Sam Rashkin, chief architect of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Building Technologies Office, says that the construction of zero energy ready homes is accelerating in many parts of the country. There has been over 350% growth in net zero ready home building between 2015 and 2018, to more than 22,000 homes.
Government policies are spurring zero energy ready construction. Cities including Lancaster, Calif., Palo Alto, Calif., Bloomfield, Iowa, and Montpelier, Vt., are promoting zero energy initiatives. Some states are adopting building code targets that are moving to net zero, including California, New Jersey, and Washington.
Many other states have plans for adopting the latest 2018 International Building Code, and others have stretch codes that keep ratcheting up energy performance.
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