+ How will the U.S. Green Building Council L.E.E.D us to a better tomorrow?

The U.S.G.B.C is a group of non-profit organizations "from across the building industry that are working to advance structures that are environmentally responsible, profitable, and healthy places to live and work".

Their Mission is:

"To transform the way buildings and communities are designed, built and operated, enabling an environmentally and socially responsible, healthy, and prosperous environment that improves the quality of life."

Possibly their biggest program is the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. LEED is a rating system used for developing high-performance and sustainable buildings of all types. The program promotes a whole-building approach to sustainability by recognizing performance in six key areas of human and environmental health: sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection, indoor environmental quality and soon design innovation. (USGBC)

The LEED rating system is a checklist based system offering points regarding to performance in the six key areas just mentioned. When a new building is completed a Green Building Council representative reviews its documentation and awards points out of a possible 69: certified (at least 26 points for new construction), silver, gold, or platinum (at least 52 points). When all is said and done the actual certificate has a hefty price tag. "The USGBC's fees for registration range from $750 to $3,750, and certification runs from $1,500 to $7,500, depending on the size of the building. But the big costs come in the form of energy modeling, commissioning, and other requirements of certification; these can run into the tens of thousands of dollars, according to architects and developers." (Leed, we have a problem: Grist)

Rob Watson, one of the Green Building Coincil founders said in a great article with Fast Company, the point system was specifically constructed to entice builders and drive the market in a green direction. "One definable action equals one point," he says. Bike racks, one point; recycling room, one point. "We threw a few gimmes in there so people could get into the low 20s ... and say, 'We can do this.'"

What started as a voluntary or moral rating system, LEED certifications are now required in many cities for new building projects. Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, San Francisco, Houston, New York and Seattle are some cities who are adopting LEED certification standards for new building projects. The pressure for a 'green building' is growing, if not from the city officials, then from the customers / businesses themselves. These pressures are also leading many companies to 'greenwashing' campaigns, using the LEED certification to simply boost their moral to its customers.

By making it a requirement to become LEED's certified, there is a large amount of money which could be used towards improving the design, purchasing better quality energy efficient appliances, or offsetting the energy used by the building by purchasing renewable energy. For some (more responsible) builders, there is a choice between getting certified, or spending more money on a better building.

"[The] mayor of Park City, Utah, told a building-industry publication, "On the Park City Ice Arena [$4.8 million project cost], we built it according to LEED criteria, but then we realized that [certification] was going to cost $27,500. So we ordered three small wind turbines instead that will power the arena's Zamboni."" (Fast Company)

The program started with goals to bring society closer to a sustainable way of life-- and it turned into an expensive game for big money players. Unwanting decision makers are forced into a strategic game of qualification. It really doesn't take much more than a good budget and a few loopholes to become certified. A new bike rack will offer the same reward as buying 50% of your power from renewable sources. Buying renewable power for a non-green building will boost its score to become certified. The 'gimmes' Watson is referring to easily allows a building to be certified- maybe not with a platinum plaque- but who really knows the difference?

I think this started out as an exemplary program, to start a path towards a more sustainable way of life, especially when environmental issues were new and 'unknown' topics. That path has been beaten by this point; environmental awareness, global warming, and our social responsibility are common topics. We need a new program, which can adapt and grow with us. Point systems may not be the best, but they do work when we must get people involved.

Think about it this way-- the LEED's certificate is essentially a report card for the industry. Getting certified is (or should be) the absolute bare minimum, and it should not be too hard with the 'gimmes' in the program. This is a D! Below average and unacceptable in terms of the grading system we learned from in our school days. People should be rewarded for making the biggest advancements, these are the A students. These are the ones who will make the world a better place.