Historic Preservation Conserves the ENVIRONMENT

There are a number of environmental benefits that arise from historic preservation. First, historic preservation helps protect our environment by reusing resources like wood, stone, glass, and metal, thereby saving these precious resources for future use, as pointed out by an evaluation of the impact of the Missouri Historic Preservation Tax Credit commissioned by the Columbia Historic Preservation Committee in 2010.

Not only does the reuse of such materials conserve natural resources, it also keeps those resources out of landfills today. The construction debris created when historic buildings are torn down rather than preserved, contributes to the excessive waste overfilling our landfills; this will only increase if we do not figure out better ways to minimize the materials we discard to be dealt with by future generations. According to Development Strategies, “For each 1,500 square foot property that is demolished, roughly 95 tons of debris is generated.... The typical 2,000 square foot home can be expected to produce 127 tons of debris” (Development Strategies, 2012). The EPA has determined that building construction debris constitutes about a third of all the waste generated in the United States. When historic buildings are demolished rather than restored, the detritus left behind does not disappear but is left to be dealt with by future generations.

Finally, it is unnecessary to consider historic buildings disposable. “Buildings that were created before 1900 were often made of superior materials that were meant to withstand the harshest weather conditions, and the fact that many still stand is a testament to the workmanship and attention to detail these builders exemplified. Buildings from the early 1900s also used rarer materials such as heart pine wood, which was used to make flooring, walls, doors etc. These materials are incredibly hard to find today due to over-harvesting and can only be found in these historic homes” (Parkwood Estate, 2023). When we destroy an historic building, we are foolishly treating treasure like trash. 

Though some would argue that old buildings should be replaced with new green construction, if the goal is environmental responsibility, the Preservation Green Lab found, among other things, it takes 10 to 80 years of operating savings of a green gizmo building to recoup the negative climate change impacts of the construction; almost every building type in every region of the country had a better environmental outcome through adaptive reuse rather than with demolition and new construction. In addition, it has been determined that while energy efficiency has improved for buildings constructed over the last 30 years, multi-story buildings that have stood for nearly a century have been found to use two-thirds the energy of those constructed since 1980.

Explore the sources below to learn more about how historic preservation Conserves the Environment, Boosts the Economy and Enriches the Community.

Sources

Coffin, S. L., Ph. D., Ryan, R., MAUA, & McCall, B. (2010). An Evaluation of the Missouri Historic Preservation Tax Credit Program’s Impact on Job Creation and Economic Activity Across the State (prepared for The Missouri Growth Association). 

Development Strategies (Report prepared for City of Columbia Historic Preservation Commission) (2012). Economic Impact of Historic Preservation in Columbia, Missouri. Retrieved May 23, 2023.

Lindberg, Jim. “Cutting Carbon: Resources for Preservationists." National Trust for Historic Preservation. Retrieved April 12, 2024.

Parkwood Estate. (2023). Reasons to Preserve Historical Buildings: 1917-2017. 100 Years Parkwood National Historic Site. Retrieved May 23, 2023.

Place Economics. (2020). Twenty-four Reasons Historic Preservation is Good for Your Community. Retrieved May 26, 2023.

Preservation Green Lab, National Trust for Historic Preservation (2011). "The Greenest Building: Quantifying the Environmental Value of Building Reuse."

Schutte, Kimberly. (2021). Historic Preservation and Sustainability: 'The Greenest Building is the One That’s Already Built'. Historic Preservation Planner for City of St. Joseph, MO.

United States Environmental Protection Agency. (n.d.). Facts and Figures about Materials, Waste, and Recycling. Construction and Demolition Debris: Material-Specific Data. Retrieved May 23, 2023. 

Yapp, B. & The Belvedere Inn, Belvedere School for Hands on Preservation. (2020). Disposable Replacement Windows are Just That! Bob Yapp About Your House. Retrieved May 15, 2023.