Green Globes, a LEED rival, was recently declared to be nearly equal with LEED standards by the General Services Administration. Amid lumber and chemical industry support of Green Globes over LEED, the number of Green Globes-certified building projects around the country doubled in the past two years, now totalling 850.
But the forestry industry’s objections to LEED may not be warranted, contends the USGBC. The LEED sustainable wood standard amounts to just one point in the scoring system, out of 110 potential points.
“We’re encouraging the use of wood more than ever,” says Scot Horst, senior vice president for LEED for the U.S. Green Building Council. “All wood gets better treatment under LEED v.4.”
(http://portlandtribune.com/pt/9-news/198549-clash-of-the-green-giants)
Related Stories
Codes and Standards | Feb 21, 2023
Standards vs Guidelines: The benefits of establishing process
The unsung hero of standards may be the impact they can have on speed to market and price of product and project, according to IA Interior Architects.
Senior Living Design | Feb 15, 2023
Passive House affordable senior housing project opens in Boston
Work on Phase Three C of The Anne M. Lynch Homes at Old Colony, a 55-apartment midrise building in Boston that stands out for its use of Passive House design principles, was recently completed. Designed by The Architectural Team (TAT), the four-story structure was informed throughout by Passive House principles and standards.
Sustainability | Feb 9, 2023
New guide for planning, designing, and operating onsite water reuse systems
The Pacific Institute, a global nonpartisan water think tank, has released guidance for developers to plan, design, and operate onsite water reuse systems. The Guide for Developing Onsite Water Systems to Support Regional Water Resilience advances circular, localized approaches to managing water that reduce a site’s water footprint, improve its resilience to water shortage or other disruptions, and provide benefits for local communities and regional water systems.
Sustainability | Feb 9, 2023
University of Southern California's sustainability guidelines emphasize embodied carbon
A Buro Happold-led team recently completed work on the USC Sustainable Design & Construction Guidelines for the University of Southern California. The document sets out sustainable strategies for the design and construction of new buildings, renovations, and asset renewal projects.
Codes and Standards | Feb 8, 2023
GSA releases draft of federal low embodied carbon material standards
The General Services Administration recently released a document that outlines standards for low embodied carbon materials and products to be used on federal construction projects.
Multifamily Housing | Feb 3, 2023
HUD unveils report to help multifamily housing developers overcome barriers to offsite construction
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, in partnership with the National Institute of Building Sciences and MOD X, has released the Offsite Construction for Housing: Research Roadmap, a strategic report that presents the key knowledge gaps and research needs to overcome the barriers and challenges to offsite construction.
Codes and Standards | Feb 1, 2023
New Jersey to allow private firms to conduct construction inspections
New Jersey recently passed a law that will allow towns to supplement construction code enforcement with help from the private sector. The legislation, which received bipartisan support, also allows municipalities to enter into shared service agreements with neighboring towns for construction inspections.
Standards | Jan 31, 2023
Standard establishes best practices for rainwater and stormwater harvesting system
The market is seeing an increasing number of residential, commercial, and industrial rainwater and stormwater systems being installed.
Green | Jan 26, 2023
Corporations fall short on climate pledges by failing to embed net-zero actions into operations
Many corporations are failing to implement simple, practical steps needed for them to hit their stated decarbonization goals, according to a survey of more than 300 operations managers across key industrial sectors including construction, energy, and chemicals in the U.S., U.K., and Germany.
K-12 Schools | Jan 25, 2023
As gun incidents grow, schools have beefed up security significantly in recent years
Recently released federal data shows that U.S. schools have significantly raised security measures in recent years. About two-thirds of public schools now control access to school grounds—not just the building—up from about half in the 2017-18 school year.
