I attended the First USEPA Green Historic Preservation Symposium, held at the Columbia Club in Indianapolis on January 21, 2010. Historic buildings are good candidates for retrofitting with high-performance environmental and energy design. My challenge now, along with others at the conference, is to act on the knowledge presented.

We heard the message again and again: "Re-use or re-cycle a building. Don't tear it down." Between 2005 and 2030, in the U.S., 27% of all buildings will be torn down and rebuilt. This is a wasteful statistic. Tons of demolition and construction waste will go into landfills, and countless trees will be cut for lumber.

Many historic structures built before 1920 are energy efficient. They are models for current sustainability.

We should limit new construction, because it destroys green open space and wildlife habitat. Historic buildings are often located in desirable areas near mass transit, and pedestrian-friendly retail and community services.

Unfortunately, there is no vocal constituency for building re-use. U.S. economic data is based on new home starts. This is a great opportunity for new thinking about greening older homes and commercial buildings in existing neighborhoods.

Historic preservation has always been arcane, but now it has the possibility of relevance to green strategies.

Send questions/comments to: Julia R. Wilder, Attorney-at-Law, wilderbear@aol.com.