"Greenwashing" is a well-known problem within the sustainability movement and particularly affects the construction industry. It is all too easy for companies to re-brand techniques and materials as ‘green’ while environmental impact or energy efficiency remain relatively unchanged.

There is, however, a more fundamental problem with eco-consciousness within the building sector, one that threatens to upend the industry’s approach to green building.

Preservation Green Lab, a sustainability think tank affiliated with the National Trust for Historic Preservation, recently published a study showing trends in energy consumption for green builds versus existing structures in a number of U.S. cities, revealing that some green projects would take up to 80 years to match or beat the energy efficiency levels of existing structures, factoring in construction effort and materials.