[OKC] To Leed or not to Leed?

[Miles, Karen]

I heard this story on "All Things Considered" on NPR on my way home from
work last night.


Green Building: A Real Estate Revolution?

by Franklyn Cater
September 7, 2010

Listen to the Story
<javascript:NPR.Player.openPlayer(129699450,%20129706685,%20null,%20NPR.
Player.Action.PLAY_NOW,%20NPR.Player.Type.STORY,%20'0')> 

All Things Considered
<http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=2> 
While much of the U.S. real estate market has been floundering, one area
has not seen a dip. Green building now accounts for nearly one-third of
new construction in the U.S. That's up from 2 percent in 2005, according
to McGraw-Hill Construction, which tracks the industry.
The numbers suggest a revolution is taking place within an industry that
is historically slow to change. There are many factors - and many
players - in this move toward green building.
But one company and its rating system have been undeniably influential
in changing construction practice and policy around the country, despite
some people's reservations about whether it's really helping the
environment.
  
Part 1 continues at: 
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129699450
 

Critics Say LEED Program Doesn't Fulfill Promises

by Franklyn Cater

Listen to the Story
<javascript:NPR.Player.openPlayer(129727547,%20129731856,%20null,%20NPR.
Player.Action.PLAY_NOW,%20NPR.Player.Type.STORY,%20'0')> 

All Things Considered
<http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=2> 
September 8, 2010 
Second of two parts
The business of green building is growing, even though the construction
market as a whole has been in a slump.
The U.S. Green Building Council, or USGBC, and its certification system
are swaying the industry - creating cachet around green buildings.
The company is influencing policy, but some critics say it isn't
delivering on its environmental promises.
In Washington, LEED Is Law
Stoddert Elementary School in Washington, D.C., is the site of a
sparkling new building addition and rehab. Last month, crews were still
putting the finishing touches on the landscaping and a new glass wall
that blends into a beautiful 1932 brick schoolhouse.
"Architecture can no longer be just sculpture," says Rick Fedrizzi, head
of the USGBC, the private nonprofit that runs the Leadership in Energy
and Environmental Design certification system known as LEED.
Architecture must be about performance, Fedrizzi says, especially in the
case of schools.
"We have the ability through the bricks and mortar to change the way our
kids learn, absorb information, interact with their teacher, and
ultimately have the ability for a much more productive life," he says.
"It's a moral objective of all of us to make sure that this happens
across the board."
In Washington, it's more than an objective - it is the law. All new
public buildings must achieve LEED certification.
LEED is a force to be reckoned with in the construction world. Fourteen
federal departments and agencies, 34 states and more than 200 local
governments now encourage or require LEED certification. Some places
offer incentives to certify. Others, like Washington, mandate it as a
kind of code.
Under LEED, the environmentally conscious features of Stoddert will be
tallied up, and the USGBC will award a plaque certifying the school as a
green building.
Noise Levels And Air Quality
Architect Mary Rose Rankin of Ehrenkrantz Eckstut & Kuhn says the
designers paid a lot of attention to the acoustics of this building
because noise levels are important for learning. It's one of the LEED
requirements.
"Wherever possible, we have full height partitions and added acoustic
blankets and insulation to really keep [noise from] the outside and from
room to room" to a minimum, she says.
Indoor air quality is another priority. Rankin says she expects the
school's new geothermal heating and cooling system to save a lot of
energy.
"Our model shows a savings of around 29 to 30 percent over what a
comparable baseline building would be of similar size," she says.
"That's 30 percent a year. And payback, for instance, for our geothermal
system should be around six to eight years."
This kind of prediction accompanies every LEED project.
But critics of LEED have long said it doesn't put enough emphasis on
saving energy. One of the most assertive is Henry Gifford, a New York
apartment building owner turned energy efficiency expert.
"It's impossible to go out and buy a building with a guarantee for how
much energy it won't use," he says. "And the LEED system, by basing
everything on energy predictions, continues that. This is one of the
reasons why it's so popular - because it's painless."
Questioning The LEED Certification
A couple of years ago, Gifford sparked a firestorm by challenging a
study funded by the USGBC that concluded that LEED buildings save
energy. He says the methodology was flawed and the numbers really show
that those LEED buildings used more energy than their peers.
  
Part 2 <http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129727547>
continues here
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