USGBC Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) LEED-Green-Associate New Questions

Installing solar panels and a geothermal heating system is the best answer because it combines renewable energy with an efficient building system strategy. In LEED Energy and Atmosphere, projects are encouraged to reduce energy demand, improve energy efficiency, commission systems, meter energy use, and use renewable energy. A geothermal heating and cooling system can reduce HVAC energy consumption when properly designed, and solar panels can offset grid electricity with renewable power. Reflective coatings may reduce heat gain or heat island impacts but do not provide as broad an energy strategy. Centralized HVAC may or may not be efficient depending on design and controls. Increasing exterior lighting power would increase energy consumption and could create light pollution. Efficiency and renewable energy together support sustainable operations.

Acomposting toileteliminates water use by not requiring any water for flushing, unlike traditional or low-flow fixtures:

“Composting toilets… operate without water use, thus eliminating indoor water demand for flushing.”

WaterSense toilets and low-flow lavatories reduce water use but do not eliminate it.

An infill site within an existing neighborhood with substantial transit connectivity would maximize LEED points under Location and Transportation. An infill site is a site that has been previously developed or graded and is surrounded by existing development. An existing neighborhood is a geographic area with a variety of land uses, such as residential, commercial, educational, or recreational. Substantial transit connectivity means that the site has access to multiple modes of public transportation, such as buses, trains, light rail, or bicycles. The LEED Green Associate Candidate Handbook states that one of the intents of the Location and Transportation category is to “encourage development within existing communities and public transit infrastructure” [1, p. 12]. References: [LEED Green Associate Candidate Handbook] , [Location and Transportation | U.S. Green Building Council]

One of the causes of surface water degradation is the expansion of impervious surfaces. Impervious surfaces are those that do not allow water to infiltrate into the soil, such as roads, parking lots, rooftops, and sidewalks. Impervious surfaces increase the amount and speed of stormwater runoff, which can carry pollutants, sediments, nutrients, and pathogens into surface water bodies such as streams, rivers, lakes, and oceans. Impervious surfaces also reduce groundwater recharge, lower base flow in streams, increase flooding and erosion, alter streammorphology and habitat, and affect water temperature and dissolved oxygen levels2. Therefore, impervious surfaces can have significant negative impacts on the quality and quantity of surface water resources. References: Surface Water as a cause of land degradation from dryland salinity3; What is Water Pollution?4