LEED EBOM and NC helping ensure that all parts of state can benefit from green practices and policies

USGBC MA's Executive Director, Grey Lee, is a monthly contributor to the New England Real Estate Journal's Green Building Section. Their latest issue can be accessed here. Read Grey's article below!

LEED EBOM and NC helping ensure that all parts of state can benefit from green practices and policies

There is over 500 million s/f of existing commercial & institutional buildings in Mass. and we have certified about 50 million s/f. during the 15 years since LEED’s first version. There are about 2.8 million housing units in the state and we’ve certified only a few thousand...clearly we have work to do! Our mission is to see everyone work, live, play and study in green buildings within this generation. Thousands of building professionals are part of this work.

Using LEED, owners and occupiers can validate the effort they put into a building’s design and operation. The rating system is a useful tool to ensure all parties have made their best contribution to the achievement of a superior facility. Recently, more standing buildings have been certified using the Existing Building Operation & Maintenance (LEED EBOM) system than newly constructed buildings (LEED NC). EBOM ensures that the massive existing building stock has a pathway to improved performance.

The USGBC created the LEED building rating system to create a defined process that results in buildings that are more valuable and environmentally responsible than conventional peers. The system is managed by a democratic process, welcoming all stakeholders into a voting body that periodically reviews the system. The process has resulted in a strong, broadly-adopted and useful mechanism to evaluate buildings and improve the experience of building users.

The Mass. Chapter of the USGBC promotes the achievement of high-performing green buildings throughout the state. We convene the community of practitioners and stakeholders to advocate for market adoption and legislative support of green buildings, we educate the public about the advantages of green buildings and we provide service to our community to ensure all parts of the state can benefit from these practices and policies.

We will be hosting a LEED celebration in September and are actively seeking projects that have been certified in the past year to showcase LEED achievements and honor the work of the teams that have put these projects together. Please contact us if you have facility that can host 150 people in a recently certified LEED building! We also provide a lot of great networking opportunities: join us for our FREE “Summer Social” on July 16th at the Knoll (LEED Platinum) showroom in Boston. Details are on our website. We hope to see you there!

Cast your Ballot for LEEDV4 by June 30th!

By Jim Newman

Are you a member of the consensus body for LEED Version 4? Have you cast your ballot yet? What am I talking about? Remember, voting ends June 30th.

The process of affirming the next version of the LEED rating systems, known as LEED V4 for each of the current rating systems, is coming to it's conclusion. There have been 6 public comment periods, where USGBC members who joined the Consensus Body (as the group that was empowered to post comments was called) could comment directly on proposed credits and changes. Interested individuals could also post comments on special forums on LEEDuser.com which were shared with USGBC staff and the volunteer Technical Advisory Groups (TAGs) working on the new versions.

Now, the new rating systems are up for a vote; including the specialty systems in each of the following categories:

• Building Design & Construction,
• Interior Design & Construction,
• Existing Buildings: Operations & Maintenance,
• Neighborhood Development,  
• Homes

In order to cast a vote, you need to work for a USGBC member organization, and have opted in to the voting consensus body for this ballot. If you have done this, then you can proceed to vote. Voting ends on June 30th, so NOW is the time.

Several great reviews of the important changes in the new rating systems are available. As usual, LEEDuser.com has some of the best information, including a review of key changes in BD&C and a review of LEED V4 EB: O+M.  LEEDuser also has a number of good discussions of the big issues in the new credits and language, such as Chemical Industry Attacks LEED.

USGBC also has some great resources for understanding the new rating systems under ballot. There are clearly written summaries of changes between LEED 2009 and LEED V4 rating systems on USGBC's website, webinars explaining each system, and new resource guides coming soon. So there is no reason to wait to learn about V4. 

And remember to vote by June 30th. 

Say Goodbye to the Incandescent Lamp - and perhaps the CFL?

by Chris Liston

Say goodbye to the incandescent lamp - and perhaps the CFL? As the federal government continues to phase-out A-type incandescent light bulbs, a price war between Cree Lighting and Philips Lighting has pushed the life-cycle cost of A-type LEDs below the life-cycle cost of A-type CFLs. 

                                            greensavingsco.com

The A-type light bulb is the most common type of lamp uses in Massachusetts homes. Under the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA), the 100-watt incandescent was phased-out in 2012, the 75-watt incandescent will be phased out in 2013 and the 40-watt and 60-watt incandescent will be phased out in 2014. Since EISA was announced, LED manufacturers have been scrambling to develop cost-effective alternatives. 

In March 2013, Cree Lighting shattered LED price points with a 9.5-watt A-type LED at a cost just under $15 and Philips responded by lowering the price point of its own A-type LED. As of June 2013 Home Depot locations in Massachusetts are carrying the Cree 9.5-watt LED (60-watt equivalent) for $12.97 and the Philips 12.5-watt LED (60-watt equivalent) for $10.97. Analysts expect these prices to fall below the $10 mark sometime before the end of the year. 

How is a $13 LED less expensive than a $5 CFL? The answer is in the life-cycle cost. Over a 25,000 hour period a 9.5-watt LED will cost approximately $51 in lamp costs and energy costs. Over the same period a 13-watt CFL will cost approximately $61 in lamp costs and energy costs. When Philips and Cree dropped below the $15 price point, LEDs became a better financial investment than CFLs. 

Life-cycle cost analysis remains a difficult sell for budget conscious consumers. When CFLs hit the market in the mid-1990s they retailed for $20-$30 and claimed a $40 savings over the life of the lamp, but by 1999 incandescent lamps still outsold CFLs 25-to-1. In a similar trend, analysts expect LED sales to surpass CFL sales sometime between 2018 and 2020.

Green Schools Update From Steve Muzzy

I've just returned from the Mid-Year Meeting and Green Schools Symposium where I got to meet and learn from sixty other Green Schools peers from across the country. The timing could not have been better as we begin to ramp up our own Green Schools program. Collectively, we are all focused on the 2nd Annual Green Apple Day of Service, with the goal of registering 2500 service projects globally, doubling the number from last year. The MA Chapter Green Schools Committee has been doing outreach and we have a number of big projects in the works - stay tuned for updates and please contact me if you have an idea for a project. 

Another focus of the Symposium was on expanding the Coalition for Green Schools from its current national formation to multiple statewide coalitions. Later this year, the MA Chapter will pilot a Green Schools Coalition and will work closely with the Center for Green Schools to form and facilitate a diverse group of organizations committed to providing every child in America with a green school. 

Finally the Mid-Year Meeting brought together a number of USGBC communities that until now have been operating in isolation of each other. For one day  Green Schools folks, Emerging Professionals, USGBC Student Groups, and the Community Green program were put together and organized by US regions. This provided an opportunity to connect the dots, network, and identify synergies to support each others goals. For MA, some early discussions have shown an opportunity for the Green Schools and Emerging Professional Committees to work together to coordinate more Student Chapters across the state. Thus providing exposure to potential future emerging professionals as well as tying into existing campus sustainability programs that may be able to support such efforts as Green Apple Day of Service.

I am very impressed with USGBC's efforts to support Chapters and build its networks' capacity to advance its mission. The opportunity to connect with other Green Schoolers to share successes, challenges, and resources is invaluable - and will no doubt help the MA Chapter build a comprehensive and successful Green Schools Program.