LEED EB Certification: Fad or Strategy for the future?

LEED Existing Building Certification:
Fad or Strategy for the future?

William M. Dillard & Jason Alphonso

Did you know?

In the United States alone, buildings account for

• 65% of electricity consumption

• 36% of energy use

• 30% of greenhouse gas emissions

• 30% of raw materials use

• 30% of waste output (136 million tons annually), and

• 12% of potable water consumption

So is all this excitement about LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design ) developed by the USGBC (United States Green Building Council) a passing fad or opportunity for reducing your Total Ownership Costs ®. Our company has been focused on saving energy in buildings since the early 70’s. Through my participation in ASHRAE (American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, Air Conditioning Engineers) where I served as Chairman of the Society Energy Management Committee in the early 80’s to today, our focus has been to provide clients emphasis on the three legged stool of successful building operations…..that being Healthy, Productive, Efficient indoor environments.

If you were in the building ownership business 1980’s energy became the nation’s primary focus when oil approached $40 per barrel. (The equivalent of where energy costs are today adjusted for inflation.) There was a great stampede of focus on energy efficiency including the mandated regulations by the Jimmy Carter administration titled EBTR….Emergency Building Temperature Regulations. Thanks to Jimmy Carter, “Thermostat Police” became the butt of many jokes during those interesting times. As $40 dollar oil subsided….so did our interest in building energy efficiency. Many building owners returned to making first cost decisions and along the way a new issue emerged in the building industry….Indoor Air Quality. The Indoor Air Quality issue began surfacing after the pendulum of energy efficiency took us too far to the right….creating a phenomenon known as “sick building syndrome” We were so focused on reducing energy in buildings we failed to realize that we could make buildings too tight, reducing ventilation too much. Additionally, we weren’t paying enough attention to the types of materials and furnishings we were putting into buildings. As a result ASHRAE began developing ASHRAE Standard 62 Standard for acceptable indoor environments. The Standard in its current form 62.1-2007 provides a series of prescriptions for healthy indoor environments using a menu of engineered strategies that balance ventilation; filtration, lighting, ventilation pre-treatment, and building envelop treatment while taking into consideration the impact on energy usage by such systems. Couple this with the work of USGBC in the area of sustainable design and operation of existing buildings and we are beginning to gain traction on making a real difference in impact that buildings play in our environment.

We’ve come a long way since the energy crisis of the Carter Days. Is the USGBC LEED process a passing fad? We certainly don’t think so. The dynamics of the world-wide energy picture is much different today than it was in the early 80’s. So what’s the message with respect to the USGBC-LEED effort? It is NOT about the process….it really is about the Green Movement and about making our buildings more energy efficient. Green and LEED is about doing the right things and having a bench marking system to measure results. By far our largest opportunity to have an impact on our environment and our economy is to focus efforts on making our existing building inventory more energy efficient. That’s why MSI has chosen to start this Blog on a focus on Existing Buildings. Jason will highlight the LEED Existing Building process and prioritize the various strategies so that you can see how LEED Existing Building can be used as a guideline for energy conservation and improved sustainability in your buildings. If you need more information contact myself Bill Dillard or Jason Alphonso and we will be glad to assist you. Additional sources of information on this subject are available through ASHRAE, BOMA, USGBC, and AEE.

Remember this if you don’t remember anything else about this article…..conserving energy and water in your buildings is the right thing to do……it reduces the impact the building has on the environment and creates a more sustainable future for all of us. You don’t need the USGBC or the LEED process to do the right things when it comes to energy or water conservation.