A study has been released (2mb PDF) by Commission for Environmental Cooperation; and Celsias has put up a nice summery for us. They note that a simple way for us to lower our impact on the environment is to change how we construct buildings in North America.

Existing building techniques can be used to improve efficiency of our buildings.

In Canada, buildings are responsible for:

• 33 % of all energy used;
• 50 % of natural resources consumed;
• 12 % of non-industrial water used;
• 25 % of landfill waste generated;
• 10 % of airborne particulates produced; and
• 35 % of greenhouse gases emitted.

In Mexico, buildings are responsible for:

• 17 % of all energy used;
• 25 % of all electricity used;
• 20 % of all carbon dioxide emissions;
• 5 % of potable water consumption; and
• 20 % of the waste generated.