Nevada Areas Adopt Stricter Codes to Improve Energy Efficiency of Buildings

Nevada Areas Adopt Stricter Codes to Improve Energy Efficiency of Buildings

Jun 13 - Las Vegas Review-Journal

Stricter building codes aimed at more energy-efficient construction have been adopted by five municipalities in Southern Nevada, a spokeswoman for the Southern Nevada Home Builders Association said Thursday.

The 2003 International Energy Conservation Code that goes into effect Aug. 1 will "raise the bar on energy conservation and efficiency in the building industry," Monica Caruso said.

Adopted by Clark County, Las Vegas, Henderson, North Las Vegas and Boulder City, the code establishes minimum design and construction standards for improving energy efficiency in homes, businesses and other buildings. It governs wall construction, lighting, alternative power services and all aspects of energy use in residential and commercial construction.

The International Energy Conservation Code replaces the 1992 Model Energy Code, national energy-efficiency regulations based on the federal Energy Policy Act of 1992.

The energy code is expected to lower utility bills. Building officials estimate it will cost an average of $1,500 to bring new homes in compliance with new requirements. Homeowners will save about $400 a year on energy bills, paying for the added costs in less than four years.

In commercial construction, the upgrades will cost about $1.60 a square foot, with energy bill savings of about 68 cents a square foot a year, meaning the upgrades would pay for themselves in about 2.4 years.

A report from the Southwest Energy Efficiency Project and the Nevada State Office of Energy estimated that adoption of the new building code will produce a savings in energy costs of about $1.86 billion from 2006 through 2020.

Representatives from local building departments, Associated General Contractors and Southern Nevada Home Builders Association worked for about a year to put together a version of the International Energy Conservation Code that would be applicable to building conditions in Southern Nevada such as soil and weather, Caruso said.

"This was truly a team effort that required the collaboration of the construction industry and local jurisdictions to bring the new International Energy Conservation Code to our valley," said Michael Bouse, director of building and fire safety for the city of Henderson.

Bouse said he hopes the process used to adopt the new code can be used for future evaluations of other construction codes used in the valley, leading to more streamlined and timely code adoptions.

Several home builders in Southern Nevada were already building new housing above the requirements of the 1992 energy code, Caruso said.

Companies such as Pulte and Pardee are members of Energy Star, a voluntary energy conservation program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and private industry. Energy Star homes are designed and built to use 30 percent less energy for heating and cooling compared with homes built under the old code.

-----

To see more of the Las Vegas Review-Journal, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.lvrj.com .

Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.

For information on republishing this content, contact us at (800) 661-2511 (U.S.), (213) 237-4914 (worldwide), fax (213) 237-6515, or e-mail reprints@krtinfo.com.

PHM, WY,