LEED Steering Committee approves resiliency pilot credits
By Peter Fabris, Contributing Editor
Three LEED pilot credits on resilient design spearheaded by the Resilient Design Institute have been approved by the LEED Steering Committee.
The credits are designed for building teams to be aware of vulnerabilities, and they address the most significant risks in project designs including functionality of the building in the event of long-term interruptions in power or heating fuel. The credits encourage designers to plan for a wide range of natural disasters or disturbances as well as to consider longer-term trends affecting building performance such as climate change.
Specific assessment requirements are provided for the following hazard types:
- Flooding
- Hurricane
- Tornado/high wind
- Earthquake
- Tsunami
- Wildfire
- Drought
- Landslide/unstable soils
The Passive Survivability and Functionality During Emergencies credit addresses: thermal resilience, back-up power, and access to potable water. Creators of the credits recognize that they will be hard for many design teams to achieve. The intent is to “test-drive” the credits and then figure out if there are ways to refine and simplify them.