Replace "U.S. EPA WasteWise Program" title, website and description with the following:U.S. EPA WasteWise Programwww.epa.gov/wastewiseWasteWise is a free, voluntary EPA program that U.S. organizations can use to track, manage, and reduce their municipal solid waste and select industrial wastes.
See all forum discussions about this credit »
Credit achievement rate
XX%
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LEEDuser expert
Barry Giles
BuildingWise LLC
Founder & CEO, LEED Fellow, BREEAM Fellow
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Credit language
© Copyright U.S. Green Building Council, Inc. All rights reserved.
Requirements
Maintain a waste reduction and recycling program that addresses materials with a low cost per unit that are regularly used and replaced through the course of business. These materials include at a minimum, paper, toner cartridges, glass, plastics, cardboard and old corrugated cardboard, food waste, and metals. Materials that may be considered either ongoing consumables or durable goods (see MR Credit 8: Solid Waste Management—Durable Goods) can be counted under either category provided consistency is maintained with MR Credit 8, with no contradictions, exclusions or double-counting. Consistency must also be maintained with MR Credits 1: Sustainable Purchasing—Ongoing Consumables and 5: Sustainable Purchasing—Food.
Reuse, recycle or compost 50% of the ongoing consumables waste stream (by weight or volume).
Have a battery recycling program in place that implements the battery recycling policy adopted in MR Prerequisite 2: Solid Waste Management Policy. The program must have a target of diverting at least 80% of discarded batteries from the trash, and actual diversion performance must be verified at least annually. The program must cover all portable dry-cell types of batteries, including single-use and/or rechargeables used in radios, phones, cameras, computers and other devices or equipment.
See all forum discussions about this credit »What does it cost?
Cost estimates for this credit
On each BD+C v4 credit, LEEDuser offers the wisdom of a team of architects, engineers, cost estimators, and LEED experts with hundreds of LEED projects between then. They analyzed the sustainable design strategies associated with each LEED credit, but also to assign actual costs to those strategies.
Our tab contains overall cost guidance, notes on what “soft costs” to expect, and a strategy-by-strategy breakdown of what to consider and what it might cost, in percentage premiums, actual costs, or both.
This information is also available in a full PDF download in The Cost of LEED v4 report.
Learn more about The Cost of LEED v4 »Frequently asked questions
The project building has a waste/recycling hauler that picks up containers for the building several times a week. However, at the time of pick up the building management does not know how full the containers are. The waste hauler is not willing to track this information. How should the project building track the weight or volume of the waste and recycling that is being generated and collected by the hauler?The answer to this question is available to LEEDuser premium members. Start a free trial » (If you're already a premium member, log in here.) |
Is it acceptable to use a volume metric for one waste stream (landfill waste) and a weight metric for another (recycling)?The answer to this question is available to LEEDuser premium members. Start a free trial » (If you're already a premium member, log in here.) |
How does the a project building track a diversion rate for recycled batteries when tracking recycling batteries is easy, but tracking batteries thrown in the trash is extremely difficult?The answer to this question is available to LEEDuser premium members. Start a free trial » (If you're already a premium member, log in here.) |
The recycling waste generated from the project building is comingled. To achieve MRc7, does the recycling waste need to be tracked by the categories of waste identified in MRc6 (glass, metal, paper, cardboard, etc.)?The answer to this question is available to LEEDuser premium members. Start a free trial » (If you're already a premium member, log in here.) |
We compost all of the landscape waste generated onsite. Can we include landscape waste in the credit calculations?The answer to this question is available to LEEDuser premium members. Start a free trial » (If you're already a premium member, log in here.) |
Are mercury-containing lamps included in the credit calculations?The answer to this question is available to LEEDuser premium members. Start a free trial » (If you're already a premium member, log in here.) |
Addenda
5/9/2011 – Updated: 2/14/2015
Reference Guide Correction
Description of change:
Campus Applicable
No
Internationally Applicable:
No
4/14/2010 – Updated: 2/14/2015
Reference Guide Correction
Description of change:
In the second bulleted item, replace the text "MR Credit 2: Sustainable Purchasing - Durable Goods" with "MR Credit 2.1: Sustainable Purchasing - Electric-Powered Equipment" and, below as a new bulleted item, "MR Credit 2.2: Sustainable Purchasing - Furniture"
Campus Applicable
No
Internationally Applicable:
No
5/9/2011 – Updated: 2/14/2015
Reference Guide Correction
Description of change:
Replace "U.S. EPA WasteWise Program" title, website and description with the following:U.S. EPA WasteWise Programwww.epa.gov/wastewiseWasteWise is a free, voluntary EPA program that U.S. organizations can use to track, manage, and reduce their municipal solid waste and select industrial wastes.
