LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design and is a nationally accepted Green Building Rating Systemâ„¢. LEED can be applied to every building type and phase of a building life-cycle. Specific programs exist for:
* New Commercial Construction and Major Renovation projects
* Guidelines for Multiple Buildings and On-Campus Building Projects
* Existing Building Operations and Maintenance
* Commercial Interiors projects
* Core and Shell development projects
* Homes
* Neighborhood Development
* LEED for Schools
* LEED for Retail
LEED for Health Care is currently under development.
The first step to LEED certification is to Register a project for $450 (USGBC members) or $600 (non-members). A project is a viable candidate for LEED certification if it can meet all prerequisites and achieves the minimum number of credit points to earn the Certified level of LEED project certification. The possibilities of certification are: Certified (26-32 credits), Silver (33-38 credits), Gold (39-51 credits), or Platinum (52-69 credits).
Credits are awarded, after an intensive technical review conducted by the USGBC, based on five categories of performance: Sustainable Sites, Energy and Atmosphere, Water Efficiency, Indoor Environmental Quality, Materials and Resources. Within each of these credit areas a project can earn a certain amount of points. Projects can earn additional points under an Innovation in Design category, through demonstrating exceptional performance above LEED requirements. LEED certification provides independent, third-party verification that a building project meets the highest performance standards. This comprehensive approach is the reason LEED-certified buildings have reduced operating costs, healthier and more productive occupants, and conserve our natural resources. In addition LEED projects qualify for tax rebates, zoning allowances, and other incentives in hundreds of cities.
The risks involved with LEED projects are similar to those in a conventional building project. Unexpected costs caused by lack of good communication and coordinated planning and management from all involved parties from the beginning through to building commissioning and continuing through daily operations. The additional risk right now is that there is a lack of experience in the green building arena, and especially for LEED projects, across the board. Designers, architects, builders, financiers, and even facility managers are all learning as they go right now, which makes detailed coordination even harder, but as more green buildings go up, know-how will increase and the risk will get less and less.
Picture of Culver House designed by Dirk Denison Architects and is part of a pilot program that expedites permits for buildings aiming for LEED certification.
2 Comments
I have been hearing alot of hype around LEED certification, but how easy is it to get? What impact is it having? What can be done to improve it? Is LEED certification the end all be all? How come nobody ever discusses how it falls short or could be improved. Why is there no meaningful discussion about its actual impact or how it can be improved? I have seen a huge 35+ office building being constructed that says it is LEED certified. Is this really a good thing or just a $600 jump on the green PR bandwagon.
Hi C Money,
I think you have some really valid questions. Happily the impression I got from the green building summit is that across the board, even the creators of the LEED program, consider it a starting point and a work in progress. They are the first to admitt that hard post-production data on LEED buildings is in short supply. Mostly because there are not that many of them and they are all failry new. So hopefully, in the near future some data will become available and then the ‘tweaking’ can begin.