RESNET and the One Tree Pledge (OTP) sustainability campaign, announce a collaboration in celebration of RESNET passing the three millionth HERS-rated homes benchmark.
The One Tree Pledge is a home sustainability campaign that aims to mitigate the carbon emissions from the energy use of home-dwelling by planting one tree for every one square foot of the house.
Together RESNET and OTP are launching a campaign with the goal of planting 300,000 trees to help combat climate change by the end of January 2023. The trees will naturally sequester approximately three million pounds of carbon from the atmosphere annually, helping to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Throughout the campaign, OTP and RESNET are urging everyone in real estate, from builders and developers to HERS Rating Companies and REALTORS, to make the pledge to plant trees. For the affordable sum of only $1 per tree, everyone in the HERS Rating and real estate industries can help mitigate carbon emissions, building a better future for those who will be living or working in the homes and buildings they build HERS rate, or sell.
Builders who commit to the One Tree Pledge are not only mitigating the carbon impact from the energy use of each house they build, but they are also shrinking each home’s carbon footprint, attempting to remove more carbon from the atmosphere than the home emits.
“We are excited about reaching the incredible milestone of our three millionth HERS Index home rating, and we choose to commemorate it by committing to sequester three million pounds of carbon from the atmosphere,” says Steve Baden, RESNET Executive Director. “Sustainability is not only the future of our industry, it’s also the salvation of our home, our planet. One Tree Pledge now offers an easy and affordable way for all of us to be a part of the climate change solution. We can mitigate carbon emissions in the most natural way possible – by planting trees. If we plant one tree per square foot, those trees could sequester more carbon over their first 50 years than most homes emit from energy use.”
“When I discovered I could help offset greenhouse gas emissions from my building activities at Ziman Development simply by planting trees, it was a scalable game-changer. I can now invite others in the real estate industry to join me,” says Michael Ziman, Founder of One Tree Pledge “What a wonderful way to celebrate RESNET’s three millionth home rating by planting trees! We have made it easy and affordable for builders, rating companies and realtors to get involved. Join us to help combat climate change, so that the families we build homes for can enjoy them for many generations.”
Those who make the pledge will receive a certificate acknowledging their commitment, as well as publicity on the OTP and RESNET websites, including information about the company and the number of trees planted to date. With the aim of planting 300,000 trees by the end of January 2023, RESNET and OTP invite everyone to join the campaign.
The average American home size measures 2,386 square feet. The U.S. Energy Information Administration reports that this average home size releases 20,260 lbs. of carbon annually through the combined consumption of electricity and natural gas. According to OTP Founder Michael Ziman’s research, the average tree sequesters 10 – 13 lbs. of carbon per year and lives, on average, approximately 50 years.
Ziman determined that if one tree was planted for every one square foot of an average home, the trees on average would consume or sequester 23,680 lbs. of carbon on an annual basis – surpassing the 20,260 lbs. of carbon released annually by that average home.* Committing to the One Tree Pledge helps each new home built to have a much smaller carbon footprint.
Plant trees, make the pledge, or learn more by visiting https://www.onetreepledge.org/resnet and by following on Instagram @onetreepledge. For more information on the three millionth HERS rated home, visit https://www.resnet.us/about/us/3-million-homes/