Campus Applicable
No
Internationally Applicable:
No
7/1/2016
LEED Interpretation
Inquiry:
If a building has earned TRUE Certification, can that certification be used to document LEED Operations and Maintenance credits?
Ruling:
Yes, if a building has earned TRUE certification and the scope of the project (i.e. project boundary) is the same as a project pursuing LEED Operations and Maintenance certification, the TRUE certification can be used to document the following LEED credits, provided the corresponding TRUE credit is earned. A final review report for the TRUE Certification must be provided to demonstrate specific credit achievement.
LEED EB: O+M 2009
MR prerequisite 2: Solid Waste Management Policy; USZWBC includes a mandatory Zero Waste Policy
MR credit 6: Solid Waste Management – Waste Stream Audit; Zero Waste Analysis, Credit 1
MR credit 7: Solid Waste Management - Ongoing Consumables; both Diversion, Credit 1 and Hazardous Waste Prevention, Credit 5
Innovation in Operations credit 1 for Exemplary Performance if at least 95% diversion is achieved
LEED v4
MR prerequisite: Ongoing Purchasing and Waste Policy (waste policy portion only); USZWBC includes a mandatory Zero Waste Policy
MR credit: Solid Waste Management – Ongoing; both Diversion, Credit 1 and Hazardous Waste Prevention, Credit 3
Innovation credit for Exemplary Performance if at least 95% diversion is achieved
***Updated 9.30.2021
• Replace all references to USZWBC with TRUE
• Replace “scorecard” with “final review report”
• Under "LEED v4", on the line "MR credit: Solid Waste Management – Ongoing" change "Hazardous Waste Prevention, Credit 5" to "Hazardous Waste Prevention, Credit 3"
Campus Applicable
Yes
Internationally Applicable:
Yes
1/1/2014
LEED Interpretation
Inquiry:
At our campus we do not have the ability to track waste diversion at the building level. How can we achieve this credit without ongoing tracking at the building level?
Ruling:
The project team is inquiring on how Materials and Resources credit 7: Solid Waste Management – Ongoing Consumables can be achieved by individual building projects on a campus where there is no tracking of ongoing consumables waste at the building level. In such situations, the credit may be earned at individual buildings if both the campus-level diversion rate and the building-level diversion rate revealed in a waste audit exceed the minimum threshold to earn the credit (50% for v2009, 75% for v4). The building-level diversion rate must be extrapolated based on an analysis of the building’s waste profile and the actual destinations of each waste type. Actual destinations are based on ongoing tracking of campus-managed waste streams as well as any specialty waste streams managed at the building level. For example, if the building collects food waste for compost, but the campus does not ultimately compost this waste, it may be counted as diverted at the building level if it is diverted directly from the building. If the campus provides additional sorting of mixed waste at the campus level, the building-level diversion rate may count these additional efforts. The building-level waste profile must be updated bi-annually by conducting a new waste audit. Projects are eligible for exemplary performance at the 95% diversion level using this strategy.
