Blue to Green

The era of sustainable design and construction has come to the United States Air Force. Unfortunately, it has yet to take full control of how the Air Force Civil Engineering (CE) community manages the design, construction, operation and maintenance of existing facilities. The rising costs of building materials and energy significantly impact the entire life-cycle costs of a building. With the large physical plant owned by the Air Force, the sum of these costs is enormous. The prospect of diminishing funds to support facility maintenance and repair in order to recapitalize the aircraft fleet is very real. It is time for Air Force civil engineers to fully embrace the guiding principles behind sustainable design and incorporate them throughout the community. The smart application of the US Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards can and should be extended beyond just large Military Construction projects. The LEED Existing Buildings rating system can be used to facilitate the greening of how the CE community manages the existing Air Force physical plant as well as the Sustainment, Restoration, and Modernization project account.