Charles Russell, November 29, 2010
Clarifications to CALGreen
The newest version of the Guide to the Non-Residential California Green Building Standards Code (CALGreen) has just been released by the California Building Standards Commission (www.bsc.ca.gov), and VCA wants to make sure you always have the latest CALGreen information.
The BSC has provided some clarification in a number of sections:
- Section 5.106.1 has been re-titled to the “Storm Water-Soil Loss Prevention Plan.”
- Section 5.106.8 has had some clarification language added regarding light pollution.
- Section 5.304.1 has been amended with the addition of a water budget formula.
- Section 5.410.2 has been amended with some twenty plus pages which give guidelines to the scope, contents, and process of the commissioning requirement.
Landscaping Application of CALGreen for Live/Work Occupancy
The California Building Code (CBC) Section 310 classifies a live/work occupancy class as an R-2. Section 419 of the CBC establishes the requirements for this occupancy. When applying CALGreen to an R-2, what landscape chapter would be used? Chapter 4 is for residential applications so. Use Chapter 5, which is for commercial applications, because most of these type of live/work buildings are in a commercial setting.
Jurisdictions Establish Their Own CALGreen Document Procedures
CALGreen requires a number of documents for submittal and field verification. It is up to each jurisdiction to establish policies and procedures for these various types of documents. For proper and expedient submittal, VCA suggests talking with your local building department about this topic prior to project submittal.