In 1994, Senior Scientist of the Natural
Resource Defense Counsel, Robert Watson, undertook to develop a set of
Standards which would, "encourage
and accelerate global adoption of sustainable green building and development
practices". From his efforts, the Leadership
in Energy and Environmental Design Standards were born. Professionals
in the building industry were quick to embrace the concept, and today:
The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building
Rating System, developed by the U.S.
Green Building Council (USGBC), provides a suite of standards for
environmentally sustainable construction. Since its inception in 1998, LEED has
grown to encompass more than 14,000 projects in 50 US States and 30 countries
covering 1.062 billion square feet (99 km²) of development area.
The hallmark of LEED is that it is an open and transparent
process where the technical criteria proposed by the LEED committees are
publicly reviewed for approval by the more than 10,000 membership organizations
that currently constitute the USGBC.
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Certification:
There are seven categories which are evaluated in obtaining a LEED
Certification:
|
Innovation
and Design
|
Includes
special design methods and unique regional credits and exemplary
performance levels. |
|
Location
and Linkages
|
The
placement of homes in socially environmentally responsible ways in
relations to the larger community. |
|
Sustainable
Sites
|
The
use of the entire property to minimize the projects impact on the site. |
|
Water
Efficiency
|
Water-efficient
practices, both indoor and outdoor. |
|
Energy
& Atmosphere
|
Energy
efficient, particularly in the building envelope and heating and cooling
design. |
|
Materials
& Resources
|
Selection
of environmentally preferable materials and minimization of waste during
construction. |
|
Indoor
Environmental Quality
|
Improvement
of indoor air quality by reducing the creation and exposure to
pollutants. |
|
Awareness
& Education
|
The
education of homeowner, tenant and/or building manager about the
operation and maintenance of a LEED home. |
|
The LEED scoring system is based on a set of required
"prerequisites" and a variety of "credits" in the seven
major categories listed above. In LEED v2.2 for new construction and major
renovations for commercial buildings there are 69 possible points and buildings
can qualify for four levels of certification:
- Bronze (Certified) - 26-32 points
- Silver - 33-38 points
- Gold - 39-51 points
- Platinum - 52-69 points
Although there are additional levels of Certification in the LEED process,
we are only interested in the four Levels stated above.
|
Resources
Although many Corporations, Organizations, Schools and Communities usually
advertise their LEED Certification on their website proudly, the easiest way to
find a LEED Certified Building in your area is to use the Search Tool on the
USGBC website:
LEED
Projects & Case Studies Directory
References:
Wikipedia
U.S. Green Building Council
Solaris Home Systems