LEED - University of South Florida

Team Sustainability Adrian Phillips

Gabrielle Oliveira Cierra Campbell Ashley Chaplin

White Paper Assignment Professor: Francis Tobienne November 16th, 2011

Table of Contents
Title Page Page 1 Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 9 Page 11 Table of Contents Executive Summary

Green Movement History What is USGBC and LEED? Where is USF at now?

USF compared to other Universities

Environmental Impact of LEED Buildings Cost of LEED Certication LEED Buildings Annotated Bibliography

Executive Summary
The green movement is beginning to play a huge role in todays world. Going green has been a slowing growing tend since the 1800s and most recently in the past two decades has been growing signicantly. The founding of the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED in 2000 has set forth green and energy efficient standards for companies now and in the future. The United States Green Building Council (USGBC), which founding the LEED oversees and promotes all buildings and schools towards going green. The University of South Florida has since been trying to achieve LEED certication for current and new buildings. From making necessary changes to current buildings and constructing new buildings within the requirements, USF does what it can to ensure its part in the green movement. USF is not the only university going green though, over 670 other universities have pledged to going green as well. Being LEED certied has a huge impact on the environment. From reducing green house gasses, to reducing water usage, reduced energy usage and overall increased efficiency, going green affects the environment in a very positive manner. The initial costs of going green can scare investors away but a more in depth look shows that businesses can signicantly save money in the long run from going green. Tax credits, low interest rates, lower operating costs, and increased employee production are just some of the benets a company can see from a LEED certied building. The movement will also effect the economy in positive ways. It will create millions of jobs, increased prot returns, and stimulate a new carbon market.

History of the Green Movement

The whole green movement is certainly not new. However, it seems to be reaching a second peak in history or a rst peak for many people, like most students and young professionals. The green movement has been of concern since the 1830s when the roots of environmentalism were directly linked to the intellectual and philosophical work of the Transcendentalists, which has Henry David Thoreau as one of the most famous participants. In rst the half of the 19th Century Rachel Carson awakened the green movement with the Silent Spring and the legislative fervor of the 1970s. In reality the environmentalism is not a trend or a cult, but is more such as a set of actions that one can perform for the betterment and conservation of nature. Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is an internationally recognized certication for green buildings. The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) developed the LEED certication system in March of 2000. It basically consists of providing the correct parameter for LEED building owners and operators such as implementation of practical and measurable green building design, operation, construction and maintenance. LEED is exible and applies to all different building types, such as residential or commercial. In addition, it applies to the whole building lifecycle starting with the design and construction, operations and maintenance, tenant t out, and signicant retrot. There are ve major reasons why building owners choose to go with LEED buildings. First, it is a competitive differentiator because green buildings offer lower operating costs and better indoor environmental quality. Secondly, mitigate risk as green building certication can provide better protection against future lawsuits. Third, it is easier to attract tenants and keep a good class quality of tenants. Fourth, the cost effectiveness as the results in lifecycle savings is of 20% of the total construction costs. Fifth, the increase rental rates as green buildings outperform non-green ones in occupancy, sales price and rental rates. The rst LEED certied building in the US is the Chesapeake Bay Foundation Headquarters building in Annapolis in Maryland. The building was completed in December of 2000 and was the rst building in the nation to receive a Platinum rating by USGBC. This building is considered as one of the greenest buildings in the world. This building belongs to a nonprot organization called The Chesapeake Bay Foundation Inc., and on a typical week the building is occupied by 80 people, and 40 hours per person weekly. According to the USGBC there are 4,853 LEED certied buildings in total in the US.

USF wants to set an example of excellence and for this reason USFs evolvement and commitment to going green led to the initiative of having LEED certied buildings. The university is doing it because it is the right thing to do. Their students and staff want to

make a difference by developing future leaders that understand how important it is to conserve natural resources. With sustainable buildings and sites the productivity, wellness and morale of USF is enhanced and that way everyone benets and at the same time respecting Mother Nature. USF has the Office of Sustainability, which acts in sustainable activities supported by the inclusion of a sustainable strategic plan that faculty, staff and students help implement. Such environmentally friendly initiatives reected in USFs inclusion in the list of the nations most environmentally responsible college campuses. The Science and Technology Building at the St.Petersburg campus was the rst Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certied building.

What is USGBC & LEED?

