Complying with this prerequisite is standard practice in most urban and suburban areas in the U.S., where most or all of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Construction General Permit (CGP) requirements have been adopted and implemented at the state or county level. Regulators at those levels often threaten heavy fines for not complying with CGP requirements, so most projects do so without the added incentive of the LEED prerequisite. Just remember to check for CGP versions, as LEED v4.1 references the 2017 CGP.

Compare your local code to the requirements of the 2017 CGP early in your project timeline to determine which is more stringent. If your local code is more stringent, then you will meet the prerequisite just by following that. If it is less stringent, follow the CGP to achieve the prerequisite.

International projects

If your project is located outside of the U.S., it’s possible that the local code requirements are comparable to or more stringent than the 2017 EPA CGP. Be sure to compare the two early in your project timeline. Projects outside the U.S. do not have to comply with the permitting aspects of the CGP.

SITES-LEED equivalency

SITES-LEED equivalency is not offered for this credit. The related SITES credit cannot be used to automatically earn this LEED v4.1 credit.

What’s New in LEED v4.1

• The EPA CGP referenced version was updated from 2012 to 2017.
• SITES-LEED equivalency is no longer offered for this credit.

Should I upgrade?

Projects located in a state or county that has adopted the 2017 version should consider upgrading, since you’ll be required to follow the 2017 CGP anyway. If your state/county still uses the 2012 CGP, upgrading to v4.1 will require that you to become familiar with the 2017 version and comply with the requirements.