Design professionals, real estate developers and builders alike are advocating for a relatively new way of using one of the world’s oldest building materials—wood—in large-scale commercial and residential construction projects. Mass timber, or structural timber, touts such benefits as carbon reduction and seismic durability—all with a lower construction time. With ESG on the minds of clients, investors and tenants, mass timber projects present an attractive construction option for the integration of sustainable resources and these various benefits.
Articles Posted in Energy
ICYMI: Department of Energy Announces $6 Billion Funding Opportunity for Industrial Decarbonization and Emissions Reduction Projects
On March 8, 2023, the Department of Energy (DOE) announced approximately $6 billion in funding to accelerate decarbonization projects in energy intensive industries and provide American manufacturers a competitive advantage. Funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) and Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), the Industrial Demonstrations Program will focus on revolutionizing energy intensive industrial processes with the highest emissions, where decarbonization technologies will have the greatest impact. Industries that represent the greatest opportunities include iron, steel, steel mill products, aluminum, cement, concrete, glass, pulp, paper, industrial ceramics and chemical products.
Read more in “Department of Energy Announces $6 Billion Funding Opportunity for Industrial Decarbonization and Emissions Reduction Projects” by Elina Teplinsky, Sheila McCafferty Harvey, Sidney L. Fowler, and Ashley L. Meredith.
Real Estate & Construction News Roundup (03/08/23) – Updates on U.S. Mortgage Applications, the Inflation Reduction Act, and Multifamily Sector
This week’s roundup explores the cooling housing market and plummeting mortgage applications, potential tax-savings as a result of the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), and new developments in the multifamily sector.
Real Estate & Construction News Roundup (02/15/23) – Proptech Solutions, Supply Chain Pivots, and the Inflation Reduction Act
This week’s roundup explores how proptech could alleviate the financial burden of property owners’ vacant office space, manufacturing firms are bolstering the industrial real estate sector, a 200-MW Texas project is first to leverage IRA tax credit for stand-alone energy storage, and more.
Real Estate & Construction News Round-Up (02/08/23) – The Build America, Buy America Act, ESG Feasibility, and University Partnerships
This week’s round-up explores President Joe Biden’s recent State of the Union address and plans for the Build America, Buy America Act, the feasibility of real estate companies achieving their ESG goals, and how developers, lenders, and tenants are partnering with universities to solve real estate challenges.
Real Estate & Construction News Round-Up (11/16/22) – Backlog Shifts, Green Battery Storage, and Russia-Ukraine Updates
This week’s round-up explores backlog shifts in the nonresidential construction sector, updates from the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, lithium-ion battery storage issues in New York City, and more.
Real Estate & Construction News Round-Up (11/09/22) – Fractional NFTs, Infrastructure Lobbying, and Experimental Retail
This week’s round-up dives into NFT fractionalization and its potential benefit to increase accessibility in real estate investing, lobbying efforts surrounding Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) funding, experimental retail spaces, and more.
Real Estate & Construction News Round-Up (09/28/22) – Virtual Property, ESG Reporting, and Economic Sanctions
This week’s round-up features virtual land marketplaces, proposed sanctions from the European Commission against Russia, ESG reporting and transparency in the real estate industry, and more.
Proposed Rule to Designate Two PFAS Chemicals as Hazardous Substances Stands to Up the Ante for Site Remediation
On Friday, August 26, 2022, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released a pre-publication notice of a long-awaited proposed rule to designate two of the most-studied per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)—perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS)—as hazardous substances under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA). In an accompanying statement, EPA indicated that the proposed rule will be published in the Federal Register within the next few weeks. That publication will commence a 60-day public comment period, and EPA appears to be targeting final rule promulgation by Summer 2023. The addition of PFOA and PFOS to the hazardous substances list may significantly expand CERCLA liability, thus increasing the number of responsible parties, expanding investigatory costs and duration, remediation, and where applicable, natural resource damages liability.
Click here to read the full client alert from Pillsbury’s Reza Zarghamee, Amanda Halter, Mark Plumer, and Ashleigh Myers
Real Estate & Construction News Round-Up (09/07/22) – Futuristic Cities, Shifting Housing Demand, and Rent Control
This week’s round-up addresses the shift in housing demand, efforts of apartment complexes to become more eco-friendly, plans for “cities of the future,” and more.