Pedricktown NJ - Oct 8, 2008 -- The Green Paradigm Institute was pre-launched today with a seminar on solar economics offered by Energy Freedom Pioneers and the Urban Land Institute (ULI). Founder of the institute, Joseph Scarpa, explained that the Green Paradigm Institute was formed to increase the knowledge base and sharing of information amongst real estate practitioners, scientists and property owners regarding green building and sustainable development. Starting in November, seminars will be held on the first Wednesday morning of each month in Salem County on a variety of topics at nominal cost to attendees.
Over thirty professionals attended the roundtable discussion, from as far away as Harrisburg PA and North Jersey. Dan Caldwell, of Stout & Caldwell Engineers, LLC, stated he attended an earlier awesome ULI event at the Energy Freedom Pioneers Eco-Industrial Park in Salem County and he wanted to attend the program again for PART II as a nice follow up.
Joseph Scarpa, a local commercial real estate broker and sustainability consultant warmed up the crowd with an overview of the Eco-Industrial Park's first building to be registered for certification under LEED with the U.S. Green Building Institute’s. LEED stands for Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design and is a voluntary, consensus-based national rating system for developing high-performance, sustainable buildings. An existing 6,200 sq ft industrial building (Bldg 440 on the former army base) is being renovated as a "Core and Shell" building. As a test case, it will feature renewable energy from a campus photovoltaic array, a cool roof, 3 zone heat pump and air conditioning, T8 fluorescent lighting, R-40 equivalent insulation, and a pre-planned expansion to include bio diesel powered 3 phase 480 volt electric and radiant heat as primary power.
Kevin McGroarty, President of Innerstate Sales Group Inc., a Chester PA-based manufacturer's representative of energy efficient electrical products, and James Berardi, Partner and Director of Infrastructure at Energy Freedom Pioneers, shared research, development, & demonstration happenings from the LED (Light Emitting Devices) industry and their applicability to green building.
Brian Blair, President of Energy Freedom Pioneers discussed the economics and technical aspects of photovoltaics (solar panels used to generate electricity), the latest news on production and investment tax credits regarding solar energy passed last week by Congress, and their specific implications for green collar jobs at the Eco-Industrial Park.
Leading up to Green Paradigm Institute’s 2009 morning seminar series, courses will be held on 5 Nov on the "Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative", and on 3 Dec on "Construction Web Cams". The first course of 2009 will be "Batteries in a Green Economy." Courses are being held this year to judge the receptivity of the tri-state area to these types of topics and to seek additional guest instructors for the remainder of 2009.
Joseph Scarpa, a Broker Associate with Legend Properties, Inc. of Mount Laurel NJ is an accredited professional in Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED AP) under the auspices of the U.S. Green Building Council and its Green Building Certification Institute. Scarpa has also earned the EcoBroker Certified® designation, having successfully completed a training program on the energy and environmental issues that affect real estate transactions. Joseph Scarpa joins the movement of professionals pushing the real estate industry toward energy-efficient, sustainable, and healthier design/features in homes and buildings. The "high performance building" movement is getting a boost amidst the current real estate slump as documented by CoStar, a real estate marketing platform for commercial brokers. "There is a nice cluster of clean energy firms in our region that we should embrace and nurture for our economic and physical well-being," says Scarpa.
Scarpa is helping the Energy Freedom Pioneers Eco-Industrial Park with its first LEED project and coordinated Wednesday's Urban Land Institute's roundtable at the eco-industrial park. Scarpa says he is looking forward to Salem County's growing awareness of the benefits of green building. "Based on today’s attendance, it looks like the Salem County scene will indeed be green".
For additional information please contact: Joseph Scarpa, LEED AP, EcoBroker®, e-PRO®, 856 981 2973 at www.GreenParadigmInstitute.com, or Brian Blair, President, Energy Freedom Pioneers, 856 299 6900 at www.EnergyFreedomPioneers.com.
Joseph Scarpa is a licensed real estate broker-salesperson in Legend Properties’ Mount Laurel office; he is also a licensed agent in Delaware. He graduated from the University of Delaware (where he took his first course in Solar Energy) in 1976 with a B.S. in Economics. During his 20-year career in the United States Navy, he obtained an M.S. in Finance from the Navy Postgraduate School, and an A.A.S. in Electronic/Computer Technology from the Heald Institute of Technology. He retired from the Navy Supply Corps as a Commander (O-5) in 2000. He invested three years in the technology sector as an Internet consultant, and has been with Legend Properties since 2003. He has been a resident of Pennsville NJ since 2000.
Brian Blair, of Woolwich NJ, is originally from Ohio where he attended the University of Akron for business and mechanical engineering. He has worked in the environmental business at different capacities since 1986 when he began a ten-year employ with Caligo Ltd. Caligo was a Canadian Company that focused on the safe cleaning of automotive paint facilities and emission equipment. In 1997 he started Hydrosolve Inc. and continued working with automotive manufacturers throughout the United States. He discovered that the one common thread between the big three was the growing need for waste reduction and reduced energy costs. Since 1997 he has developed two additional companies - AM Consortium and Waste Logic Inc. The Consortium draws on a variety of expertise to enhance profitability and quality of services provided to the automotive industry. Waste Logic specializes in recycle/reuse methodology. In 2005 they worked to launch the first bio solids drying and gasification to energy facility in the world. Blair launched Energy Freedom Pioneers in 2007 with partner James Berardi and a elite team of business executives and engineers who are genuinely dedicated to developing technology and sustainable business concepts.
