Beating The Drum For Preservation

This is an old article, but the research it reports shouldn’t have changed much in the past six years. In short, preserving old buildings is ecologically better than replacement unless the new buildings are going to be around for a long time. And more, it’s better ecologically to retrofit existing buildings than to build new green buildings.

I like old buildings, so I’d be in this field regardless. But the message to the people looking to improve our cities is clear: start with what’s here rather than assuming blank slates.