Sustainability

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A water treatment plant being built near Fort Myers, Fla., will purify water from three different aquifers with three different treatment systems.

California, Oregon and Washington are among the states moving forward with regulations and road maps for the construction and operation of building- and district-scale graywater capture and treatment systems for non-potable-water use, such as toilet flushing and irrigation.

Innovative, technology-driven communities are being designed and constructed for the next generation—and beyond.

The National Institute of Building Sciences is advising the owners of the nation’s estimated 1,500 professional, college and community sports venues to join in a collective effort to reduce energy and water consumption—and utility bills.

With several large, grid-scale battery-storage facilities opening in quick succession in Southern California, pundits say the state has taken a leading role in developing infrastructure to hold renewable power generated during low-demand periods, using it to supply customers during peak hours.

The world’s first tidal lagoon power plant could move forward as a result of the United Kingdom’s planned departure from the European Union, maybe in 2019.

Roadways that communicate with and charge the electric vehicles that drive on them. Autonomous trucks that deliver freight faster and safer, with less stress on highways and bridges. These are just a few of the innovative transportation concepts, once considered impossible, that could become reality in the near future.

As those on the leading edge know, progress in the buildings sector does not come easily. But that doesn't stop innovators from working diligently to increase the sustainability and resilience of buildings and decrease their carbon footprints while trying to find ways to boost construction quality and building-team productivity.