Brittany Vogel
Published: Tuesday, June 23, 2009 - 15:02
LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is an internationally accepted, voluntary certification program created by the United State Green Building Council. The program measures a building’s energy savings, water efficiency, CO2 emissions, environmental indoor quality, stewardship of resources, and sensitivity when considering its environmental impact. LEED provides building owners and operators with the tools to identify how green policies can be better implemented in the areas of design, construction, operation, and maintenance. It’s main focus points are:
Site: By taking residence on previously developed land, less harm is done to the environment.
Water: More efficient appliances will reduce waste and promote smarter usage
Energy: In using renewable energy sources for lighting, etc. waste is reduced.
Resources: By recycling and reusing, the amount of waste produced can be greatly reduced.
Indoor Environment: Take measures to improve indoor air quality
Location: Homes should be built in areas not considered “environmentally sensitive” so as to prevent damage to the environment
Awareness: Homebuilders and real estate agents are encouraged to educate homeowners on how to make their homes green.
Innovation: LEED awards the discovery of new methods that produce results exceeding its requirements
Region: The highest environmental concerns have been determined for each region, and buildings should consider these concerns and operate accordingly.
In April 2009, the latest version of LEED was released, LEED v3. In this installment, several technical advancements were made as well as an improved Web site that it easier to operate. Most important, the Green Building Certification Institute expanded the certification model to include ISO standards.
Certification is based on a 100-point basis, with different focus areas receiving different weight in points.
Under LEED v3, the project certification process moves to the Green Building Certification Institute (GBCI), an independent non-profit organization established in 2007 with the support of USGBC.
Source:
http://www.usgbc.org/DisplayPage.aspx?CategoryID=19
http://www.gbci.org/DisplayPage.aspx?CMSPageID=19
Brittany Vogel is a reporter and editor for Quality Digest.
Standards QualiPedia: LEED
Standard promotes green building practices.
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Brittany Vogel
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