How does the LEED Rating System include stone and tile products?
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The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System™, developed by the U.S. Green Building Council, encourages and accelerates global adoption of sustainable green building and development practices through the creation and implementation of universally understood and accepted tools and performance criteria. First developed in 1998, LEED is a third-party certification program and the nationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings. LEED gives building owners and operators the tools they need to have an immediate and measurable impact on their buildings' performance. LEED promotes a whole-building approach to sustainability by recognizing performance in five key areas of human and environmental health: sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality.
Who uses LEED?
Architects, engineers, interior designers, landscape architects, real estate professionals, construction managers, facility managers, lenders and government officials all use LEED. State and local governments across the country are adopting LEED for publicly-owned and publicly-funded buildings; there are LEED initiatives in federal agencies, including the Departments of Defense, Agriculture, Energy, and State; and LEED projects are in progress in 41 different countries, including Canada, Brazil, Mexico and India.
How is LEED developed?
LEED Rating Systems are developed through an open, consensus-based process led by LEED committees. Each volunteer committee is composed of a diverse group of practitioners and experts representing a cross-section of the building and construction industry. The key elements of USGBC's consensus process include a balanced and transparent committee structure, technical advisory groups that ensure scientific consistency and rigor, opportunities for stakeholder comment and review, member ballot of new rating systems, and a fair and open appeals process.
What types of projects are affected by LEED?
There are LEED rating systems for:
- New Construction and Major Renovations
- Existing Buildings, Operations and Maintenance
- Commercial Interiors
- Core and Shell
- Schools
- Homes
- Retail
- Healthcare
- Neighborhood Development
Basic LEED Nomenclature
- BUILDINGS can be LEED CERTIFIED
- PEOPLE can become LEED ACCREDITED PROFESSIONALS (APs)
- Products can contribute to or comply with the LEED Certification of a Project
- Products cannot be LEED Certified or Accredited
- People cannot be LEED Certified
- It's LEED, not "LEEDS"
How does the LEED Rating System include stone and tile products?
Stone and tile products can contribute to or comply with the LEED certification of a project based on four criteria/credits within the 2009 version of the LEED for New Construction version 2.2 Rating System:
- Credit 4.1: Recycled Content, 10% (post-consumer + ½ pre-consumer)
- Credit 4.2: Recycled Content, 20% (post-consumer + ½ pre-consumer)
- Credit 5.1: Regional Materials, 10% extracted, processed and manufactured regionally
- Credit 5.2: Regional Materials, 20% extracted, processed and manufactured regionally
To further explain credits 4.1 and 4.2: If it is communicated that a flooring installation product contains 10% recycled content, the 10% must come from post-consumer and/or pre-consumer waste. If the recycled content is from pre-consumer waste, only half the amount of recycled content counts toward the 10% calculated by the LEED rating system.
For more information, please visit this website: www.usgbc.org/leed.
Source: U.S. Green Building Council