Re: the August 25 article "Climate change might be a top election issue in Tucson."
As a practicing Professional Engineer in Arizona for over 40 years I recognize it is time for qualified building science professionals to speak out on the amount of energy consumed in commercial buildings in the US. There is approximately one hundred billion square feet of buildings in America, not counting residential housing. These buildings consume a significant amount of the total energy generated in the US. Which contributes to greenhouse gases. Over the next 30 years nearly 60% of the building stock will be remodeled or be built new. This gives architects and Engineers a trusted opportunity to design these remodeled or new buildings utilizing significantly less energy intensive materials (concrete, steel, copper, aluminum, etc) and less energy-consuming HVAC and lighting systems. This will require Americans to embrace the European concept of adaptive comfort. We must recognize it is not a Constitutional right that our buildings be maintained at a near constant 75 degrees F.
William Nelson
Northwest side
Disclaimer: As submitted to the Arizona Daily Star.
