What is L.E.E.D. Green Building Rating System?

In 1993, the U.S. Green Building Council was formed by a consortium of building owners, suppliers, contractors, governmental agencies, architects, engineers, and others involved in the business of creating buildings. The purpose was to promote a mainstream change in the industry toward sustainable facilities. One of the first steps the Council took was the development of a green building rating system. That system is L.E.E.D. which stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. The rating system is based on a series of prerequisites and credits. The design team must verify that all of the prerequisites and a portion of the credits have been met. Most of the credits are performance based, which means that they measure the degree of improvement relative to a recognized standard, rather than requiring the use of specific design strategies or technologies.

The Canadian Green Building Council (CaGBC) exists to accelerate the design and construction of Green Buildings across Canada. The Council is a broad-based inclusive coalition of representatives from different segments of the design and building industry. CaGBC has chosen L.E.E.D. as the accreditation of choice for green building in Canada. http://www.cagbc.ca/