Green buildings can be fraught with risks, challenges (Orlando)

Alternative fuel, solar heating and rainwater collection systems.

These are all part of the effort to be green, a popular catchphrase in the business community these days. However, experts say some eco-friendly entrepreneurs could run into problems when they decide to go green.

Among the challenges: problems caused by faulty workmanship, evolving technology and a company’s failure to dictate responsibility, said attorney Mike McNatt, a partner at Orlando-based law firm Roetzel & Andress, which has 210 attorneys and 11 offices nationwide.

McNatt, among the first Orlando attorneys to become a U.S. Green Building Council LEED accredited professional, helps clients with green-related issues that arise during site location and acquisition, construction, financing and leasing.

“There are prudent ways to build green buildings,” he said. “And most people realize there are technologies out there that are proven and not cost-prohibitive that make sense financially.”

Why there’s more risk involved in constructing a sustainable building: Anytime you’re doing something new, there’s a greater degree of uncertainty. And until the systems are more tried and true, there will be risks.

Read the full story in the Orlando Business Journal.