Earth Day 2026: How Existing Buildings Are Driving Real Climate Progress

It is often said that the greenest buildings are the ones that already exist.

By Gaurav Mehta, with contributions from Jack Newman and Matthew Combe

Earth Day has been celebrated every year on April 22 since 1970, to raise awareness about sustainability and encourage action on climate change. More than five decades later, that mission remains relevant, but the conversation has shifted. Today, the focus is less on awareness and more on measurable progress. Even amid policy uncertainty, global instability, and rapid technological change, there are areas where progress continues, especially in existing buildings. This Earth Day, the building industry has momentum to recognize, particularly in the Pacific Northwest. Building Performance legislation in Washington and Oregon is helping reduce energy use and carbon emissions while promoting electrification, renewable energy, and resilience across the existing built environment. It is often said that the greenest buildings are the ones that already exist. Building Performance Standards are setting performance-based requirements for existing buildings to reduce energy use and carbon emissions over time.

Overview of Building Performance Standards

The Washington State Clean Buildings Performance Standard (CBPS) and the Oregon State Building Performance Standard (BPS) focus on reducing annual operational energy use. Both programs set Energy Use Intensity (EUI) targets, which measure energy use per square foot, based on building type. The Seattle Building Emissions Performance Standard (BEPS) focuses instead on reducing annual operational carbon emissions. It sets Greenhouse Gas Intensity (GHGI) targets, which measure emissions per square foot, also based on building type. There are nuances for each standard, applicability, exemptions, and penalties for non-compliance.

The Challenge

Building owners are often dealing with aging systems, incomplete data, and other competing operational priorities such as running a business, a school, or a hospital on a tight budget, or addressing other administrative or tenant issues. For tribal communities, the scale of the challenge can be even greater, with sovereign nations facing real climate change impacts while navigating complex government-to-government policy changes. At the same time, trying to understand what exactly is required to comply with, what the timelines are, what documentation is needed, and how we are going to afford all of this. The result is a growing gap between policy goals and practical implementation. Bridging that gap requires more than a checklist approach. It requires a trusted partner like Säzän Group, with a clear understanding of the technical constraints of the facility and policy requirements, as well as key funding resources that can accelerate decarbonization. This is where the structured approach becomes critical.

How Säzän Group Supports Compliance

In our work supporting building performance compliance, we typically start with planning. That means establishing a baseline through benchmarking and identifying where a building stands relative to required targets. From there, we develop a roadmap that prioritizes measures based on impact, cost, and feasibility. The goal is not just to meet a requirement, but to do so in a way that aligns with the owner’s operational and financial realities. As an MEP 2040 signatory firm working toward net zero carbon across our projects by the year 2040, and as an active member of the Washington Solar Energy Industries Association (WASEIA) and an Energy Trust of Oregon (ETO) Program Ally, we also focus on leveraging available incentives and funding opportunities to support each step of the decarbonization roadmap.

Implementation is where many projects either gain traction or stall. Translating a plan into action requires coordination across systems, teams, and timelines. Whether it involves identifying energy efficiency measures tailored to the facility, retro or recommissioning, optimizing system and controls, or aligning improvements with ongoing capital projects, the focus is on making improvements that are both technically sound and practically achievable. When applied strategically, incremental improvements can often deliver meaningful performance improvements without major disruption.

Compliance, of course, is the immediate driver, but it is also where long-term value is established. Documentation, reporting, and ongoing tracking are essential, not only to meet current requirements but to stay ahead of future ones. If a building owner treats compliance as a one-time exercise, they will likely face repeating work as the standards evolve every five years. Establishing a consistent framework, on the other hand, positions them to adapt and respond more efficiently over time.

Project Examples

We have seen this play out across a range of projects.

Community-Based Organization, Seattle, WA:

• Säzän Group is supporting a local community-based organization in Beacon Hill, Seattle, on a new microgrid project funded by a Washington State Department of Commerce ‘Clean Energy Grant’. The project includes around 140 kW of solar photovoltaic (PV) capacity and a battery energy storage system (BESS) to power critical facility operations for up to 48 hours during a prolonged outage or natural disaster.
• In addition to the microgrid project, Säzän Group is also providing engineering services to implement a decarbonization project to comply with Seattle’s Building Emissions Performance Standard (BEPS) with funding from the City of Seattle Office of Sustainability and Environment. This project scope includes replacing existing natural-gas HVAC equipment with an all-electric heat pump system to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Horizon House, Seattle, WA:

• Säzän Group is supporting decarbonization at Horizon House, a campus of multifamily buildings located in the First Hill neighborhood of Seattle that currently relies on district steam from Centrio for space heating, pool and spa heating, and domestic hot water.
• Säzän Group conducted an energy audit and evaluated the campus’s heating demands, assessing the replacement of the district steam system with new heat pumps and heat recovery systems to support compliance with Seattle’s Building Emissions Performance Standard (BEPS) and identified nine distinct projects.
• Säzän Group provided energy and life cycle cost analyses for each project, enabling stakeholders to make informed decisions on project scheduling and securing incentives and grants to fund the upgrades.

Figure 1. Cumulative reduction of GHGI for each project at Horizon House

Benton County Justice Center, Kennewick, WA:

• Säzän Group provided consulting services to achieve compliance with the Clean Buildings Performance Standard (CBPS) for four buildings within the Justice Center complex, totaling 270,000 SF.
• Säzän Group conducted benchmarking, an ASHRAE level 2 energy audit, and evaluated 20 comprehensive energy efficiency measures (EEMs). The measures were developed into a capital project selection framework. This allowed the County to develop and review project scenarios to obtain compliance and evaluate the cost and energy reduction of the proposed EEMs.
• Of the proposed EEMs, five were selected by the County for the optional refine phase. This process provided additional engineering support and assessment to evaluate the feasibility of select measures and prepare the projects for the design/construction phase.

Figure 2. EEM Analysis for Benton County Justice Center

Tessera’s Headquarters, Bremerton, WA:

Figure 3. Solar PV array at Tessera’s Headquarters

• Säzän Group provided engineering, construction administration, Owner’s Representation, commissioning, and grant reporting services for the new microgrid system installed at Tessera’s headquarters in Bremerton, Washington. Tessera is a workforce training provider specializing in career pathway development for veterans with disabilities.
• Starting in 2023, Säzän Group worked with Tessera to conceptualize a solar photovoltaic (PV) and battery energy storage system (BESS) to support critical facility operations as a resiliency hub for Kitsap County and neighboring tribes, service providers, and first responders.
• The project team applied for and was awarded a grant from the Washington State Department of Commerce to implement the project. Working with Puget Sound Solar, the installation contractor selected to construct the microgrid project, the project team gathered at the completed installation with a ribbon-cutting ceremony in early 2026.
• The completed project includes a 158kW solar array and 125kW – 440kWh BESS.

Figure 4: BESS at Tessera’s Headquarters