A Community Bank Director Advisor Issue #23 - May 2009

Is There a Greener Shade of Green?
LEED Certification vs. Green Building Design

By William Foley, BrandPartners

Traditional building methods are swallowing up natural resources at an alarming rate, accounting for a significant percentage of the world’s energy, electricity, and water consumption. Green buildings, however, use less water and energy, produce fewer emissions, and have lower operations and maintenance costs. They use fewer natural resources during construction and have higher property values. Plus, employees who work in them are more productive.

But what’s the difference between building a LEED certified building or one that’s simply green? The difference is fairly straightforward with clear benefits and advantages to each.

Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Certification

What is it?
Developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), LEED is a third-party certification program and the nationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings. Certification validates a project’s green features and verifies that the building is operating the way it was designed to. It’s a rating system where projects earn points for satisfying specific criteria within each of six LEED credit categories. The number of points earned determines the level of certification received; Certified, Silver, Gold and Platinum. (For more information visit http://www.usgbc.org)

Benefits
In addition to being the socially responsible thing to do, a certified building that leverages an integrated design approach offers a multitude of benefits:

1. Properly planned and implemented, a certified building doesn’t have to cost any more than a conventional project.

2. Certified buildings use on average 24% less energy and 23% less water, which translates to significant long-term operation savings. Rebates and tax incentives are also available for achieving certain levels of energy efficiency.

3. With inherently cleaner environments, certified buildings lead to a healthier, more productive staff, and make it easier to attract and retain top talent.

4. Higher property values. Certified buildings are worth more and buyers will pay a premium for them.

5. Certified buildings also receive a plaque which is a nationally recognized symbol of the building’s environmental soundness. This visible proof of your commitment to sustainability leads to many sideline benefits, such as marketing and PR mileage and a legitimate public perception.

Considerations
While the building itself might not cost more to construct, there are significant costs associated with certification.

1. Certification can add time to the project. It’s a rigorous process that requires careful, constant management (usually handled by one person who does nothing but that) and you’ll lose a lot of time if you don’t plan properly.

2. It can get expensive. In addition to the registration and certification fees, you will also incur significant commissioning fees that typically add 20-30% to your budget.

3. Unweighted categories can lead to unfair comparisons. One point equals one point in the rating system, so the single point allocated for installing a $400 bike rack is worth as much as the point given for buying 50% of your energy from renewable sources. There’s no comparison between the environmental impact of those alternatives—yet they both contribute equally to the certification level of a project.

Green building design

What is it?
Green building design takes an environmentally sensitive approach to construction. Project goals, objectives, and results are driven by the owner and project team, and there is no formal evaluation process.

Benefits
Green building design offers similar benefits to certification - less of an environmental impact, healthier and happier employees etc. It also offers some additional benefits:

1. No additional time required. With no formal process to adhere to, the project won’t be held up by red tape.

2. Certification-like results without the additional cost. No reason you can’t use LEED as a guide for your project. It’s still noteworthy for PR purposes to be “certifiable” without having the plaque on the wall.

Considerations
While the big benefit of being green but not certified is skipping the arduous, costly process, that benefit is also a downfall. Lack of official verification of your project against a universally recognized standard can be problematic…

1. Ambiguity. The term “green” is vague. With no measurement, a green building can range from one using low-VOC paints to a holistic design that harnesses the power of the sun to produce energy.

2. Unpredictable results. Because the efficiency of the building hasn’t been verified, ROI is difficult to estimate.

3. Weak public perception. Lack of verification is risky if you choose to leverage your green project in marketing and PR initiatives. As more companies recognize the positive PR effects of being green, many of them are making false or misleading claims about their environmental stewardship. It’s an epidemic called “green washing” and it could be detrimental to your project.

Conclusion

While the difference between LEED certification and green building is clear, what’s not as evident is which approach is right for your next branch. Both methods will provide you with the satisfaction of knowing you’re doing something good for the environment, and will likely result in lower operating costs.  Ultimately it comes down to your goals for the project and your tolerance for the various pros and cons that each method presents. Whichever path you choose, however, the key is planning. Thoughtfully planning early in the process will go a long way in ensuring you’ll have an environmentally friendly building you can be proud of.

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