The United States Green Building Council (USGBC) is a non-prot institute that promotes a more sustainable environment, through buildings that are cost efficient and energy saving. USGBC supports all type of buildings going green, from businesses to schools and residential. The USGBC mission statement is To transform the way buildings and communities are designed, built and operated, enabling an environmentally and socially responsible, healthy, and prosperous environment that improves the quality of life. The council has 79 chapters, approximately 16,000 member business and organizations. USGBC has motivated the green building industry growth that is projected to contribute $554 billion to the US gross domestic product by 2013 (www.usbgc.org). However, its impact is not only domestic there is also international green building councils that use the same Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) system. The US Green Building Council gives ratings on how green US buildings are. The rating system USGBC uses is Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) system. Leadership in Energy and Enviromental Design gives guidelines for companies and organizations to use on the green building design, operation and maintenance. LEED certied buildings are sustainable green buildings. The buildings are rated in seven environment categories. Sustainable sites Water efficiency Energy and atmosphere Materials and resources Indoor environmental quality Innovation in Design Regional Priority The ranking is out of 100 points that can be earned in the rst ve categories and then 10 bonus points in the later two categories. The current LEED rating for New Construction and Major Renovations certications are awarded according to the following scale (www.usgbc.org): Certied 4049 points Silver 5059 points Gold 6079 points Platinum 80 points and above

 Building project managers/ owners have to rst meet minimum requirements in orders to be considered for LEED certication. Then they must build the building rst, then receive inspection and if pass get their certication. If the building does not get approved they can protest the rating. Examples of ways to get points in the ranking system are preventing erosion and prevent pollution of the air with dust and material during the construction. Another example for residential buildings is that they have to be built near basic services schools, banks, pharmacies, parks, restaurants, grocery stores and ect. This makes it easy for people living in the potential LEED building to walk or ride their bikes to these places. Also the buildings have to be water efficient this can be achieved by less water use by using efficient toilets and sinks, manage the storm water so that it is not polluted and is able to get back to nature, also to use landscape that takes less water. Other ways to get points in energy and atmosphere category is to nd way to cut down on the emission and pollutants released into the air. Then using recycled material and sustainable material that will last, reusing building material and if wood is used it should be certied wood, achieves points in the material and resource area. Using materials that are manufactured local earns points in the regional priority area. These are just some ways in which a building can be more sustainable and LEED certied. If the building is not certied, the rating can be protested, which means that the USGBC would look at it again and reconsider though many times changes to the building are needed. The US green building council LEED certication buildings lead to a more environmental friendly communities and are more cost efficient. Also there are tax breaks that can be taken advantage with all the green attributes of a LEED certied building.

Where is USF at now?

The University of South Florida has become more and more environmentally responsible and is becoming a leader in going green. Recently they have received a gold rating from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. USF has achieved this is many ways but the one main area of focus has been on LEED certied buildings. Recently the Science and Technology Building at the St. Petersburg campus has received its LEED certication. The schools also anticipates several others such as Dr. Kiran C. Patel Center for Global Solutions, Tampa Campus (under construction); Interdisciplinary Science, Tampa Campus (under construction); USF Polytechnic Phase I, Lakeland Campus (in design); and Wellness and Nutrition Center, Tampa Campus (in design) (usfweb2.usf.edu), to become LEED certied. USF has done a lot to be very condent in these buildings potential LEED certication. The school has taken many green building campus initiatives. Reuse and renovate is a big start for

USF, the chemistry, education, science center have had major renovations. To help with the renovation and new construction there are three LEED accredited professionals on staff. Some of the renovation includes Sunscreens to southern windows and installation of high efficiency glass. The university has also replaced a total of 410,865 square feet, 15 roofs in total over the past three years. The roofs are being replaced with very high insulation values and high solar reective index. USF is performing life cycle analysis on its construction materials and are developing standards in building insulation values for walls, roofs, windows, motor and equipment efficiencies, mechanical systems insulation, and controls for HVAC and lighting (usfweb2.usf.edu). Before receiving the LEED certication there are some minimum requirements that must meet in order to register to be LEED certied. The university has achieved these appropriate credits for the registered projects. The building materials found in a lot of the new buildings have sufficed these requirements such as the use of concrete and locally manufactured brick and stucco have been used widely. Also stained concrete oors, and unpainted brick, metal and other materials have been used which cuts down on the material and ooring material needed. This will eventually be common for all building on campus. In addition the destruction and construction material has been recycled and reused. USF is also trying to use more renewable materials. Water efficiency has been a main focus in the new construction of the green buildings over all of USF campuses. The Patel center will use rain water harvesting in which water is collected into a cistern and then plumbing in separately for toilet and urinal ushing. The rainwater harvested reduces the water withdrawn from the Florida aquifers. The reuse of waste water from the HVAC system is already in use with the Running of the Bulls fountain at the Tampa campus. In the renovation process water efficiency has also been accomplished with sub-metering retrots on existing buildings. Also many of the old faucets and toilets have been replaced with low-ow motion detecting sensors. The university plans to take inventory of all xtures and start plans for replacement by 2010. These are just some of the ways in which the University of South Florida has been going green with their buildings and getting them LEED certied.

