The program works by establishing measures that can be taken in five areas — sustainable sites, water efficiency, energy and atmosphere, materials and resources, and indoor environmental quality. After review by a third-party LEED expert, projects are awarded points in these categories. Depending on the number of points, a building can be certified at one of four levels: Certified, Silver, Gold or Platinum.

LEED has specialized rating systems for different segments of the building industry. LEED for New Commercial and Major Renovations (LEED–NC) is usually the right system for city and county building projects. LEED for Existing Building Operations and Maintenance (LEED–EB) is the right system for improving the operational efficiencies existing city and county buildings.

Energy Star is a program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Well known among consumers for its energy ratings on products such as dishwashers and windows, it also has a green building program that offers many free assessment tools and suggestions. One part of the program focuses on government buildings.

The Energy Star program includes a rating system, and buildings that achieve at enough points win Energy Star rating. The rating allows building designers, builders and owners to demonstrate environmental leadership.

History

Seattle, Washington, was the first city in the nation to formally adopt LEED as its design a performance standard for city facilities. Seattle’s policy, adopted in early 2000 (the same year LEED released its first rating system), requires all city-funded projects over 5,000 square feet of conditioned space to achieve a LEED Silver rating.

As of September 2007, Seattle has 10 LEED certified buildings (5 LEED Gold, 3 LEED Silver, and 2 LEED Certified). An additional 27 city-funded LEED projects are in some phase of development including fire stations, community centers, branch libraries, an environmental education center, solid waste transfer facilities, and operations and maintenance facilities.

Dallas is another of many examples of municipal leadership. In 2003, Dallas passed a resolution requiring all buildings larger than 10,000 square feet to meet LEED Silver certification. The Green Building Program started with construction of the Jack Evans Police Headquarters. By 2007, Dallas expects to complete more than 30 city-owned green buildings, including eight libraries, six police and fire stations, four cultural centers, three recreation centers and three service centers.

In August 2007, Dallas updated its policy requiring all 2006 Bond Program and subsequent bond program facilities to achieve LEED Gold certification and achieve water efficiency and energy credits. The City plans to leverage its commitment to green building and encourage private sector developers to follow its example. “We couldn’t very well ask the private sector to develop green buildings unless we did it ourselves, could we?” says City Manager Mary Suhm.