A measurement plan must include applicable end uses. However, the metering does not have to be permanent, and can include a sampling of units. A short-term metering plan could be worked out with occupants in the units being sampled.

The contract for purchased offsets needs to cover at least two years including the performance period.

The best way to track down cost information is to request a quote from one or several third-party providers. Prices vary with market conditions and providers do not post current pricing as a standard practice.

In general, you can submit new credits after the preliminary review or at the appeal stage (or increase the achievement threshold of previously pursued credits) as long as you remain in compliance with performance period rules. Because there are no environmental implications to buying offsets for the performance period after the performance period, it's allowed for this credit.

The reference guide states that: "At the time of application, off-site energy and offsets must have actually been purchased for at least the performance period. Contracts or commitments for future purchases can meet the remainder of the 2-year requirement." Accordingly, a commitment to purchasing green power beyond the performance period is an acceptable method of meeting the 2-year criteria.

There's a compliance path for just this type of situation. As long as the property's landscaped area is equal to at least 5% of the total site area, the credit language and other documents state you are eligible for the credit. If the project is registered, check out the form in LEED Online for how to document compliance based on zero use of irrigation (and if it's not registered yet, it's a good idea to do so and always look at the LEED Online forms early on to get a full sense of the compliance and documentation options).

This isn't necessarily an easy thing to do, but a landscape architect could help you identify a rough sketch of conventional landscaping for the region, and then your landscaper could help estimate how much water per square foot they would recommend for that type of landscaping. You might also touch base with local water conservation organizations or groups promoting xeriscaping.

Yes, if 100% of the water used is from reclaimed water, graywater, or harvested rainwater, the project is eligible for all five points. Use the alternative compliance path on the LEED Online form and include an explanation of the situation along with a signed letter by the property manager, facility manager, or owner verifying the use of non-potable water.

You might be able to use Option 1 but here are the couple of constraints.

Both the baseline and actual cases must include the month of July.The LEED Reference Guide states that to capture seasonal variations, the preferred period for irrigation water use analysis is at least one full year.Option 2, the theoretical calculation, is still available to teams that have sub-metered irrigation so this might be a good alternative if you only have partial data.

If the water body can contain the rainfall event with no discharge to the sanitary sewer, then the runoff coefficient is essentially zero. If, on the other hand, the rain that falls directly into the water body raises the water level sufficiently to overflow into the sanitary sewer, the runoff coefficient is 1.0. For example, pools will often have a bit of freeboard before the water level rises enough to overflow and this will allow you to capture the rainfall, and even make up for some evaporation that would otherwise be made up using potable water.