There are two ways to comply with this path—choose one of the following:
Find a building that treats 100% of its wastewater onsite to tertiary standards (meaning that water is treated enough to be discharged back into the environment).
Reduce the use of potable water for sewage conveyance (toilet and urinal flushing) by 50%.
Refer to LEED-NC WEc2for detailed requirements and documentation guidance. Note, however, that while LEED-NC requires 50% of wastewater be treated onsite, this path for LEED-CI requires 100% of water be treated onsite.
You can meet the requirements of this path (along with Path 7) by simply having no irrigation. Alternatively, you can irrigate with non-potable water such as graywater, rainwater, or treated wastewater, but you must still reduce total water used for irrigation by 50%.
Determine if your building uses 50% less potable water for irrigation than standard water usage by employing a highly efficient landscaping irrigation system or using harvested rainwater or recycled water from the site. To determine this, run a preliminary calculation based on the methodology found in the LEED Reference Guide to determine this.
Refer to LEED-NC SSc8for detailed requirements and documentation guidance. However, note that LEED-NC covers exterior and interior lighting, while for LEED-CI; you only need to follow the interior lighting requirements.
