"Heating and cooling buildings is consistently one of the largest uses of energy in the country," said Anderson, who signed an executive order on Friday. "If we are able to effectively cut greenhouse gases and other pollutants at the city level, the benefits and long-term energy savings will far outweigh the initial building costs."

The new guidelines, developed by the U.S. Green Building Council, call for building designs to be centered around energy efficiency, water efficiency, use of recycled materials, construction waste management and indoor environmental quality. The regulations are known by the acronym LEED, which stands for Leadership in Energy and Environment Design.

Anderson's announcement comes on the heels of the opening of the city's new Intermodal Hub, which is LEED certified. It is coincides with the Sundance Summit, a confab of 45 U.S. mayors invited by Anderson and movie star Robert Redford to talk about global warming.

Twenty-seven other cities in the country have also adopted LEED standards, including Chicago, Kansas City and, just last month, Phoenix.

By declaring an executive order, Anderson circumvented the City Council in setting a new policy for city building standards. He is working on an ordinance to put before the council to ensure the new regulations extend beyond his term in office when a new mayor could strike the executive order.

So far, the plans will be in place for the remodeling of the old city library into the Leonardo science and arts center, and the construction of the westside Unity Center.

"I hope that as a city we can inspire other developers and property owners to incorporate these standards into their projects," he said.

Although council members have yet to see a proposed ordinance, at least one is not opposed to Anderson's enÂvironmentaly-friendly idea.

"Government ought to be a leader and have sound environmental policies," said Council Chairman Dale Lambert.

''If we are able to effectively cut greenhouse gases and other pollutants at the city level, the benefits and long-term energy savings will far outweigh the initial building costs.''

ROCKY ANDERSON,

Salt Lake City mayor