The city of Boston unveiled new plans today to hold private developers to a more environmentally friendly standard. The Globe reports that the Boston Redevelopment Authority (BRA) will incorporate these regulations into building codes for the city.

Anyone planning a building over 50,000 square feet must meet 26 of the US Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards, and they must also meet a few extra Boston-specific standards, such as historic preservation.

Usually, projects like these are nothing more than lip service, but it's nice for Boston to get some good publicity when it comes to construction. You can sense the thrill at City Hall as officials trumpet the fact that Boston is, in the words of one official, "the first city to implement green building requirements."

The New York Times deflated that excitement a little bit with a gentle reminder that Pasadena and the whole state of New Mexico has similar regulations. But who cares who goes green at first as long as the city officials and developers follow through?

Screengrab of Kermit the Frog, the greenest creature of them all, from MTV Overdrive.