 Innovative
Home Magazine
Sustainability
How "Green" Design is Impacting Residential Spaces
LEED-ing the Way
LEED for Homes establishes a nationwide green
building standard.
by Maureen Mahle
IN 1998, THE U.S. GREEN BUILDING COUNCIL ROLLED OUT
ITS LEADERSHIP IN ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN (LEED)
STANDARD FOR GREEN COMMERCIAL BUILDINGS.
Since that time, LEED for New Construction (LEED-NC)
has emerged as the nation’s premier green-building
certification program and has been adopted by
sustainability-minded public and private entities
alike as the expected standard for sustainable
building performance.
Likewise, forward thinkers in the homebuilding
industry recognized the value of establishing
certification programs for residential green
building as early as the mid-1990s. Organizations
across the country developed and implemented
regional green home building standards. The Austin
Green Building Program, Colorado Built Green and
Atlanta’s EarthCraft House are among those that have
significantly transformed their regional marketplace
and placed “green” at center stage. But with more
than 70 regional programs operating across the
country green took on a vast range of meanings, and
there was a pressing need to create a national
standard for the residential sector.
In early 2005, the National Association of
Homebuilders published its Model Green Home Building
Guidelines—the first foray into a set of nationwide
standards. While the guidelines do not represent a
certification program, they serve as a tool to
educate mainstream builders about the principles of
energy-efficient, healthy, sustainable home
building. Meanwhile, the USGBC was developing LEED
for Homes (LEED H), its first product for
residential buildings. After review by committees,
builders and the general public, the LEED for Homes
Pilot phase commenced in August2005. The pilot is
slated to continue through the end of 2006 and will
include a public review period during the latter
part of this year. The
Pilot Rating and Delivery Systems will be revised as
needed based on feedback from participants and the
public and balloted by the USGBC. The fully
chartered program is expected to begin in early
20077.
THE PROGRAM >>
The LEED-H program consists of eight different
categories: Location and Linkages, Sustainable
Sites, Water Efficiency, Indoor Environmental
Quality, Materials and Resources, Energy and
Atmosphere, Homeowner Awareness, and Innovation and
Design Process. USGBC makes no bones about the rigor
of the program. The standard is intended to target
the top 25 percent of new homes that are the best
performers in terms of resource efficiency and
environmental stewardship. Generally, builders
enrolled in the pilot are already achieving
performance that meets the Environmental Protection
Agency’s Energy Star Homes program (a LEED
prerequisite) and are stepping up their attention to
indoor air quality (lAQ), water conservation and
sensitive site work.
Mandatory measures at the program’s foundation
establish stringent minimum standards for all green
homes. Builders must design HVAC equipment according
to ACCA Manual J and ductwork according to Manual D.
ASHRAE 62.2 standards set minimum requirements for
fresh air ventilation and bath and kitchen exhaust
flow rates. No tropical hardwoods are allowed
(unless they’re sustainably harvested), and
construction waste is strictly capped at half the
national average. In addition to meeting these and
other requirements, builders select from among 108
possible optional points. LEED for Homes has four
performance tiers: Certified (30-49 points), Silver
(50-69 points), Gold (70-89 points) and Platinum
(90-1 08 points).
During the pilot phase, USGBC has selected 11 LEED-H
Providers in strategic parts of the country to
support enrolled builders. The providers perform
consultations, review plans, request credit
clarifications, perform site inspections and conduct
performance tests to document and verify compliance
with the program standards. The costs for these
services vary from project to project but may run in
the neighborhood of $500 to $3,000. Builders pay
lower fees to USGBC for pilot registration (one-time
is $150) and certification ($50 per home).
Next Page
Call, visit our
website
www.altaloghomes.com, or drop by our showroom
and factory for more information and updates on the
pilot program.
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