Building Reuse: Sustainability, Preservation, and the Value of Design - By Kathryn Rogers Merlino

Building Reuse: Sustainability, Preservation, and the Value of Design
By Kathryn Rogers Merlino
Published by University of Washington Press, Seattle
ISBN: 978-0-295-74807-8
The construction and operation of buildings is responsible for 41 percent of all primary energy use and 48 percent of all carbon emissions, and the impact of the demolition and removal of an older building can greatly diminish the advantages of adding green technologies to new construction. In Building Reuse, Kathryn Rogers Merlino makes an impassioned case that truly sustainable design requires reusing and reimagining existing buildings. Additionally, Merlino calls for a more expansive view of preservation that goes beyond keeping only the most distinctive structures based on their historical and cultural significance to embrace the creative reuse of even unremarkable buildings for their environmental value.
Building Reuse includes a compelling range of case studies - from a private home to an eighteen-story office building - all located in the Pacific Northwest, a region with a long history of sustainable design and urban growth policies that have made reuse projects feasible. Reusing existing buildings can be challenging to accomplish, but changing the way we think about environmentally conscious architecture has the potential to significantly reduce energy consumption, carbon emissions, and waste.
"Whether you are new to sustainability as a counterpart to historic preservation or a seasoned professional who knows LEED backwards and forward, there is much inspiration to be found in Building Reuse." - Washington Trust for Historic Preservation
"A welcome addition to the growing dialogue on stewardship of the built environment. The detailed case studies provide meaningful insights to an underappreciated and often overlooked sustainability strategy." - Robert Young, author of Stewardship of the Built Environment
"An essential text and inspiration for anyone trying to shape a healthy world by addressing human habitats. Beautifully written and researched with case studies that demonstrate the amazing power of design." - Jean Carroon, FAIA, LEED Fellow, Goody Clancy Architects