After over 70 Congressman wrote to the General Services Administration criticizing proposed LEED 2012 credits on building materials, the US Green Building Council has started to fight back. The criticism pertains to proposed credits that may encourage alternatives to certain building materials now used in energy efficient buildings. USGBCās response said that āsome industry trade associations have deployed false rhetoric about job losses, chemical bans, and high costs to the taxpayer.ā
āLEED v4 [previously known as LEED 2012] will not ban any chemicals or products,ā the USGBC says. āLEED v4 utilizes private?market incentives to reward companies that produce more transparent, well-documented building materials. There is no āred listā of banned chemicals. Furthermore, the materials credits contemplated for LEED v4 are completely voluntary.ā
GSA is not currently evaluating LEED v4 since it has not been issued. Instead, the agency is evaluating LEED 2009āthe latest version of the standardsāand two other certification systems as part of its regular review of building standards. The review could lead to replacing LEED with another sustainability standard.
(http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/233637-chemical-industry-bristles-at-green-building-standards)
NOTE:This information is the opinion of the author/blogger and not the official position of IAPMO.