Washington state may require future homes to meet new environmental standards, feature heat pumps and increase ventilation as early as next year.
Several new codes for residential buildings, including the heat pump mandate, were proposed by the Washington State Building Code Council (SBCC) last week. The codes, if approved, will apply to new single-family homes, townhomes and low-rise multifamily buildings (three floors and shorter).
The proposals will require new construction to rely on heat pumps for space and water heating and increased ventilation in homes with gas stoves, mirroring code requirements and regulations in commercial and large residential buildings established earlier this year. The SBCC enacted the codes for commercial buildings April 22.
“It’s good to see SBCC acknowledge that buildings have real effects on our climate and air quality,” said Ruth Sawyer, senior organizing representative at the national environmental organization Sierra Club, in April.
Bellingham City Council also fortified building codes with stronger environmental policy earlier this year.
In February, the council unanimously passed an ordinance requiring new commercial and large residential buildings to use efficient electric heating and hot water systems. Skip Williams, one of the city council’s newest council members, applauded the measure but said “there is still work to be done,” during a February council meeting.
This new state rule goes a step further in requiring smaller residences, like single-family homes and duplexes, to meet the same standards.
The proposed codes also include energy efficiency and electrification measures that could result in a significant carbon emission reduction.
Emissions from residential, commercial and industrial buildings account for 23.4% of greenhouse gas emissions in Washington each year, according to the governor’s proposed 2022 supplemental budget report. Buildings represent the second-largest source of emissions in the state, following transportation.
In Bellingham, that number is almost double. Gas use in buildings accounts for 43% of the city’s carbon emissions, more than all the cars on the road, according to a 2019 report from the city.
“It’s primarily from the fossil fuels and natural gas that’s used to provide space and water heating for our buildings,” said Anna Lising in January. Lising serves as Gov. Jay Inslee’s senior policy advisor on energy.
“We are heavily investing to make sure that our new buildings, new construction are more energy-efficient, they’re using less energy and that the energy they’re using is coming from clean, renewable energy and moving off from natural gas and fossil fuels,” Lising said.
If approved, Washington’s construction codes would be some of the “strongest climate-aligned energy codes in the nation,” according to a press release from the Sierra Club.
Though the SBCC has not announced a public comment window yet, the proposals will be available for a 60-day public comment window later this summer, as well as public hearings this fall. The state council will vote to adopt final code updates before the end of the year.
