This is Part 1 in our "Wood Wars" series.
Blog
FSC and LEED, with its certified wood credit, are hurting the economy, claim the governor of Maine, a U.S. Senator, and SFI. We take a look at the evidence.
Defense authorization bill calls to haul military money going to LEED
The U.S. Congress is calling a halt to certain military spending on green building in a newly passed defense authorization bill (H.R. 1540). The bill prohibits use of Department of Defense funds to achieve LEED Gold or Platinum, with waivers possible if a cost-benefit analysis for the project can demonstrate payback. Exceptions may also be made without a special waiver if achieving Gold or Platinum “imposes no additional cost.”
Following in Maine’s footsteps, the State of Georgia has effectively banned LEED certification for State building projects.
Following in Maine’s footsteps, the State of Georgia has effectively banned LEED certification for State building projects.
Got clients that want LEED-certifiable projects but don't want to commit to certification? Join the club, and hear some tips and lessons learned.
“Anyone else finding a trend of clients wanting LEED-certifiable projects but not wanting to commit to certification? I have three projects just this week toying with going this route.”
That was the opening salvo in a recent email discussion I was involved in among a group of architects. With the permission of those involved, I’ve anonymously synthesized some of the key takeaways here. I’d also like to hear from you: please post your experiences on LEED certified vs. certifiable projects below.
The American Chemistry Council and other groups have formed the American High-Performance Buildings Coalition. Green or greenwash?
The American Chemistry Council (ACC) has opened a new front in its battle with LEED and the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC)—one with similarities to greenwash tactics we’ve seen before.
Columbia University’s long-term project plan for its 17-acre Manhattanville campus in West Harlem has earned New York City’s first LEED for Neighborhood Development (LEED-ND) Platinum certification.
Green Globes may have come out slightly ahead in a recent “alignment” report, but support for LEED is strong in the building industry.
The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA), along with the Department of Defense and Department of Energy, today hosted a second “listening session” on which green building rating system it should recommend for federal government use. Public comments almost universally favored a GSA determination to continue with LEED as the government’s rating system of choice.
Many owners and municipalities are requesting LEED “certifiable” buildings from their design teams. How is a specifier to respond?
In our experience with over 200 (real) LEED projects, we have seen four approaches.
Chemical and plastics trade groups have attacked LEED and the federal government's use of it. We separate the facts from the fabrications.
This story is cross-posted from our sister site, BuildingGreen.com.
A developing focus on chemicals of concern in the LEED rating systems could make federal buildings less energy-efficient, according to the American Chemistry Council (ACC).
In response to a growing outcry from the market, USGBC is postponing plans to ballot the next version of LEED until 2013.
In response to growing concerns from the market, USGBC is postponing plans to ballot the next version of LEED until 2013.
Sometimes strategies employed by LEED consultants can work against the project's sustainability goals. Here are the top six problems we see.
LEED consultants are paid to lend their expertise to achieve a project’s LEED certification goals. Their decisions focus on achieving credits and their participation is absolutely vital to the project, but some can actually work against the project's sustainability goals. Here are the top six problems I see.
Although it carries relatively few points, among the most noteworthy changes in LEED 2012 are those in the MR category.
Editor's note: USGBC has taken your comments and opened the fifth public comment period with the new draft of LEED v4 (note the name change from LEED 2012). Please post your thoughts on our LEED v4 fifth public comment forum!
If you had five minutes with the Director of LEED Certification for the Green Building Certification Institute (GBCI), what would you want to talk with her about? What questions would you ask or what feedback would you give?
Update: LEEDuser's interview with Sarah Alexander, with your questions, has been posted below.
LEED is now recognizing credits from BREEAM, the popular European rating system. LEEDuser has the details on how this new policy is going to work.
Good news for European LEED projects just came in, via a USGBC press release stating "U.S. Green Building Council Announces the LEED Green Building Program to Recognize Energy Credits from BREEAM."
Here are a couple key paragraphs:
A 2009 study found no difference in worker safety on LEED projects, but a new study asks what factors might make LEED construction sites less safe, drawing a link from design to worker safety.
A new study out of the University of Colorado–Boulder suggests that LEED buildings are more likely to place construction workers in danger than are their conventional counterparts. While the results of the new study, to be published in April 2012 in the Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, are getting a skeptical view among the LEED community, the authors insist that the effect of design choices on the safety of construction workers should be a stronger consideration for architects.
