Los Angeles' will hold a public event on November 1, 2008 to kick off the city's new green building code.  Beginning November 1st, projects of 50,000 square feet or more and residential projects of seven stories or more must comply with the intent of the US Green Building Council's LEED Certified Level.  Developers can voluntarily comply with LEED Silver level, which will give them priority processing, a faster plan check and expedited permitting in various departments. Further, DWP is offering incentives.

Michigan is considering a real- and personal-property tax abatement for LEED-certified buildings at 20% for certified, 30% for silver, 40% for gold and 50% for platinum.  The proposed 10-year abatement is intended to push more developers to invest in green building.

Hampton Virginia is considering a voter-approved zoning ordinance that will regulate the construction of residential wind turbines. The draft ordinance will deal with recently passed legislation in support of residential turbines. The legislation, signed into law by Gov. John Lynch, states that towns can no longer limit or hinder small wind energy systems through ordinances or regulations. The ordinance is needed to set guidelines for installing wind turbines in town.

The Supreme Court has agreed to review five environmental cases so far this term.  Some cases consider the ability of environmentalists and the government to enforce the nation's major environmental laws and how business and industry to survive and prosper under those laws. The cases help define the still-emerging Roberts Court.

Some 580 colleges have vowed to cut their greenhouse-gas impact to zero, however many students have discovered the difficulties in going carbon neutral. Campuses account for a small portion of the U.S.’ greenhouse-gas emissions, but many see campuses as well positioned to promote environmental sustainability as centers of innovation, models of social responsibility, and educators of future workers and decision makers. “Climate planning is an emerging field, and … the plans [colleges] come up with will be helpful to folks in other sectors,” says Julian Dautremont-Smith, associate director of the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE).

The White House honoured four federal entities: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development; U.S. Marine Corps; U.S. General Services Administration; and, U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, for their support, leadership, and efforts in promoting and improving energy savings in their facilities and operations. Teams from these federal entities, which included 44 federal employees and contractors, are responsible for estimated annual savings in excess of $72 million and more than three trillion British Thermal Units (Btu), equivalent to the annual energy use of approximately 32,000 typical households.