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Changes coming to LEED

LEED 2009 is undergoing some revision. It is currently opening to the public for comment until December 31, 2010. They are then expecting to re-open for comment mid 2011 and become official for 2012. Many items that were once for credits will now be prerequisites.
Some of the changes include:
1) adding 6 prerequisites and 3 credit categories.
2) Adding a transportation category
3) Adding a performance category
4) It would allow for additional credits to be earned by the project being located in a “high-priority redevelopment areas”
5) Bike racks would be required but allow for no credits when installed
6) Outdoor space must be provided that is equivilant to 30% of the total site area
7) A minimum of 25% of the outdoor space must have ground or overhead vegetation.
8) rainwater collection only allows for one credit, instead of a possible two.
9) All projects with over 1,000 sq ft must reduce their water useage to 30% below a baseline determined by the watersense water budget tool.
10) A new credit demand response would be for shift electricity demand from peak to off peak hours by installing things such as ice thermal storage.
11)Recycled Content now merits a prerequisite . The threshold is set at 10% of the materials budgt.
12) Projects have to develop and implement a Construction Waste Management Plan.
13) A new Whole Building Reuse credit caters to historic preservation, giving credit to projects that maintain at least 75% of the total building, and reuse a historic building in a historically appropriate way, or that reuse an abandoned or blighted building.
14) Lighting quality requirements have been raised.
15) all water must be metered.
16) Another new prerequisite is Building-Level Metering, with the intent to “meter, track and share building-level resource use to encourage energy management and support LEED program evaluation.”

This is just a summary of some of the changes that are being considered. To read more about them go here

To make comment about the changes go to the LEED users forum

Or the USGBC website

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