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LEED v4
New Construction
Materials and Resources

Storage and collection of recyclables

LEED CREDIT

NC-v4 MRp1: Storage and Collection of Recyclables Required

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Jim Nicolow

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Lord Aeck Sargent
Director of Sustainability

SPECIAL REPORT

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Credit language

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© Copyright U.S. Green Building Council, Inc. All rights reserved.

Requirements

Provide dedicated areas accessible to waste haulers and building occupants for the collection and storage of recyclable materials for the entire building. Collection and storage areas may be separate locations. Recyclable materials must include mixed paper, corrugated cardboard, glass, plastics, and metals. Take appropriate measures for the safe collection, storage, and disposal of two of the following: batteries, mercury-containing lamps, and electronic waste.

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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

Are we required to collect and recycle food waste?

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Is it okay to use a collection area outside the LEED project boundary?

The answer to this question is available to LEEDuser premium members. Start a free trial »

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There are limited or no recycling services in our project location. Should I still provide the required space?

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.)

Our municipality offers single-stream waste and recycling pickup; recyclables are separated from waste at an off-site processing facility. Even though the project needs only one type of bin, for single-stream waste, should we include space for recycling bins?

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.)

What formula should I use to determine the size of my collection/storage area?

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.)

See all forum discussions about this credit »

Documentation toolkit

The motherlode of cheat sheets

LEEDuser’s Documentation Toolkit is loaded with calculators to help assess credit compliance, tracking spreadsheets for materials, sample templates to help guide your narratives and LEED Online submissions, and examples of actual submissions from certified LEED projects for you to check your work against. To get your plaque, start with the right toolkit.

LEEDuser expert

Jim Nicolow

FAIA, LEED Fellow

Lord Aeck Sargent
Director of Sustainability

Get the inside scoop

Our editors have written a detailed analysis of nearly every LEED credit, and LEEDuser premium members get full access. We’ll tell you whether the credit is easy to accomplish or better left alone, and we provide insider tips on how to document it successfully.

USGBC logo

© Copyright U.S. Green Building Council, Inc. All rights reserved.

Requirements

Provide dedicated areas accessible to waste haulers and building occupants for the collection and storage of recyclable materials for the entire building. Collection and storage areas may be separate locations. Recyclable materials must include mixed paper, corrugated cardboard, glass, plastics, and metals. Take appropriate measures for the safe collection, storage, and disposal of two of the following: batteries, mercury-containing lamps, and electronic waste.

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 »

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.

Are we required to collect and recycle food waste?

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 okay to use a collection area outside the LEED project boundary?

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.)

There are limited or no recycling services in our project location. Should I still provide the required space?

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.)

Our municipality offers single-stream waste and recycling pickup; recyclables are separated from waste at an off-site processing facility. Even though the project needs only one type of bin, for single-stream waste, should we include space for recycling bins?

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.)

What formula should I use to determine the size of my collection/storage area?

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.)

LEEDuser expert

Jim Nicolow

FAIA, LEED Fellow

Lord Aeck Sargent
Director of Sustainability

See all LEEDuser forum discussions about this credit » Subscribe to new discussions about NC-v4 MRp1 View the LEED v4.1 version of this credit