In LEED v4, waste-to-energy was addressed, but for LEED v4.1 it is not clearly stated. Can it still be considered 'waste diversion' if the European Commission Waste Framework Directive 2008/98/EC and Waste Incineration Directive 2000/76/EC are followed and Waste to Energy facilities meet applicable European Committee for Standardization (CEN) EN 303 standards ?
You rely on LEEDuser. Can we rely on you?
LEEDuser is supported by our premium members, not by advertisers.
Go premium for
Dave Hubka
Practice Leader - SustainabilityEUA
LEEDuser Expert
530 thumbs up
September 7, 2023 - 2:17 pm
Construction and Demolition Waste Management is no longer a prerequisite in v4.1, there is only a credit. On a past v4 project I substituted the 'non-existent' v4.1 prereq and did not pursue the v4 credit. GBCI still required the team to provide a Waste Management Plan, total waste generated and total waste diverted.
That said, the v4.1 reference guide allows waste-to-energy of wood materials from recycling processes to be considered as 'waste diversion' in both U.S. and international projects.
Forms of waste-to-energy (other than wood) is not an acceptable means of diversion for projects in the U.S. International projects may be eligible to count 'non-wood products' as waste-to-energy as diversion IF the standards you listed above are followed AND the project team can demonstrate that reuse and recycling strategies were exhausted before sending the material to waste-to-energy facilities.
You have listed "U.S." as the project location, so if the item is not 'wood' then it looks like you are out of luck.
Finally, I have no idea how to demonstrate 'reuse and recycling strategies were exhausted'. If anyone knows, please post!