USF compared to other Universities

This section is a comparison of USF to other universities. There are other universities in America who have also started LEED certication or other sustainability programs. What will be compared is the certication level each university has and if USF is behind or ahead compared to the other universities. More than ever before, universities are embracing the goal of sustainability. In 2008, the annual American Association for Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) report documented a continued expansion of sustainability practices into every sector of campus followed by a broadening and deepening commitment to campus sustainability by colleges and universities in the U.S. in 2009. Six hundred and four American colleges and universities have now signed the American Colleges and Universities Presidents Climate Commitment, making a pledge to

sustainability that often extends into green building practices.3 69% of those signatories have committed to achieving at least LEED for New Construction (LEED-NC) Silver certication or its equivalent in all of their new construction and major renovation efforts. (Dougherty, p 6) Ratings of other School Buildings A comparison of some universities and their LEED certication programs: http://www.usgbc.org/ShowFile.aspx?DocumentID=8437 Institution Arizona Arizona State Caltech Carnegie Mellon Connecticut Cornell Darthmouth Duke Florida Harvard Illinois Oberlin Penn State Syracuse UC Merced Washington Washington State Yale LEED Commitment Silver Certication Silver Certication Gold Certication 0 15 1 9 LEED Certied Projects LEED Registered Projects 4 2 6 3 4 16 2 10 47 48 4 3 14 23 12 20 5 15 B A B A B C B A A B B A B C A B B A Green Report Card: Buildings

Silver Certication

Silver Certication > 2 $5 Million Silver Certication > 3 $5 Million Certication Certication Gold Certication > $5 Million Gold Certication > $5 Million 5 17 21 30

Silver Certication > 2 $5 Million Silver Certication Silver Certication Certication > $10 Million Gold Certication Silver Certication Silver Certication 1 0 0 7 11 1

Silver Certication > 12 $4 Million

Environmental Impact of LEED Buildings

The environment is impacted anytime we build using natural or man-made resources. The use of these materials affects how electricity and water is used in the future as well as our indoor environmental quality. Other things that have to be researched and planned for are how construction materials are disposed of and how recycled materials are created and used. Because University of South Florida is constructing buildings based on LEED certication standards, this has impacted the faculty and students of our USF campuses. Building Materials Natural resources such as wood, clay, and stone have been used for centuries to create buildings and homes. In the construction process many man-made synthetic products are also in use. The material selection process is important because as many green, meaning good for the environment, materials as possible need to be selected in order to ensure to a building will become LEED certied. Green materials may be made from recycled materials, which puts waste to good use and reduces the energy required to make them. Good examples include counter tiles made from recycled automobile windshields and carpeting made from recycled soda bottles. Building materials are also classied as green because they can be recycled once their useful lifespan is over for example, aluminum roong shingles. If that product itself is made from recycled materials, the benet of recyclability is multiplied. (Kubba, pg 152) Electricity & Water The use of electricity in a USF building includes heating, cooling, lighting, humidity control systems, and safety/security systems. All of these factors are greatly inuenced by the LEED certication process. There are also a number of efficient ways to reduce water waste, that includes gray-water systems, rain-water collection systems, high-efficiency irrigation systems, recirculationshower systems, recirculation of hot water, insulation of hot-water piping, demand-type tank less water heaters, water softeners, and drinking-water treatment systems. With almost half of USFs indoor water use accounted for in the restroom, lots of improvements have been made to minimize restroom water consumption. Indoor Environmental Quality Although LEED certied buildings are improving the environment as a whole, little is done to ensure that we are impacted positively on an individual level. Things that are important individually are ventilation differences, managing air contaminants, and allergies related to building materials. They are all important topics being that USF is a college campus that thousands of people enter and exit on a regular basis. As a result of these buildings being so efficient and air tight, a lot of gases that are emitted from building materials and furnishings are being trapped and it affects our indoor air quality. These gases are a potentially life threatening mixture of pesticides, solvents, water proong materials, and re retardants. Many of the chemical ingredients in these building materials are well known to be hazardous to human health. Some are respiratory stressors, neurotoxins, hormone mimics, carcinogens, reproductive hazards, or developmental toxins. Thousands of synthetic and natural chemicals make

