Stites & Harbison, PLLC

In 1998, the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) created the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System.  With the exception of eighteen states that mandate state-owned buildings be designed and constructed to achieve a LEED Silver rating or higher, LEED is a voluntary program that private owners may chose to adopt and apply to the design and construction of their buildings.

In 2004, those 18 states began passing regulations that mandated sustainable design and construction practices (such as LEED certification) for state-owned buildings.   Some states that have mandated sustainable design and construction practices for public buildings are now considering sustainable design and construction practices for private construction through the development of green building codes.  As mentioned above, LEED was written as a voluntary program, and was not written to be enforced as a building code.

On January 26, 2010, the American Society of Heating Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE), the Illuminating Engineering Society (IES), and the USGBC published ASHRAE 189.1, a new standard for the design of High-Performance Green Buildings, after being approved by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) on January 22, 2010.  ASHRAE 189.1 was written such that it can be adopted by states and incorporated into building codes.  This new ANSI standard, if adopted by a state, will apply to all new public and private construction and major renovations, except for low-rise residential buildings. 

ASHRAE 189.1 is similar to LEED in that it includes requirements relating to site sustainability, water use efficiency, energy efficiency, indoor environmental quality, the building’s impact on the atmosphere, materials and resources, and construction and plans for operation.  It is ASHRAE’s intent that the 189.1 standard will compliment LEED, and will serve as the baseline for LEED or other similar rating systems.  Some examples of ASHRAE 189.1’s requirements include mandating that (1) owners or developers build on previously developed sites or on a Greenfield site within one-half mile of a developed area, (2) architects design for the future installation of on-site renewable energy, and (3) owners track energy consumption of the building on a periodic basis.  A copy of the ASHRAE 189.1 can be previewed at http://www.ashrae.org/publications/page/927. 

For more information about these regulations or other green initiatives which may impact your business, please contact Angela Stephens, Esq., LEED AP, at astephens@stites.com.