Some thoughts about building “green”……

July 7th, 2009

During the ‘90’s, society’s most common buzz word was RECYCLE.  With our children coming home asking for assistance with their recycling homework and projects, it became engrained in our social ethos that the earth’s resources are limited and things must be done to preserve them.The latest buzzword is “green.”  Within the last decade - not only has this buzzword become commonplace it’s now expected that governments, corporations, and consumers take action.  Going green no longer only involves recycling, it’s an ideology and LEED is a process by which companies are striving to get there.  Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is an internationally recognized building certification system designed to encourage and implement “green” building practices that lower negative environmental impacts, conserve energy, and improve quality of life.  The more ambitious the goal achieved in each of these areas - the higher the LEED accreditation earned, with LEED certification as the basic level followed by Silver, Gold, or Platinum.

How much does doing things “green” cost?  Upfront costs so far have been shown to be only 2% more for a LEED certified building than a conventional one.  System paybacks are expected within a very short time frame - depending on the level of LEED certification sought that is, and how committed the project is to the bigger, longer-term picture.  Using new “green” technology and reuse of existing materials, not to mention the growing number of tax incentives can bring overall costs down when implementing “green” strategies, which very often simply employ good common sense.

Going LEED, however, can have a hefty price tag.  Most of the additional LEED costing comes during the design stage of the project.  As well many new technologies are more expensive, and extensive research may be needed when considering multiple building scenarios or options.  Figures can rise to as high as 30% of the project during this phase.

LEED construction is not necessarily a quick and easy construction method and at times it can be difficult to justify certain additional costs.  The key to a successful LEED implementation is to remember the defined goal and to stick with it, which may very often not be cost-related.  For example, a project for a new commercial building to be built over an existing educational facility had the goal (among others) to minimize the impact on the environment.  An astounding 95% of the demolished building and site work was recuperated and reused in some way and did not end up in landfill.  Another project saw the implementation of systems with 20 and 30 year paybacks, because their goal was to be “ecologically responsible…. and to leave a legacy for future generations,” they refused to sacrifice long-lasting solutions for short-term savings.

Building “green” is fast becoming the popular way to build new corporate headquarters, retail outlets, government, and educational facilities, and even warehouses.  By mid-2007, in the United States over 100 million LEED certified square feet were constructed with approximately 8000 projects pending… doubling over the previous year. At the beginning of 2009, those numbers rose to 20,000 projects registered or certified, and 284 million square feet certified.

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