The Department of Energy’s Building Technologies Office has started soliciting insights from industry, academia and other federal agencies as it works to develop a national definition of a zero emissions building.
DOE said Wednesday it expects the national definition to establish a clear market signal and serve as a framework that could be used to influence the design and operation of buildings as part of efforts to transition the building sector to zero emissions.
The RFI was issued by DOE for Part 1 of a draft definition for zero emissions buildings.
According to the department, federal assistance initiatives supporting the renovation and construction of non-federally owned buildings will be encouraged to fall in line with the national definition.
The definition’s initial part will focus on zero operating emissions and future parts will likely encompass key elements such as refrigerants and embodied carbon.
According to the proposed definition, a zero emissions building is a structure that is highly energy efficient, free of on-site emissions from energy use and powered solely from clean energy.
Responses to the RFI are due Feb. 5.