Denver City Council approves Green Code and lists Passive House certification as compliance path

 

We are pleased to share some exciting news from Denver, Colorado. In the City’s efforts to push forward its 80×50 Climate Action Plan, and with the goal of Net Zero new construction by 2035, City Council has approved a voluntary, incentivized “Green Code”.

Having identified Passive construction as a critical part of being able to realistically reach Net Zero goals, the Denver Green Code has listed Passive House certification – both through PHI or PHIUS – as a compliance path. The City Council voted the change on December 23rd, 2019, and Mayor Hancock signed the bill on December 26th, 2019. Read more here.

The Denver Green Code is expected to eventually become mandatory in a future code update, serving as a “stretch code” to help encourage local construction companies to get on board. The writing on the wall is that Passive standards are the future of the building industry, and more and more cities are looking for ways to support reaching those standards.

Download a draft of the Denver Green Code >

This code adoption is important for several reasons. One, our building codes are how we ensure the safety of what’s built in Denver, and we take this very seriously. Our codes also raise the bar for energy conservation in our built environment in support of the city’s climate action goals

Scott Prisco, Denver’s chief building office

 

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