Campus Applicable
Yes
Internationally Applicable:
Yes
Checklists
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Documentation toolkit
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© Copyright U.S. Green Building Council, Inc. All rights reserved.
Requirements
Maintain a waste reduction and recycling program that addresses materials with a low cost per unit that are regularly used and replaced through the course of business. These materials include at a minimum, paper, toner cartridges, glass, plastics, cardboard and old corrugated cardboard, food waste, and metals. Materials that may be considered either ongoing consumables or durable goods (see MR Credit 8: Solid Waste Management—Durable Goods) can be counted under either category provided consistency is maintained with MR Credit 8, with no contradictions, exclusions or double-counting. Consistency must also be maintained with MR Credits 1: Sustainable Purchasing—Ongoing Consumables and 5: Sustainable Purchasing—Food.
Reuse, recycle or compost 50% of the ongoing consumables waste stream (by weight or volume).
Have a battery recycling program in place that implements the battery recycling policy adopted in MR Prerequisite 2: Solid Waste Management Policy. The program must have a target of diverting at least 80% of discarded batteries from the trash, and actual diversion performance must be verified at least annually. The program must cover all portable dry-cell types of batteries, including single-use and/or rechargeables used in radios, phones, cameras, computers and other devices or equipment.
XX%
Upgrade to LEEDuser Premium to see how many projects achieved this credit. Try it free »
Got the gist of MRc7 but not sure how to actually achieve it? LEEDuser gives step-by-step help. Premium members get:
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- On-the-fly suggestions of useful items from the Documentation Toolkit and Credit Language.
In the end, LEED is all about documentation. LEEDuser’s Documentation Toolkit, for premium members only, saves you time and helps you avoid mistakes with:
- Calculators to help assess credit compliance.
- Tracking spreadsheets for materials purchases.
- Spreadsheets and forms to give to subs and other team members.
- Guidance documents on arcane LEED issues.
- Sample templates to help guide your narratives and LEED Online submissions.
- Examples of actual submissions from certified LEED projects.
The project building has a waste/recycling hauler that picks up containers for the building several times a week. However, at the time of pick up the building management does not know how full the containers are. The waste hauler is not willing to track this information. How should the project building track the weight or volume of the waste and recycling that is being generated and collected by the hauler?The answer to this question is available to LEEDuser premium members. Start a free trial » (If you're already a premium member, log in here.) |
Is it acceptable to use a volume metric for one waste stream (landfill waste) and a weight metric for another (recycling)?The answer to this question is available to LEEDuser premium members. Start a free trial » (If you're already a premium member, log in here.) |
How does the a project building track a diversion rate for recycled batteries when tracking recycling batteries is easy, but tracking batteries thrown in the trash is extremely difficult?The answer to this question is available to LEEDuser premium members. Start a free trial » (If you're already a premium member, log in here.) |
The recycling waste generated from the project building is comingled. To achieve MRc7, does the recycling waste need to be tracked by the categories of waste identified in MRc6 (glass, metal, paper, cardboard, etc.)?The answer to this question is available to LEEDuser premium members. Start a free trial » (If you're already a premium member, log in here.) |
We compost all of the landscape waste generated onsite. Can we include landscape waste in the credit calculations?The answer to this question is available to LEEDuser premium members. Start a free trial » (If you're already a premium member, log in here.) |
Are mercury-containing lamps included in the credit calculations?The answer to this question is available to LEEDuser premium members. Start a free trial » (If you're already a premium member, log in here.) |
5/9/2011 – Updated: 2/14/2015
Reference Guide Correction
Description of change:
Replace "U.S. EPA WasteWise Program" title, website and description with the following:U.S. EPA WasteWise Programwww.epa.gov/wastewiseWasteWise is a free, voluntary EPA program that U.S. organizations can use to track, manage, and reduce their municipal solid waste and select industrial wastes.
