The Battle for Green Building

The U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design program, founded in 1998, is perhaps the most widely known green building initiative, but a newer effort, the Green Building Initiative, is gaining ground.

Though the programs have some similarities, there are some differences, not the least of which is price.

Taking the LEED

More than 1,000 projects have been completed nationally using the LEED system, and another 8,000 are in the design or construction phase.

According to Jason Hartke, manager of state and local advocacy for the U.S. Green Building Council, LEED is a holistic approach to green building that attempts to minimize the environmental impact of new buildings.

LEED’s maturity gives it several advantages, according to a July 2006 comparison study for the U.S. General Services Administration. GSA has used LEED for its building projects since 2003 and periodically studies other options.

The study says that LEED is “the most appropriate and credible sustainable building rating system” for GSA projects, in part because it is the most widely used program in the U.S. market and is applicable to all different types of buildings.

“One of the reasons I think local governments are looking at the opportunities in LEED is because it has a proven track record,” Hartke said. “With LEED, you know what you’re getting.”

He said that more than 150 local government projects are LEED certified, and an additional 1,000 are planned. Nationwide, 80 municipalities, including three in Missouri, have adopted LEED building standards. The three in Missouri are St. Louis, Kansas City and Clayton.

The LEED process usually adds about 2 percent to the cost of a building project, Hartke said, noting that the additional cost is usually recouped in less than two years. For a $1 million building, for example, LEED certification would cost $20,000. Cost recovery comes mostly from utility savings, including 36 percent in energy usage and 40 percent in water usage, studies show.

The $6 million renovation of the Discovery Center was the first in Springfield to complete the LEED process – it was LEED Gold certified after its completion in late 2006. Other local projects working on LEED certification include Matt O’Reilly’s Green Circle Shopping Center, the Watershed Center and the botanical center in Nathanael Greene-Close Memorial Park. (Click here for the story.)

Growing Green Globes

But while the LEED program may be the most widely used for commercial projects – more than 110 Missouri projects were registered with the Green Building Council as of April – it is not the only option.

Portland, Ore.-based Green Building Initiative, a 501(c)3 organization, created the U.S. version of Green Globes in 2005. The program, based on a similar initiative of the same name in Canada, focuses on energy efficiency, health and minimizing environmental impact.

Kevin Stover, GBI project engineer and commercial program consultant, presented the merits of his group’s program to members of Home Builders Association of Greater Springfield and the Springfield Contractors Association in Springfield on Oct. 22.

While the program has many similarities to LEED, Stover said there is one major difference with Green Globes: Green Building Initiative is working toward certification from the American National Standards Institute, the national standard for guidelines in nearly all business sectors.

“If ANSI approves your efforts, you are considered to have a technically rigorous and complete standard,” Stover said.

The Green Globes program is also entirely Web-based; project developers fill out online documentation throughout the process, which is examined by an independent third-party certifier. The examiner then visits the site once construction is complete.

Weighing all the options

Green Globes is still relatively unknown – 13 projects have been completed, and another 25 are in process, Stover said. Despite the newness of the process, he thinks it has much to offer, especially as a comparison to LEED.

“We feel that our procedure stands on its own; we don’t dwell on competition,” he said.

“However, when you think about it, it’s very easy to get comfortable without competition. So having more than one standard with a different structure and different marketing focus is a good idea.”

And choosing between the two main programs is not easy – there’s a lot of similarity.

Stover pointed out a University of Minnesota study that showed an 85 percent overlap between the major points of the two programs, adding that several projects have achieved dual certification by going through both processes.

According to the U.S. GSA study, Green Globes certification adds an average of $4,000 to project costs, which would bring considerable savings using the million-dollar project example.

City Councilman Dan Chiles, who attended the GBI presentation, said he’s pleased that so many builders are considering green techniques. Chiles added that there is talk of implementing an incentive program that would allow private developers doing green projects to move to the front of the line for permits and other city building processes.

That potential advantage, Chiles said, is the reason that any possible alternative to the proven LEED process must be highly scrutinized.

Streamlining the city’s permitting process for green builders is “a major financial advantage to builders, and we have to be fair,” Chiles said. “That’s my concern about these two standards. My feeling, at first glance, is that LEED is more arduous. That’s why we have to have a series of public hearings.”

Keeping in mind all of the possibilities, however, is important, according to Home Builders Association of Greater Springfield Executive Officer Matt Morrow.

“The point we’ve been making is that, depending on what you’re going for in any particular project, one program may be a better fit than another,” he said. “As long as they’re all legitimate, you want to be able to give yourself the ability to choose the one that’s optimal for the project you’re working on.”

The dates for the public hearings have not yet been determined.

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