Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) LEED-Green-Associate Release Date

According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, space heating accounted for about 32% of energy use for all U.S. commercial buildings in 2018, followed by ventilation and lighting, each at about 10%1. Space heating is the largest single energy end use in U.S. office buildings as well2.

References:

Use of energy in commercial buildings - U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA)1

DataTrends: Energy Use in Office Buildings | ENERGY STAR2

Offering financial incentives is a strategy that can be used to address transportation in operation and maintenance under the Location and Transportation (LT) category. The LT category addresses the location and accessibility of a project site, as well as its impacts on transportation, land use, and community connectivity. One of the credits in this category is LT Credit: Alternative Transportation - Transportation Demand Management, which rewards projects that implement programs or policies that reduce single-occupancy vehicle trips and encourage alternative transportation modes, such as public transit, carpooling, biking, or walking. Offering financial incentives is one example of such a program or policy, which can provide benefits or rewards for the employees or tenants who use alternative transportation modes, such as subsidies, vouchers, discounts, prizes, recognition, or preferential parking1 . References: LEED v4 Green Associate Candidate Handbook1, LEED v4 O+M Reference Guide

ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager is an online tool developed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that allows building owners and managers to measure and track the energy and water performance of their buildings, as well as benchmark their buildings against similar buildings nationwide. The tool uses a 1-100 ENERGY STAR score to rate the energy efficiency of a building relative to its peers, where a score of 50 represents median performance and a score of 75 or higher indicates top performance1 . References: LEED v4 Green Associate Candidate Handbook1, ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager

From a LEED perspective, a brownfield site with access to multiple lines of public transportation and basic services would be the most applicable. Brownfield sites are previously developed sites that may be contaminated with hazardous waste or pollution. Developing on these sites can help to clean up and revitalize the area. Access to public transportation reduces the need for private vehicle use, reducing carbon emissions and traffic congestion. References: LEED Green Associate Candidate Handbook, U.S. Green Building Council resources