Glossary

Terms for Architecture, Green Building & Energy

This glossary includes more than 300 solar terms, as well as hundreds of additional sustainable design and construction terms.

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MEC (Model Energy Code)

Definition: A "model" national standard for residential energy efficiency. The MEC was developed through a national consensus process by the Council of American Building Officials (CABO) and is the accepted national minimum efficiency standard for residential construction. Since MEC is a model code, it does not have the "force of law" unless and until it is adopted by the local code authority. Nonetheless, MEC is used as the basis for many, if not most, of the energy efficiency criteria employed in the U.S. marketplace. By virtue of its reference in the 1992 U.S. Energy Policy Act (EPAct), the MEC is used as the national standard for determining Energy Efficient Mortgage (EEM) qualification, and it serves as the national "reference point" used by Home Energy Rating Systems (HERS) in the determination of energy ratings for homes.