Hi,
We have a major industrial development, being built on undeveloped land adjacent to a village/small rural town. For the village, LZ-1 is assumed. Now, in the LEEDv4 manual is stated, that Lighting Zone for the project is based on the lighting zone of the immediately adjacent property at the time construction begins. This implies, that the LZ for the industrial development would also fall under LZ-1.
However, in the The Model Lighting Ordinance (MLO) manual (p.5) it is also stated that Selection of lighting zone or zones should be based not on existing conditions but rather on the type of lighting environments the jurisdiction seeks to achieve. For instance, new development on previously rural or undeveloped land may be zoned as LZ-1.If we follow this interpretation, the industrial development would fall into the LZ-3.
Which interpretation is more appropriate here?
Dave Hubka
Practice Leader - SustainabilityEUA
LEEDuser Expert
532 thumbs up
August 18, 2023 - 8:11 am
GBCI will enforce the requirements outlined within the LEED v4 reference guide on this one.
Glenn Heinmiller
PrincipalLam Partners
100 thumbs up
August 20, 2023 - 7:33 pm
Lenka,
This is a difficult situation. The guidance that you quote from the MLO user guide is for municipal goverrnment who is applying ligting zones to a whole city or town.
What you have to do is to use your best judgement and decide what LZ applies to your project. Based on the MLO User guide Description for LZ1 and you descirtion of the surrouding area it seems that LZ1 would apply. You could try to claim LZ2 but you would need to prrovide a strong justifcation. Can you explain to me what exactlty this "major industrial developement" is, and how big it is?
Lenka Matějíčková
Grinity s.r.o. VAT CZ046072282 thumbs up
August 22, 2023 - 5:35 am
Thank you for the answers.
Glenn - the development is a complete car manufacturing plant (approx. 3km2), in size similar to the nearby village. Just a minor edit to the original post - following up on a detailed assesment of satelite imagery, the plant is not immediately adjacent to the village, there is approx 200-300m of farmland separating the two.
Now, if we apply the LEED manual logic strictly, this implies LZ-0. While I understand the logic behind the LEED manual rationale (don't increase magnitude of light pollution in the area), this seems to be rather extreme for a development of this purpose and scale. Arguably, even LZ-3 would be appropriate here (Typically includes... commercial corridors, high-intensity suburban commercial areas,...., industrial uses and shipping and rail yards with high nighttime activity....).
As you say, the MLO user guide provides guidance for municipality on a town/city scale, which this project fulfils. Would perhaps the MLO interpretation be applied here, instead of the LEED manual?
Glenn Heinmiller
PrincipalLam Partners
100 thumbs up
August 22, 2023 - 10:10 am
Lenka,
Here is my opinion:
1. Based on your description, the area where the project is going is LZ1
2. LEED Manual guidance would then say that you must use LZ1 for your project, and a strict interpretation of the MLO user guide LZ definitions would also assign LZ1 to your project.
3. You could claim that your project because it is so large, is effectively creating a micro-zone of LZ2. This is supported by the sentence in the description for LZ2: "Can be used to accommodate a district of ..... industry in an area otherwise zoned LZ-1"
4. LZ3 is NOT appropriate
5. I would try to design the lighting to meet LZ1 requirements. I think that should be possible. If not, then design to LZ2 and claim a special circumstance in your LEED submittal documentation and make the argument that you are in LZ2 (based on #3 above)
Lenka Matějíčková
Grinity s.r.o. VAT CZ046072282 thumbs up
August 23, 2023 - 5:29 am
Hi Glenn,
Understood. Many thanks for summarizing this in a nutshell, great help.
Kind Regards,
Lenka
hassan izhar
August 23, 2023 - 9:03 am
The discrepancy between the LEEDv4 and the Model Lighting Ordinance (MLO) manual can create confusion in determining the Lighting Zone (LZ) for the industrial development. While LEEDv4 suggests using the adjacent property's LZ at construction start, the MLO emphasizes zoning based on desired lighting environments. Given the rural context, aligning with MLO might categorize the industrial project as LZ-3. Careful consideration is necessary to ensure compliance with local regulations and sustainability goals.
Lenka Matějíčková
Grinity s.r.o. VAT CZ046072282 thumbs up
August 24, 2023 - 4:16 am
Hi Hassan, thank you for your input. Yes, there is a discrepancy between the LEED Manual and the MLO Guide interpretations on determination of the LZ. What is your view on this - would you agree on Glenn's oppinion for this specific case?