New Wetland Guidance Coming

The new guidance for Federal Jurisdiction under the Clean Water Act is expected to be released soon. It is expected that this guidance will greatly increase the acreage of jurisdictional lands. For details see:

http://www.martenlaw.com/newsletter/20110311-federal-jurisdiction-over-wetlands

but:

A lawsuit was just decided in which the courts gave less weight to agency guidance, see details here:

http://www.martenlaw.com/newsletter/20110311-cwa-jurisdiction-dispute

NAHB Research Center Announces 2,000th Certified Project

The NAHB Research Center announced last week their 2,000th Green Certified Project in the Nation. Certified projects are almost all single family homes, but they also include remodeling, multifamily projects and site certifications such as this one. Congrats to the NAHB Research Center and the developer of this project in Cecil County Maryland. The link to the article is below.

We are happy to see the National Green Building Certification Program explode, a worthy accomplishment which is helping to support the housing economy. Of course here in Delaware, we have a lot of green to brag about. Our HBADE created the Green for Green homebuyer rebate program in conjunction with State DNREC officials. Delaware ranks #1 on a per-capita basis for the number of certified green homes in the nation. And while our many fine builders and clients in Delaware are embracing green, just last April Bestfield Homes in Delaware achieved the 1,000th certified green home project in the nation.

LandmarkJCM is happy to help all our clients build green, we are the most experienced Accredited Verifiers in Delaware. We're always happy to tell you about it, call Howard Fortunato at 302-323-9377 for information.

2,000th Green Certified Project link: http://www.nahbrc.com/news/pressreleases/rc_20110214.aspx

Delaware's First Certified EMERALD Home!

Our friend and client Lance Manlove of Zero Energy Homes just completed the first home in Delaware to receive the highest green home certification possible - Emerald!

The custom home in Lewes, Delaware, certified under the ANSI approved National Green Building Certification program, was awarded Emerald certification for including numerous green features. Not only is this home energy efficient, it received an eye-popping HERS score of 35 (the lower the better, 100 is code, 80 is energy star), it contains a partial green vegetated roof, solar electric and hot water heating panels, a rooftop rainwater collection and distribution system, and many other features. LandmarkJCM's Joe Gordon was the Accredited Verifier of record.

Our congratulations go out to Lance once again, and we are pleased to have partnered with Lance to build the first Certified Emerald home in Delaware!

Delaware Leads the Way in Green Certified Homes!

According to just published statistics by the Research Center of the National Association of Home Builders, Delaware has the largest number of green certified NGBS new homes in the nation, 123, based on a per-capita basis. Although North Carolina, Tennessee and Indiana have more certified homes on an absolute basis, we are proud of our per-capita accomplishment considering we are a small state!

We at LandmarkJCM are pleased to help Delaware be a national leader in green certified new homes. Our experienced staff has verified 90% of all green certified homes in Delaware. If you would like any further details, please call Howard Fortunato at 302-323-9377.

Delaware's Kevin Kelly Elected to NAHB

Kevin Kelly, President of Leon N. Weiner & Associates, was elected last week as Third Vice Chairman of the Board of the National Association of Home Builders. In this position, Kevin will serve on a multi-year leadship ladder, becoming the Chairman of NAHB's Board of Directors in 2014.

This is a huge accomplishment for Kevin, his firm, and Delaware. NAHB, with nearly 200,000 members, is the voice of housing for our nation.

We at LandmarkJCM are pleased to congratulate our client Kevin on this much deserved honor. We wish him the best of luck!

Chesapeake Bay WIP Decision Expected Tomorrow

The inside scoop from EPA is that the Watershed Implementation Plan (WIP) reviews for all of the States will be available tomorrow.

According to EPA, there may be some backstop measures implemented for some States.

The Chesapeake Bay TMDL will be finalized and go into effect on December 31, 2010 (in 3 days).

Stay tuned for the news on the State WIPs and what it means to you.

One Year Merger Anniversary

If you didn't see our announcement, it is available at the link below.

http://myemail.constantcontact.com/One-Year-Merger-Anniversary---Already-.html?soid=1011134954559&aid=UWMn9CfYu8k