Checking ESC plan at design stage?

December 17, 2014

Hrvoje Kvasnicka

Jones Lang LaSalle

LEEDuser Basic Member

2 thumbs up

December 17, 2014

Hi All
Since this is a prerequisite which forms part of construction stage submittal, I was wondering if it there is a way to have the ESC plan reviewed by GBCI at design stage. This way we could be sure not to lose this prerequisite and make the project ineligible for certification at a stage where nothing can be done about it anymore.
Thanks in advance

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Michael DeVuono

Regional Stormwater Leader
Arcadis North America

LEEDuser Expert

187 thumbs up

December 17, 2014 - 9:02 am

Is your project located in the United States. I ask this because if it is, your plan needs to be reviewed by the local conservation district or environmental protection agency, and the GBCI submission is more a formality.

I'm not sure that GBCI actually has staff qualified to review the actual ESC plan and design calculations, short of you demonstrating that it is in place through photos, checklists, etc outlined above.

Hrvoje Kvasnicka

Jones Lang LaSalle

LEEDuser Basic Member

2 thumbs up

December 17, 2014 - 2:00 pm

Hi Michael, thanks for your response.
The project is in Croatia so no one will formally review it except for GBCI.
What do you think would be a good strategy to make sure we don't lose this prerequisite? We are planning to prepare and implement the ESC plan and follow the LEED requirements as best as we can but I don't want to risk that GBCI comes back to us at the end and says "you haven't done this or that" and therefore you are ineligible for certification...

Stephen Buonopane

Bucknell University

LEEDuser Basic Member

December 17, 2014 - 3:47 pm

I find the original reply to this query troubling.

The credit language for SS Prereq 1 states "Create and implement an ESC plan ..."
The local conservation district or environmental agency can certainly verify if an ESC plan has been "created" that meets their standards, however the legal obligation to "implement" the plan rests with the owner. Periodic inspection by the local conservation district or environmental agency does not guarantee implementation. Conservation districts are typically understaffed and underfunded and have little real enforcement ability. I know of one LEED building owner whose interpretation of "implement" is very clearly "do not get caught." I am sure there are others.

How does GBCI verify implementation?

Also to the best of my knowledge, in my state the ESC plan is not required to include measures to prevent air pollution from particulate matter. So this requirement would not be captured in the local approval and should be separately verified by GBCI.