USGBC Seeks Comments on Proposed Standards

Washington, DC, May 2008--Tthe U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) opened the first public comment period on LEED 2009, the next evolution of the LEED green building certification system.

LEED 2009 represents a reorganization of the existing LEED rating systems for commercial buildings, combined with a series of major technical advancements focused on improving energy efficiency, reducing carbon emissions, and addressing other environmental and human health outcomes.

"Continuing to seek the right balance between technical advancement and market transformation was a driving force behind the LEED 2009 work," said Scot Horst, chairman of the volunteer LEED Steering Committee, which leads the technical development of the LEED rating system.

"The 'big ideas' we've proposed include transparent weightings of LEED credits so the highest-priority credits achieve the most points, a new mechanism for incorporating bioregional credits, and a more nimble framework that supports rapid response to emerging environmental and human health issues."

The LEED Green Building Rating System was developed by USGBC to drive market transformation in the building industry by defining a consensus metric for leadership in green building. The evolution of LEED is based on technical, scientific and market-based advancements.

"LEED 2009 resets the bar for green building leadership because the urgency of our mission has challenged the industry to move faster and reach further," said Rick Fedrizzi, president and CEO of USGBC.

Detailed information about specific proposed technical changes to the rating system can be found in the number of background documents that accompany the public comment forms on USGBC's website.