Look who wants to disarm federal buildings

An environmental-activist group behind regulations that may limit the use of shatter-resistant glass in federal buildings is tied to a slew of radicals, WND has learned.

Last week, Rep. Darrell Issa held a hearing on excessive government regulation and red tape, including “green”-building regulations the government may adopt from the U.S. Green Business Council environmental group.

At the hearing, transcribed by Breitbart.com, Steve Russel of the American Chemistry Council said in his testimony:

“Recently proposed LEED updates are so weakly grounded in science that the system would give a credit for avoiding proven U.S.-made products. These products include energy-efficient foam insulation and cool vinyl roofing, such as the recently installed vinyl at the DOE headquarters.”

Continued Russel: “This credit would also restrict the ability of the federal government to use shatter-resistant, polycarbonate glass, such as this example here, which is essential in protecting buildings such as courthouses, government institutions and prisons from bullets.”

Russel then held up a piece of polycarbonate glass shot by bullet. He stated, “As you can see, a bullet has been shot and remains impregnated within this unshattered glass.”

The U.S. Green Business Council has been leading the drive to certify buildings as LEED, meaning fitting the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, a system of ratings for the design, construction and operation of high performance “green” buildings, homes and neighborhoods.

The U.S. government has been debating whether to adopt LEED standards. Some U.S. cities, including New York City, have already adopted LEED regulations. The Obama administration has been debating getting the White House qualified under LEED.

Breitbart.com pointed out how LEED standards have been in question.

At a recent Congressional hearing on the matter, Oberlin College professor of physics John Scofield testified, “My analysis of the LEED building energy-consumption data … shows that LEED-certified commercial buildings use about the same amount of primary energy as their conventional counterparts.”

“There then appears to be no scientific basis for institutions such as colleges, universities or the federal government to require LEED certification,” continued Scofield.

LEED has claimed its buildings are 25 percent or more energy efficient.

However a study by Manhattan building-energy consultant Henry Gifford showed USGBC may have fudged its own numbers and that LEED buildings may use up to 30 percent more energy.

Radicals, Weatherman terrorist

USGBC says it is “made up of tens of thousands of member organizations, chapters and student and community volunteers that are moving the building industry forward in a way that has never been seen before.”

WND found the USBC board of directors includes Majora Carter, who co-founded the radical environmental activist group Green for All with Van Jones.

Jones resigned as President Obama’s “green” jobs czar after it was exposed he founded a communist revolutionary organization.

Green for All is part of the White House-tied Apollo Alliance, which is led by a slew of radicals, including Van Jones.

Apollo’s New York office is run by Jeff Jones, a founder of the Weather Underground domestic terrorist organization.

Another Apollo leader is Joel Rogers, a founder of the socialist New Party. WND reported on evidence indicating Obama was a New Party member.

Apollo has boasted in its own literature of its role in helping to craft portions of Obama’s multi-billion-dollar 2009 “stimulus.”

The Alliance helped draft “clean energy and green-collar jobs provisions” of the bill, for which $3.4 billion was earmarked to “work toward making coal part of the solution and reducing the amount of carbon dioxide emitted from industrial facilities and fossil fuel power plants.”

Meanwhile, the USGBC board also includes Walter Cuculic of the rooftop solar-panel maker SolarCity.

SolarCity last year received a $344 million loan backed by the Department of Energy to “put up to 160,000 rooftop solar installations on top of privately run military-housing complexes at 124 military bases across 34 states.”

In June 2011, SolarCity also received $280 million in financial backing from Google. The funding is for the company “to build and lease solar power systems to 7,000 to 9,000 homeowners in the 10 states where it operates,” CNN reported.

USGBC founding chairman is S. Richard Fedrizzi, who worked with the Clinton Climate Initiative on the C40 Cities Program and the Climate Positive Development Program.

With additional research by Brenda J. Elliott