Campus Applicable
No
Internationally Applicable:
No
4/14/2010 – Updated: 2/14/2015
Reference Guide Correction
Description of change:
In the second bulleted item, replace the text "MR Credit 2: Sustainable Purchasing - Durable Goods" with "MR Credit 2.1: Sustainable Purchasing - Electric-Powered Equipment" and, below as a new bulleted item, "MR Credit 2.2: Sustainable Purchasing - Furniture"
Campus Applicable
No
Internationally Applicable:
No
5/9/2011 – Updated: 2/14/2015
Reference Guide Correction
Description of change:
Replace "U.S. EPA WasteWise Program" title, website and description with the following:U.S. EPA WasteWise Programwww.epa.gov/wastewiseWasteWise is a free, voluntary EPA program that U.S. organizations can use to track, manage, and reduce their municipal solid waste and select industrial wastes.
Campus Applicable
No
Internationally Applicable:
No
7/1/2016
LEED Interpretation
Inquiry:
If a building has earned TRUE Certification, can that certification be used to document LEED Operations and Maintenance credits?
Ruling:
Yes, if a building has earned TRUE certification and the scope of the project (i.e. project boundary) is the same as a project pursuing LEED Operations and Maintenance certification, the TRUE certification can be used to document the following LEED credits, provided the corresponding TRUE credit is earned. A final review report for the TRUE Certification must be provided to demonstrate specific credit achievement.
LEED EB: O+M 2009
MR prerequisite 2: Solid Waste Management Policy; USZWBC includes a mandatory Zero Waste Policy
MR credit 6: Solid Waste Management – Waste Stream Audit; Zero Waste Analysis, Credit 1
MR credit 7: Solid Waste Management - Ongoing Consumables; both Diversion, Credit 1 and Hazardous Waste Prevention, Credit 5
Innovation in Operations credit 1 for Exemplary Performance if at least 95% diversion is achieved
LEED v4
MR prerequisite: Ongoing Purchasing and Waste Policy (waste policy portion only); USZWBC includes a mandatory Zero Waste Policy
MR credit: Solid Waste Management – Ongoing; both Diversion, Credit 1 and Hazardous Waste Prevention, Credit 3
Innovation credit for Exemplary Performance if at least 95% diversion is achieved
***Updated 9.30.2021
• Replace all references to USZWBC with TRUE
• Replace “scorecard” with “final review report”
• Under "LEED v4", on the line "MR credit: Solid Waste Management – Ongoing" change "Hazardous Waste Prevention, Credit 5" to "Hazardous Waste Prevention, Credit 3"
Campus Applicable
Yes
Internationally Applicable:
Yes
1/1/2014
LEED Interpretation
Inquiry:
At our campus we do not have the ability to track waste diversion at the building level. How can we achieve this credit without ongoing tracking at the building level?
Ruling:
The project team is inquiring on how Materials and Resources credit 7: Solid Waste Management – Ongoing Consumables can be achieved by individual building projects on a campus where there is no tracking of ongoing consumables waste at the building level. In such situations, the credit may be earned at individual buildings if both the campus-level diversion rate and the building-level diversion rate revealed in a waste audit exceed the minimum threshold to earn the credit (50% for v2009, 75% for v4). The building-level diversion rate must be extrapolated based on an analysis of the building’s waste profile and the actual destinations of each waste type. Actual destinations are based on ongoing tracking of campus-managed waste streams as well as any specialty waste streams managed at the building level. For example, if the building collects food waste for compost, but the campus does not ultimately compost this waste, it may be counted as diverted at the building level if it is diverted directly from the building. If the campus provides additional sorting of mixed waste at the campus level, the building-level diversion rate may count these additional efforts. The building-level waste profile must be updated bi-annually by conducting a new waste audit. Projects are eligible for exemplary performance at the 95% diversion level using this strategy.
Campus Applicable
Yes
Internationally Applicable:
Yes
LEEDuser expert
Barry Giles
BuildingWise LLC
Founder & CEO, LEED Fellow, BREEAM Fellow
