According to USGBC, the Federal Government, the nation's largest building owner, has been among the top users of the U.S. Green Building Council's LEED rating system, and has also helped to develop and improve the rating system through participation in USGBC member committees. LEED buildings demonstrate better life cycle economic performance than convention construction, use less energy and water, and have a smaller environmental footprint.
The U.S. Navy, Air Force and General Services Administration, Department of Energy, Department of State and Department of Energy all reference and use LEED for the design and construction of their buildings. Seven percent of the LEED projects that are currently in construction are owned by the Federal Government, USGBC says.
The Army says the goal of transitioning from the SPiRiT rating system to LEED was an effort to integrate the principles and practices of sustainability on their installations as they minimize the impacts and total ownership costs of Army systems, materials, facilities and operations. The Army will be required to build all their new construction projects to the LEED Silver standard.
Created by the USGBC, the LEED Green Building Rating System is a voluntary, consensus-based national leadership standard for developing high-performance green buildings.
LEED provides a comprehensive framework for assessing building performance and meeting sustainability goals. Based on well-founded scientific standards, LEED emphasizes state of the art strategies for sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality. LEED recognizes achievements and promotes expertise in green building through a comprehensive system offering project certification, professional accreditation, training and practical resources.
The SPiRiT program was originally developed to provide guidance to support the consideration of sustainable design and development principles in Army installation planning decisions and infrastructure projects. Its intent was that it would be used throughout the design process to guide the project towards a sustainable solution as well as to score and rate the resulting facility. SPiRiT was modeled after the LEED Rating System.