up modern buildings, and many materials and products off-gas and can be inhaled by occupants. Others may erode from metal or plastic water pipes and end up in a glass of water. The widespread use of such chemicals comes at a time when Americans spend, on average, 90 percent of their time indoors or in vehicles. American children who increasingly forsake outdoor recreation to occupy themselves for more than seven hours a day with electronic media spend an astonishing 97 percent of their lives indoors or in cars, according to a recent survey. (Wargo) Is it environmentally benecial for a building to be LEED certied? For the environment as a whole, yes, as individuals, not so much. More changes have to be made to the LEED certication grading process and more emphasis put on indoor environmental quality. As of now only six percent of the total points needed to be awarded LEEDs highest level of certication, platinum, is given to indoor environmental quality. For the environment, LEED has helped to ensure that buildings are water, electric, and materially efficient.

Cost of LEED Certication LEED Buildings

Energy efficient buildings are a must for the future. Buildings are responsible for 72% of electricity consumption, 39% of energy use, 35% of carbon dioxide emissions, 40% of raw material usage, 30% waste output, & 14% potable water consumption. Making energy efficient alterations to these buildings should be mandatory when considering that nearly 73% of these buildings will stand for decades. Although since the founding of Energy Star, over 83,000 building in the United States have been certied by Energy Star. Green buildings can have a huge impact on the environment. A study of green buildings showed that they had 33% less carbon emissions, 27% occupant satisfaction, up to 45% less energy used, around 13% less maintenance costs, and nearly 54% less water consumed compared to national averages on non green buildings. The green movement is affecting the construction industry in a huge way. Billions of dollars across the country are being spent to build new LEED certied buildings and to make current buildings LEED certied. Certain construction companies such as Harner Construction, re-use salvage parts to consume less energy and reduce costs. They focus on recycling more than LEED certication. This is a different outlook towards the green movement for a construction company but it does effect the environment in a positive manner. The green movement not only benets the construction companies but also the owners of theses properties. Energy Star offers rebates for energy efficient improvements to home owners up to $1,210 and high efficiency air conditioners can yield up to $1,600 in rebates. Owners of energy efficient buildings also benet from tax credits from the government. For energy efficient biomass stoves, heating ventilating, air conditioning, insulations, roofs, water heaters, windows and doors, the government offers up to a 10% tax credit. There is a 30% tax credit for geothermal heat pumps, small wind turbines, solar energy systems, and fuel cells for buildings with any of these installed. Not only are people benetted from tax credits and rebates, some companies offer very low interest

rates for loans to pay for these upgrades and additions. The Columbia Water & Light Company offers an interest rate as low as 1% for energy efficient upgrades towards the building. According to the same company, the average savings for participating in going green is 29%. In recent research in the United States, upgrading an existing building to green could increase its capital value by 16%. Other benetting gures include a operating cost reduction of 8-9%, a value increase of 7.5%, return on investment improvement 6.6%, occupancy ratio increase of 3.5% and rent ratio increase of 3%. It is often argued that going green and constructing energy efficient buildings is too costly. The newest, most efficient technologies are typically the ones that cost the most. This is only the upfront cost that is expensive though, looking at the short-term costs vs. long-term costs, going green will save much more money. In different sectors it is projected that energy efficient buildings could save upwards of $130 billion dollars. Most green buildings cost a premium of <2%, but yield 10 times as much over the entire life of the building. According to Davis Langdon, studies have shown over a 20 year life period, certain green building have yielded $53 to $71 per square foot back on investment. This is a signicant number and goes to show that in the long term, going green is the cheaper and more efficient way to go. The benets reach down to the employees as well. Employees are affected by better health and improved worker productivity. It is measured that a green building could create almost up to $200 billion in worker productivity with improved air quality. Going green also effects the economy in many different ways. Programs such as these can help stimulate the countrys economy. A study by USGBC has shown the green industry could generate nearly eight million jobs in America in the next ve years. Another study shows that an initial investment of around $170 billion annually could create a prot of around $29 billion, a 17% return. Removing this deadweight loss could lower costs for many things and this would directly affect consumers and the economy. The University of South Florida has taken advantage of these economic payoffs with the new LEED certied buildings. USF is taking the stand to be more environmentally and socially responsible by striving for all their new buildings being LEED certied.

