Advocacy Alert: Let’s Answer LePage’s Attack on LEED! Updated 12/21/11 and 1/10/12

We were surprised and dismayed to learn of Governor LePage’s recent Order Regarding the Use of Green Building Standards in State Buildings which effectively bans the use of the LEED green building rating system, the most robust third-party verification program for sustainable design and construction, in state funded buildings.  This is a significant loss for the State of Maine as LEED is a key tool to support  the greening of the built environment and prioritizes the local economy.

Local materials and resources are a focal point of LEED. Any product, including wood, resourced from within 500 miles of a project receives credit towards LEED certification. This credit (MR 5), offering up to three points (including an Innovation in Design point for exemplary performance), is achieved by almost 90% of all LEED certified commercial projects.  Achievement of these regional materials credits supports local economies.  It is a direct blow to Maine businesses and their products to undermine a rating system that has successfully promoted the use of local and regional materials.

USGBC Market Brief – Materials and Resources in the LEED Rating System

We want to hear from you!  What local/regional materials have you used on LEED projects?  Each selection represents a contribution to the local economy.  We’d like to show Governor LePage the value of LEED for our local economy.  Thank you!

USGBC Policy Brief – Local Resources Eligible for MR 5 

 Motivated by energy savings, a commitment to the local economy, stewardship of Maine’s natural resources and occupant health private companies and institutions – L.L. Bean, Hannaford, Poland Spring, PowerPay,  Gorham Savings Bank, Colby College,  and Bowdoin College among many others – have chosen LEED and the reliability that its third party verification provides.  It is incongruous and short-sighted to deny state buildings this same positive choice and outcome.

USGBC Market Brief – Maine Green Building Market Activity

 The private sector and, historically, Maine state government (there are currently 12 LEED registered and certified buildings owned or occupied by state government) have embraced what LEED provides in ways no other rating system does:  third party verification, demonstrated reduced energy use, thousands of gallons of water saved, the demonstrated positive impacts on human health, the tons of carbon dioxide emissions avoided.

It appears that an out-of-state interest has gotten to the highest office in the state and convinced them to walk away from the world’s preeminent green building rating system that consistently delivers immediate and measureable results.

We urge you to contact Governor LePage, state officials and your elected officials to voice your concern over this giant step backward. 

December 21, 2011

Update:

Thank you for your informative responses to the Advocacy Alert we issued on this important topic last Friday.  We have received excellent data which we can share with the LePage administration that shows how, as Chapter Member and LEED Certified Home owner Susan Gilpin put it, “LEED motivated us to look harder to find local materials. LEED is good for Maine businesses.”

We are happy to answer your questions regarding how, exactly, the Executive Order as written bans LEED.  True, the ban on LEED is implied, rather than explicit.  But, that’s exactly what the Order does.  The Order states that:  The design, construction, operation and maintenance of any new or expanded state building shall incorporate Green Building” standards that give certification credits equally to forest products grown, manufactured, and certified under the Sustainable Forestry Initiative, Forest Stewardship Council, American Tree Farm System and Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification systems.  The certified wood credit included in the LEED rating system (one point out of 100) recognizes ONLY Forest Stewardship Council certification.  Therefore, LEED is wholly excluded.

For those of you interested in learning more about the history of wood certification and about other environmental groups’ reactions to this Order, we are pleased to provide the documents linked below.

Sierra Club: Connecting the Dots – Landmarks in the Timber Industry’s 15-year Quest to Get Wood from Status Quo Forestry Accepted as a Green Building Material

Environmental Groups Rally Around USGBC in Maine

Thank you, again, for your advocacy on this important issue.  It’s important to reinstate LEED as the green building standard applied to state funded buildings in Maine.

January 10, 2012

Update: