MR Prerquisite 1: Storage and Collection of Recyclables Our new office building project has a square footage of 203,000 square feet. About 40,00 square feet of the building, however, is to serve as a warehouse on the lowest of its 2 basement floors. The site is small, and what would have been an independent warehouse is required to be effectively located under the new office building. Are we able to discount the warehouse area of the second basement from our calculation for the recycling area required by LEED and still meet the intent of the prerequisite? To do so would allow a recycling collection and storage area of 275 square feet, which would be located in this same warehouse area. As an additional reference, our firm is also handling 2 other building projects of the same office type; they are also registered with LEED. Both of these projects have new office building square footages of less than 200,000 square feet because their sites allow them to locate individual warehouse buildings elsewhere on the site.
The Recycling Area Guidelines in Table 3, p. 171, of the LEED Reference Guide (June 2001) provides recommendations for typical office buildings, not requirements. Other occupancy types may have higher or lower area needs for recycling, depending on the volume and type of recyclable materials generated. Using these guidelines, you can make a case for an appropriate recycling area for your project. A 275 SF recycling area would meet the requirements for the office recycling, at least in regard to paper, glass, plastic, and metals. However, as it is part of the building being certified, the warehouse component must also be addressed. Include in the credit narrative a description of recyclable materials (at least paper, glass, plastics, and metals) that will be generated by the warehouse and demonstrate that the provided area is sufficient to accommodate both office and warehouse recycling loads. Applicable internationally.