U.S. promotes greener buildings

WASHINGTON, Aug. 7 (UPI) -- The U.S. Department of Energy announced the Zero-Net Energy Commercial Building Initiative.

The National Laboratory Collaborative on Building Technologies will assist the Energy Department in developing marketable Zero-Net Energy Commercial Buildings.

In its announcement, the Energy Department said the goal is to have buildings that completely offset their energy use from the grid by 2025, using efficiency technologies and renewable energy generation.

According to the Energy Department, commercial buildings used 18 percent of energy in the United States and accounted for 18 percent of greenhouse gas emissions in 2005.