Green Construction

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rr0IAWO9lnk

Buildings and the ways they are located, designed, built, and kept up have a huge effect on our environment and on us, too. In the U.S., buildings use a whopping 39 percent of our energy and 72 percent of all our electricity. Most of that energy comes from fossil fuels. Burning them creates the pollution that is causing global warming, and other kinds of pollution that dirties our air and can cause health problems like asthma, lung cancer and heart disease.

Buildings also have a big effect on how much fresh water we use. In parts of the country that are facing droughts, that’s very important because they affect how much rain and snow add to problems like stormwater pollution. Stormwater pollution is pollution that happens when rains overflow our combined sewer systems, which handle both rain or snow and water from our bathrooms and kitchens. When it rains, overflows cause untreated sewage to spill into our rivers and oceans, closing beaches, hurting fish and other creatures, and making people sick.

The building industry is working hard to improve its effect on the environment. It is very quickly inventing and using new ways to locate, design, build, and maintain the buildings we spend so much time in. Here’s an example of just how fast things are changing: In 2012, almost 45 percent of all commercial and institutional buildings—buildings built as stores, offices, hospitals, etc.—were built following guidelines put out by the U.S. Green Building Council, an important organization that works to improve the effects buildings have on our environment. In 2016, that number is expected to pass 55 percent.

The field of green (or “environmentally-friendly”) construction is as diverse as the construction field itself. Workers in this field include everyone from union and non-union construction workers—laborers, electricians, carpenters, plumbers—to drafts people, office workers, architects, engineers, real estate developers, urban planners, building operators and employees, and local government officials, to name just a few. (For more about jobs in green construction, check out this helpful article from the federal government’s Bureau of Labor Statistics.)

The field has three big employers:

Private companies are the biggest employer in this field, by far. These companies include architecture, design and planning firms; engineering firms; construction contractors and subcontractors; landscaping companies; heating, ventilation and air conditioning contractors; real estate developers; building supply companies; waste haulers; and others.

Government agencies also employ people in this field. Here in New York City, that means the city government, through the Department of Housing Preservation and Development, the Department of City Planning, the Mayor’s Office of Long-Term Planning and Sustainability, the New York City Housing Authority, the School Construction Authority, and other city agencies. The New York State government is also involved, through its office of Homes and Community Renewal, the New York Energy Research and Development Authority, the Dormitory Authority and other agencies. At the federal level, there are jobs at the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Department of Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency, the General Services Administration, the Department of Defense, and other federal agencies.

Not-for-profit organizations also work in this field. They are organizations that have been set up to carry out a mission, instead of simply to make money.

New York City is home to many fantastic nonprofits that work to improve the ways that buildings effect our environment. One of the most important is the Urban Green Council. It is the New York chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council and is involved in moving the building and real estate field forward in New York. Some other New York City non-profit organizations that work in green construction are the Association for Energy Affordability; Build It Green! NYC; Community Environmental Center; Enterprise; and, LISC NYC. But those are only a few of the organizations doing this work. The job listing websites below, especially Idealist.org, can help you find job openings at many non-profit organizations. One of the great things about the website is that it allows you to search using terms that make it easy to find jobs in the fields you’re interested in.

Building trade unions are not employers. But many of them have training programs that can help their members and apprentices learn the skills they need to know to work on green building projects. To join a union, you must go through a union apprenticeship program. Openings in these programs are listed with the New York State Department of Labor. Read these postings carefully. They often have very detailed requirements.

Pre-apprenticeship programs can help interested workers join unions directly, without having to wait for apprenticeship programs to open up. There are at least three in New York City: One, called the Edward J. Malloy Initiative for Construction Skills, is available to African American, Latino and Asian American seniors in New York City high schools. Another is Nontraditional Employment for Women. The third, for veterans, is called Helmets to Hardhats. Several construction unions also have their own pre-apprenticeship programs.

For people interested in non-union construction jobs, a program called BuildingSkillsNY provides eight to 10 weeks of training in construction skills, including green construction skills.

Whether someone works in a union or non-union construction job, people who work in this field emphasize that it is important for construction workers to have construction skills first, before getting additional training in subjects that can help them find work on green construction sites.

For more information about the kinds of jobs available in green construction, and the training and education you might need to work in the field, check out the Green Construction page of the Green Careers center at CareerOneStop.org. The federal government put CareerOneStop.org together to help people find work. CareerOneStop.org can also help you learn about salaries and benefits, along with other helpful information.

If you are looking for a job in green construction, one great place to turn is the U.S. Green Building Council’s Career Center. Also, a number of the country’s largest green building companies are headquartered in the New York City area. They post professional and office jobs on their websites. These companies include Turner Construction, Skanska, StructureTone, Lend Lease, and EWHowell.

Non-union construction workers can find building subcontractors listed through the Subcontractors Trade Association. Subcontractors are usually the ones who do the hiring for non-union jobs. Members of building trades unions can find work through their unions.

Another helpful website is the Green Job Bank. And general job-search websites, like Indeed.com and LinkedIn.com, are good places to look, too.

To begin your job search or explore some training options, check out the websites below.

Job Boards

American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-

Conditioning Engineers

Association for Energy Affordability

New York Chapter, Association of Energy Engineers