Sustainable Building Codes: How the Perceptions of Building Code Officials Influence Their Intent to Adopt the International Green Construction Code

Abstract

Sustainable practice is a prominent issue that is being driven by an array of contemporary concerns. The transition from traditional practices to sustainable design and construction will require action on many fronts. Change must occur in social, economic, and political-legislative spheres. In the design and construction field, a prominent aspect of the political-legislative landscape is building code enforcement. While sustainability is a prominent issue in the construction industry, it is frequently practiced on an elective basis. However, the International Green Construction Code (IGCC), developed by the International Code Council (ICC), will impose mandatory green construction standards in jurisdictions that choose to adopt the code. Building on the existing theories and literature, the problem of the study was to investigate how building code officials’ perceptions of key attributes influence their intent to adopt the IGCC. The research design employed an online survey instrument for the collection of quantitative data. A random sample of building code officials from Illinois, Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska participated in the study. The data revealed that code officials’ perceptions of relative advantage of the IGCC are the single significant predictor of intent to adopt. The majority of code officials also reported a preference for full adoption of the IGCC as opposed to a trial period where the code could be used on an elective basis. Based on the findings of this study, proponents of sustainable construction practices will be better prepared to promote the application of sustainable building regulations at the local level.