Annotated Bibliography
1. http://www.nrdc.org/buildinggreen/leed.asp - This website provides more specific information on requirements to be a LEED building and explains the different levels of LEED certifications (regular, silver, gold and platinum). Each level has a minimum requirement list to be met in order to receive one of the LEED certifications. With this source we can be more specific when talking and explaining each level of certification. "BUILDING GREEN FROM PRINCIPLE TO PRACTICE." NRDC, 2012. Web. 31 Oct 2011. <http://www.nrdc.org/ buildinggreen/leed.asp>. 2. http://www.eswusf.org/usfsustainabilitypartners/index.html - USF is part of the ESW (engineers for a sustainable world). This is a source for other partners in ESW, and that have LEED certified building as well. This source tells us some of the procedures and qualifications engineers and designer evolved in the building construction need to know. "Engineers for a Sustainable World." ESW. N.p., 2006. Web. 31 Oct 2011. <"Facilities Planning & COnstruction." University of Florida. UF, February 1, 2011. Web. 31 Oct 2011. <2.http://www.facilities.ufl.edu/sustain/>.>. 3. http://www.facilities.ufl.edu/sustain/ - University of Florida also has LEED buildings and in this website it explains UFs evolvement in LEED programs. Also, there is a list of Milestones achieved over the years in progressing into LEED certified buildings. UF had one of the first five LEED buildings in the State of Florida. This source is more of a reference of comparison with USF. "Facilities Planning & COnstruction." University of Florida. UF, February 1, 2011. Web. 31 Oct 2011. <2.http:// www.facilities.ufl.edu/sustain/>. 4. http://www.centralfloridafuture.com/news/ucf-leeding-the-way-in-going-green-1.2657324 - In this website we found an article about UCF and their leadership in leading the way in starting to have LEED buildings. UCF was one of the pioneers between Florida universities to have LEED buildings. This is another source we can reference to and do some comparison. Golberg, Wes. "Central Florida Future." UCF, 22 October 2011. Web. 1 Nov 2011. <http:// www.centralfloridafuture.com/news/ucf-leeding-the-way-in-going-green-1.2657324>. 5. http://files.harc.edu/Sites/GulfCoastCHP/Publications/LEEDPlatinumGoldMap.pdf - If we decide to compare with the rest of the country this is a website with all the LEED gold certified buildings in the US. According to this website Florida has 5 LEED Platinum or Gold certified buildings. 1. 2. 3. 4. Navy Federal Credit Union, Remote Call Center Pensacola, Florida. Rinker Hall, University of Floriday - Gainesville Campus, Gainesville, Florida. Happy Feet Plus, Inc., Clearwater, Florida. North Sarasota Public Library, Sarasota County, Sarasota, Florida.

5. Twin Lakes Park Office Complex, Sarasota County Government, Sarasota, Florida. "Map of the Nations Platinum and Gold LEED Certified Buildings." The McAdams Group, 01 Oct 2006. Web. 31 Oct 2011. <http://files.harc.edu/Sites/GulfCoastCHP/Publications/LEEDPlatinumGoldMap.pdf>.

6. http://www.usgbc.org/DisplayPage.aspx?CMSPageID=1988 - This is the US Green Building Council website. This website provides some basic history on LEED Buildings and what are the requirements for a building to be considered a LEED building. Also, this website goes deeply in the economic aspect such as decreasing operating costs. It is a good reference to understand the costs and the economic value of merging to such type of buildings (LEED). "U.S. Green Building Council." USGBC, 2011. Web. 1 Nov 2011. <http://www.usgbc.org/DisplayPage.aspx? CMSPageID=1988>.