LEED v5 released for public comment

The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has opened the first public comment period for the first draft of LEED v5.

The new version of the LEED green building rating system will drive deep decarbonization, quality of life improvements, and ecological conservation and restoration, USGBC says. New emphasis will be placed on:

• Decarbonization: Focus on reductions of all significant sources of emissions: operational, embodied, refrigerants and transportation.
• Quality of life: The use of human-centric strategies to improve health and wellbeing, resilience, and equity and inclusion for building occupants and their communities.
• Ecological conservation and restoration: Emphasis on strategies and actions that can be implemented at the individual asset level to limit environmental degradation and contribute towards the restoration of ecosystems.

LEED v5 emphasizes impact, alignment, and interconnectedness to support initial and ongoing sustainability efforts throughout a building’s lifecycle. LEED v5 Operations + Maintenance puts existing buildings on a path to decarbonization and ties Platinum-level certification to near-zero carbon operating emissions.

LEED v5 Building Design + Construction provides a framework for new buildings to reach near-zero carbon emissions operationally by 2050 on a decarbonized grid. At the Platinum level, new buildings will be poised to achieve near-zero carbon operationally and embodied carbon reductions today.

Founders Hall at the University of Washington Foster School of Business, the first mass timber building at Seattle campus of Univ. of Washington, was recently completed. The 84,800-sf building creates a new hub for community, entrepreneurship, and innovation, according the project’s design architect LMN Architects.

More cities track the performance of buildings as a way to lower their carbon emissions.

Industry Research | Nov 8, 2022

U.S. metros take the lead in decarbonizing their built environments

A new JLL report evaluates the goals and actions of 18 cities.

Green | Nov 8, 2022

USGBC and IWBI will develop dual certification pathways for LEED and WELL

The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and the International WELL Building Institute (IWBI) will expand their strategic partnership to develop dual certification pathways for LEED and WELL.

Green | Oct 5, 2022

In California, a public power provider’s new headquarters serves as a test case for an innovative microgrid and for reducing greenhouse gas emissions

Sonoma Clean Power (SCP), the public power provider for California’s Sonoma and Mendocino Counties, recently unveiled its new all-electric headquarters.

Green | Oct 3, 2022

California regulators move to ban gas heaters for existing buildings

California regulators voted unanimously recently on a series of measures that include a ban on the sale of natural gas-powered heating and hot water systems beginning in 2030.

Mass Timber | Aug 30, 2022

Mass timber construction in 2022: From fringe to mainstream

Two Timberlab executives discuss the market for mass timber construction and their company's marketing and manufacturing strategies. Sam Dicke, Business Development Manager, and Erica Spiritos, Director of Preconstruction, Timberlab, speak with BD+C's John Caulfield.