Innovation Credit - Health & Safety of Occupants

Ritch, what is the innovation angle?It sounds a bit like what you're recommending is fairly common sense, if not perhaps required on a regulatory basis. I don't see the LEED angle, myself. Looks to me like there is enough merit in the suggestion on its own, without the extra LEED carrot.

Ritch—What you describe sounds an awful lot like LEED for Schools Prerequisite SSp2, Environmental Site Assessment (ESA), which calls for a Phase I ESA, followed by a Phase II ESA if contamination is suspected, and then remediation if contaminants are found. The “Bird’s Eye View” comments on LEEDuser’s SSp2 webpage (http://www.leeduser.com/credit/Schools-2009/SSp2) point out that the Phase I ESA has become common, and that some commercial real estate lenders may even require it. Therefore, ESAs are often a normal development expense. The downside is that, if the ESAs uncover contamination, remediation can be expensive. The upside is that the finished building is safer, and the Owner may be less liable than if contaminants had been discovered later. Finally, if remediation includes abatement of asbestos or certain other contaminants (not lead paint) the project can earn SSc3 Brownfield Redevelopment (http://www.leeduser.com/credit/NC-2009/SSc3). Is this carrot enough?

Getting back on-topic: Going for SSc3 gives you one more potential credit, but if you are still looking for IDc1 ideas, try pursuing one of the Pilot Credits. To document IDc1, you must show that your innovation is comprehensive, quantifiable, & “significantly better than standard sustainable design practices.” This last one can be the hardest because it requires you first to identify just which sustainable practices are “standard.” This can be a moving target. The Pilot Credits offer “pre-approved” strategies that USGBC already sees as “beyond the standard.” I have also found that, if your proposal resembles an existing Pilot Credit in any way, LEED Reviewers tend to compare the two and question why your innovation’s scope, metrics, & thresholds differ from the Pilot Credit. Although USGBC certainly never intended to promote Pilot Credits in lieu of encouraging project teams to develop their own Innovations, in my experience, LEED Review Teams tend to nudge projects in that direction.

AND, of course, don’t forget to check out the Innovation Catalog in the USGBC LEED Credit Library. These, too are strategies that have worked for others. Many former Pilot Credits have closed recently and graduated to the Innovation Catalog, so the catalog now offers several more options than it did in previous iterations. (I’m impressed!) If you want to develop your own ID Credits, study the examples in the Pilot Credit Library & Innovation Catalog. They could help you discern what qualifies as “innovative” & “comprehensive” and show you ways to develop metrics for quantifying your innovations.