For more information, direct your Web browser to www.nibs.org/cc/activities.
Last modified: May 27, 2011