House Republican Press Release

 

 

 

February 15, 2007

Press Office: 860-240-8700

 

Caron Pushes for Energy-Conserving “Green” Buildings

 

Lauds Gov. Rell for Here Commitment to Encourage Low-Energy School Facilities

 

The legislature is likely to take a giant step forward to encourage more low-energy, high efficiency buildings at the state and local level, according to State Rep. Michael Caron, R-44, Killingly, Plainfield, Sterling.

 

Rep. Caron, who has been pushing to implement “green” building standards for several years, praised Gov. M. Jodi Rell for endorsing the issue in her recent budget message to the legislature.

 

“I appreciate the commitment of the governor to expand green building standards to include school construction, as we did for state-owned facilities last year,” said Rep. Caron. “Modern building materials and operating systems will more than pay for themselves through energy conservation, cost savings and smart design.”

 

He and other Connecticut House Republicans have proposed legislation this year to expand green building standards, following on last year’s legislation related to state-owned facilities. He introduced legislation, HB 6728, to include local school construction in state LEED or equivalent construction program.

 

Rep. Caron noted that the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System is a flexible point system for the design, construction, and operation of high-performance green buildings. LEED promotes a whole-building approach to sustainability by recognizing performance in five key areas of human and environmental health: sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection, and indoor environmental quality.

 

Even before passage of last year’s legislation, several state-funded projects have met the LEED standards, including buildings at Eastern Connecticut State University in Willimantic and the University of Connecticut at Storrs.

 

Rep. Michael Caron serves the 44th Assembly District of Killingly, Plainfield and Sterling in the state House of Representatives.