Introducing Comparative Analysis to the LEED System: A Case for Rational and Regional Application

Panel: Panel 9. Energy and Environmental Policy

Authors:
David Eijadi, The Weidt Group
Prasad Vaidya, The Weidt Group
James Reinertsen, The Weidt Group
Satish Kumar, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

Abstract

The LEED ^TM system awards points for prescriptive and performance based environmental strategies; rightly giving more weight to decisions affecting building operations, since environmental impacts over the life of a building exceed the one-time environmental impacts affected by the building’s construction. The environmental benefits of LEED ^TM strategies are considered implicit and the point system is not a metric of environmental performance. Thus, guideline strategies that achieve the same points may not have analogous environmental performance.

This paper draws from our LEED ^TM project experience as certified consultants to a number of design teams. We applied analysis to those experiences and argue that

The relative environmental value of the same LEED ^TM strategy may vary by geographical region and by building type.
Scoring successive LEED ^TM points beyond a 'standard practice design' significantly increases design effort and capital costs for construction.
Without comparative analysis of the costs of alternate LEED ^TM strategies and their corresponding environmental benefit, designers will not necessarily invest capital in strategies that most profoundly minimize the environmental impacts of a building.
For design teams and owners interested in the least expensive LEED ^TM certification, gaming the point system could drive investment away from sound environmental performance strategies such as energy efficiency.

Using these arguments, this paper makes a case to enhance the LEED ^TM system by

Categorizing LEED ^TM strategies by their direct or indirect value towards Environmental Benefit, Healthy Buildings (Places), and Profitability
Reformulating prescriptive requirements into performance based requirements wherever possible.
Customizing LEED ^TM guidelines by region