Clinton Initiative Pumps Greenhouse Gas Fight

WASHINGTON — Improving old buildings through energy-efficient renovations is the focus of an expanded partnership between the Clinton Climate Initiative and the U.S. Green Building Council to cut greenhouse gas emissions.

Retrofitting existing buildings for improved efficiency could save the economy more than $160 billion by 2030, according to McKinsey & Company, a multinational consulting and marketing firm.

“Retrofitting buildings represents an immediate and measurable opportunity to cut greenhouse gas emissions and improve our economy,” says former President Bill Clinton.

The Energy Efficiency Building Retrofit Program has helped start more than 250 retrofit projects totaling more than 500 million square feet of real estate in more than 30 cities worldwide, according to CCI.

CCI plans to expand its efforts to include more cities in the C40 Large Cities Climate Leadership Group, an association of large cities around the world formed in 2006 to increase efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions.

The collaboration also includes a plan to rethink and redefine new building developments, according to USGBC officials.