LEED: Green Standard or Black Magic?

Is the U.S Green Building Counsel’s coveted LEED Certification full of crap? No not really but it is very far from perfect. All too often green gurus and real-estate agents sing the praises of LEED certifications but when looked at more thoroughly there are many loop holes in the actual report card system so that going green is more about “smart test taking” rather then environmentally sound architecture and design. While the certification system does make important steps in defining what it is to be “green” multiple flaws in their rating system actually diminish the value of green construction.

So how exactly does a building get certified? The LEED rating system is akin to an elementary school style report card. Buildings are graded numerically in various set categories ranging from “Water Efficiency” to “Energy & Atmosphere.” Then, the tallied total declares if the building can be certified, silver certified, gold certified or platinum certified. Easy enough right? The problem however is that buildings often boost points in one category while forgoing others. What that means is a building can get LEED certified by installing a couple of $200 bike racks instead of a multimillion dollar energy heating system.

As the idea of becoming green certified becomes increasingly popular many local governments are even handing out large tax incentives to certified buildings. For example, Cincinnati, OH adopted a measure providing an automatic 100 percent property tax exemption for the assessed property value for new or rehabilitated properties that earn a minimum of LEED Certified. If the government is to through around large dollar incentives, the LEED system needs to be clarified.

With almost 20,000 buildings under the LEED system, going green is more visibly more popular then ever. While the LEED system is not quite at the level of smoke and mirrors, these flaws take money away from where incentives are truly needed. Buildings with bike racks and recycling bins on every other floor is nice but wouldn’t stronger hybrid car incentives be more beneficial?

Planet Forward’s video on the new Nissan Leaf talks about the vast importance of electric automobiles and how it is enormous asset energy conservation. Or what about a weatherization initiative? Planet Forward’s Chris Gregory and Eugenia Finizio latest video on Energy Auditing shed light on the increasingly urgent world of home weatherization. The LEED system makes great progress for global “greenification” but don’t be so quick to applaud that certification just yet.

1. 
   On November 11th, 2010 at 9:33 pm Emily Basham Said:

   Mr. Austin: I am a licensed architect, LEED AP, have worked in architecture design offices dedicated to environmentally sound architecture, and have worked on buildings whose owners seek a LEED rating. I am not writing as a LEED champion. I am aware of its flaws, of its potential to be merely a marketing tool. Many people are examining and questioning this rating system in order to elevate standards and to use dependable metrics for technical design. Of particular importance is developing a system that measures the building’s energy use throughout its lifetime, not just when it becomes occupied.

   I can not count you among those people making serious, founded criticisms of the LEED system. Your statement, “a building can get LEED certified by installing a couple of $200 bike racks instead of a multimillion dollar energy heating system” is patently false. If people read this inaccurate blurb you wrote and actually think you are informed about this system, they might develop a negative view of an external metrics for green architecture which is counter-productive. Further, architects and engineers are aware of means of designing energy efficient buildings outside of this magical multi-million dollar mechanical system. Your assumption that an expensive mechanical system is the prime example of sophisticated green design is a sign of your naivete.

   An important reason for people outside of the industry, such as yourself, to be interested in this topic is that many municipalities have developed, or are moving towards adopting, an energy code. They will look towards established codes or metrics, and LEED will be viewed as an important, tested, system. It is unfortunate that you are not familiar with the topic you criticize, and mistakenly believe that LEED does not deal with hybrid vehicles and building weatherization in its metrics. I never dreamed I would be defending LEED, but here we are. Let’s critique it with insight so that we can establish the right kinds of energy codes in the US. Thank you for caring about architecture.