All too often we see media coverage portraying preservation and sustainability as conflicting goals. This article highlights an important policy opportunity to advance preservation, energy efficiency, and decarbonization goals: Building Performance Standards. It is excerpted from a forthcoming report that will be released later this summer, Common Ground: Strategies to Align Historic Preservation and Sustainability Policies.

Building operations represent about 27 percent of annual global carbon emissions. As cities and states pursue their energy and climate goals, they have historically relied primarily on energy codes to address this significant piece of the emissions pie. However, energy codes only regulate construction events (new building construction, alterations, and additions) and therefore have limited impact on the larger building stock. In any given year, new construction and major renovations represent only 2 percent of the U.S. building stock. The other 98 percent—buildings that already exist—are untouched by energy codes. Relying on energy codes alone to reduce carbon emissions from building operations seriously hinders communities’ ability to meet their energy and climate goals.

A New Policy Tool

As a result, many jurisdictions are turning to a new policy tool: Building Performance Standards (BPS). BPS policies set minimum performance standards for all or part of the existing building stock. The specifics vary by jurisdiction, but BPS policies generally include:

• Which building types and building sizes are covered and whether any buildings are exempt.
• A metric for performance. This is typically based on energy use or carbon emissions, but other metrics such as the ENERGY STAR Score are used, and other metrics have been proposed as well.
• Performance targets that buildings are required to meet. These can become more stringent over time.
• The compliance process, including deadlines and alternate compliance methods.
• Penalties for non-compliance.

Since BPS requirements are triggered by compliance deadlines rather than construction events, they can have a much broader impact on existing buildings than building codes. Two model BPS have been developed and twenty-one states, counties and cities have adopted a BPS to date, with almost twice as many committed to future adoption.

Historic Buildings and Building Performance Standards

BPS policies could be either a boon or a threat to historic buildings. Without appropriate accommodation for historic buildings, BPS policies could require changes that are deleterious to historic character or even changes that conflict with existing preservation standards, guidelines, or regulations. They could also impose retrofit costs on already resource-constrained building owners that might eventually lead to abandonment or demolition.

These risks might lead preservationists to seek exemptions from BPS policies. But exemptions come with their own risks. The preservation of most historic buildings depends on their ability to remain reasonably competitive in the local real estate market. If historic buildings are left behind while the rest of the building stock is spurred to higher performance—and lower operational costs—by BPS policies, those historic buildings are put at an increasing disadvantage in the local market.

In fact, BPS policies could bring advantages for historic buildings. Since BPS policies regulate actual building performance, they don’t get hung up on requirements for individual building systems—such as windows or exterior envelope insulation – like energy codes can. They also can account for elements of building performance. such as efficient operation, maintenance, etc., that are outside of the scope of energy codes. This makes BPS policies inherently more flexible. And flexibility is a great advantage for historic buildings, which have a wide variety of character-defining and historically significant features.

The BPS policies that have been adopted so far have been inconsistent in their treatment of historic buildings. Approaches vary from complete silence regarding historic buildings, to full exemptions, to accommodations. When accommodation is offered, the accommodation process generally does not involve local preservation authorities and the specific competency they bring to determine what is truly appropriate for a specific historic building.

The current phase of BPS adoption and rulemaking presents a critical moment for preservationists. No standard model BPS policy has emerged yet, and there is an opportunity to influence the shape of this potent building regulation so that appropriate treatment of historic buildings becomes a standard part of all BPS policies. Below are suggestions for preservation-related components of BPS policies:

Historic buildings should not be categorically excluded from BPS policies. Historic buildings can and should meet high standards for energy use and carbon emissions wherever possible.

The definition of what a “historic building” is should be compatible with existing regulations. Unfortunately, there is not a single authoritative definition of what constitutes a historic building, and that definition can vary between building codes, federal regulations, and local and state preservation regulations. The distinction between individually designated buildings versus those that are contributing structures within historic districts is particularly important. Inconsistencies between the BPS definition of historic buildings and the local community’s understanding of which buildings are historic can create considerable confusion in enforcement.

BPS policies should be developed with compliance flexibility. Compliance flexibility benefits all buildings, but especially historic buildings. The more options there are for compliance, the more likely owners and project teams working on historic building will be able to find a compliance path that is compatible with the preservation of significant building features.

BPS policies should include accommodations for historic buildings. Although many historic buildings will be able to meet the BPS and will not require any kind of accommodation, there may be circumstances where a modification in compliance timing or a performance target is needed. BPS policies should anticipate this possibility