The following information was released by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency:

During a ceremony at the West Coast Green Conference in San Francisco, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response Assistant Administrator Susan Bodine announced winners of the inaugural Lifecycle Building Challenge competition.

U.S. EPA Assistant Administrator Bodine, along with the American Institute of Architects President RK Stewart, and Building Materials Reuse Association President Brad Guy, recognized award winners for their cutting-edge green building ideas that aim to reduce environmental and energy impacts of buildings.

Ideas from the design contest will jumpstart the building industry to help reuse more of the 100 million tons of building-related construction and demolition debris sent each year to landfills in the United States.

Reusing valuable building materials conserves resources and reduces greenhouse gas emissions, said Bodine. Designing buildings for adaptability, disassembly and local reuse is an important environmental protection strategy.