Publications

Many local governments would prefer to buy green products and services, but don’t know where to start – or whether they can afford it. The Alliance’s Green Procurement Guide is designed to help local governments craft and implement green procurement policies, and shows that green products are a clear win. Often costing no more than conventional products, they can help local governments save money, create local green jobs, and reduce their environmental footprint. The guide incorporates case studies, simple steps to establish green procurement policies, and sample green bid specifications. While the guide is tailored for local government applications, all organizations can benefit from the policies, processes, and practical resources featured.

Sustainable rehabilitation offers an opportunity to strategically combine various improvements in a way that can achieve utility cost savings, reduce consumption, and improve resident comfort and health. An integral part of a successful green housing strategy is planning in advance to establish policies, identify opportunities, implement a test pilot, and apply best practices. This strategy guide offers resources and information for developing a sustainability plan for multifamily housing projects. Incorporating sustainability at the planning level involves consideration of the following key actions: 1) Benchmarking your organization’s practices, policies and procedures, 2) Setting goals, developing strategies and actions, and 3) Assessing the sustainability of properties and areas for improvement.

Sustainability improvements can create value in existing multifamily properties by reducing energy and water costs and increasing attractiveness to current and future tenants. While lack of resources often limits the extent of environmental improvements, it is important that property managers have a framework in place to identify and implement those measures that are feasible. This guide focuses on relatively easy and low cost strategies for improving building sustainability, such as implementing best practices for operations and maintenance activities, and paying close attention to building envelope, heating and cooling, water, and lighting systems.

This study presents several recommendations for enhancing the performance and delivery process for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Mark-to-Market (M2M) Green Initiative program. The M2M Green Initiative is a nationwide pilot program designed to incorporate green principles into property rehabilitation, repairs, and replacements for properties undergoing a M2M restructuring. The recommendations suggested here are primarily related to improving technical and economic analysis requirements, improving utility monitoring requirements, and providing more specific guidance for selection of qualified contractors.