Green buildings have gained global acceptance and adoption as the world pushes toward a carbon-free economy.

The buildings incorporate climate-smart practices and technologies to responsibly use key resources like energy, water and land. Green buildings may employ energy-efficient lighting, HVAC systems, and low-flow water fixtures to reduce their carbon footprint. 

The savings rack up. According to a recent Morgan Stanley Research report, “Building Energy Efficiency,” the return on investment in energy-efficient features is substantial; some estimates, say it can lower cost of ownership for commercial buildings by 50%.

But how do these innovations impact fire safety? This is becoming an increasingly important consideration as it’s projected that all new buildings will be green buildings by 2030. 

Brian Meacham, managing principal of Meacham Associates, studied the impacts of green buildings on fire safety for a decade. In 2011, he participated in a Research Foundation report that identified fire safety concerns and created a risk matrix for green buildings.

Since then, he said, we’ve seen the dangers of fire in green buildings play out. The most notable incident was a 300,000-square-foot refrigerated warehouse fire in Delanco, New Jersey. The facility burned to the ground. And the presence of solar panels on the Dietz & Watson warehouse kept firefighters off the roof.

Margaret McNamee, a professor at Lund University, along with Meacham, recently updated the Research Foundation report and presented their findings in an NFPA webinar titled, “Fire Safety Challenges of ‘Green’ Buildings and Attributes.”

Meacham summed up fire safety for green buildings in the webinar by saying, “Green buildings are designed and are there to protect the environment, but we also have a societal objective in keeping people safe from fire.”

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