LEED Green Building

Rating System and

Sustainable Sites
By Steven Harrison, P.E., LEED AP and Jim Noll, P.E.

November 2008
 Professional Development Series
LEED Green Building Rating System and Sustainable Sites
By Steven Harrison, P.E., LEED AP and Jim Noll, P.E.
G
reen building and construction increases the
efficiency with which buildings and develop-
ments use resources while reducing impacts
on human health and the environment. Many
agencies and organizations recognize the importance
of utilizing products and methods as green solutions to
promote environmental, economic, health, and community
benefits through better site selection and development,
building design, construction, operation, maintenance, and
pollutant removal. Various rating systems have been devel-
oped to certify green building and construction, including
the U.S. Green Building Council’s (USGBC) Leadership in
Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building
Rating System.
LEED Green Building Rating System
The USGBC — created in 1993 — recognized the need
for a system to define and measure green buildings. In
August 1998, the first LEED Pilot Project Program was
launched. The pilot program, commonly referred to as LEED
Version 1.0, was created by a USGBC committee comprised
of architects, realtors, a building owner, a lawyer, environ-
mentalists, and industry representatives. In 2000, a revised
version was published, LEED Green Building Rating System
Version 2.0. The current version is 2.2.
LEED certification is a third-party validation of a build-
ing’s performance and can lead to builders and developers
receiving more lucrative projects, financial incentives/cred-
Continuing Education
The Professional Development Series is a unique
opportunity to earn continuing education credit by read-
ing specially focused, sponsored articles in CE News.
If you read the following article, display your under-
standing of the stated learning objectives, and follow
the simple instructions, you can fulfill a portion of your
continuing education requirements at no cost to you.
This article also is available online at www.cenews.com/
pg.asp?id=20.
Instructions
First, review the learning objectives below, then
read the Professional Development Series article. Next,
complete the quiz and submit your answers to the
Professional Development Series sponsor. Submittal
instructions are provided on the Reporting Form on
page PDH 6. Your quiz answers will be graded by the
Professional Development Series sponsor. If you answer
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its, and significant acknowledgments for their efforts.
The LEED Green Building Rating System for New
Construction and Major Renovation is organized into six
different categories: Sustainable Sites, Water Efficiency,
Energy and Atmosphere, Materials and Resources, Indoor
Environmental Quality, and Innovation in Design. The LEED
Rating System evaluates the overall performance of a green
building project based on points. Within each of the six LEED
credit categories, projects must satisfy particular prerequisites
and earn points. The number of points earned determines
the level of LEED certification the project receives (Certified,
Silver, Gold, or Platinum). This article discusses several signifi-
cant credits comprising the Sustainable Sites category.
Sustainable site development
A sustainable project starts with a sustainable site.
Selecting the site and placing the building on the site are
two of the most important steps in a green building project.
Development on an inappropriate site can increase a build-
ing’s water demands, transportation and energy impacts,
ecosystem disturbances, and project costs.
Where and how a building occupies a site has signifi-
cant, long-term impacts on its efficiency and success. It
is essential to analyze the building’s relationship with its
surrounding natural environment, including the sun, soil,
wind, water, and trees, as well as the surrounding built
environment, which includes other buildings, roads, and
local transportation options.
at least 80 percent of the questions correctly, you will
receive a certificate of completion from the Professional
Development Series sponsor within 90 days and will be
awarded 1.0 professional development hour (equivalent
to 0.1 continuing education unit in most states). Note:
It is the responsibility of the licensee to determine if this
method of continuing education meets his or her governing
board(s) of registration’s requirements.
Learning Objectives
After reading this article, you should understand
the general benefits, prerequisites, and specific credits
required to satisfy the Sustainable Sites category of the
U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and
Environmental Design (LEED) for New Construction.
Professional Development Series Sponsors
David Evans and Associates, Inc.
CONTECH Construction Products Inc.
 The first category of credits in LEED for New Construction
focuses on Sustainable Sites, which addresses the building
site’s impact on the community, local infrastructure, and
environment. It encourages best management practices for
everything on the exterior of the building, including construc-
tion techniques that protect undeveloped land and open
spaces, contaminated site remediation, traffic reduction, and
stormwater minimization and treatment. Using sustainable
building locations and features in the building design mini-
mizes environmental impacts both locally and globally.
LEED for New Construction – Sustainable Sites
The Sustainable Sites category consists of the following
prerequisite and credits:
Prerequisite — Construction Activity Pollution
Prevention. This prerequisite requires projects to imple-
ment an Erosion and Sedimentation Plan to reduce pollu-
tion from construction activities by controlling soil erosion,
waterway sedimentation, and airborne dust generation.
Credit 1: Site Selection. When selecting a site, iden-
tify sites that do not have sensitive site elements or restric-
tive land types. Select a building design and location with
the least environmental impact.
Credit 2: Development Density and Community
Connectivity. When selecting a site, give preference to
urban sites with dense development and pedestrian access
to services such as banks, libraries, day care facilities, grocery
stores, post offices, and restaurants.
Credit 3: Brownfield Redevelopment. When select-
ing a site, give preference to brownfield sites and then iden-
tify an appropriate remediation strategy.
Credit 4.1: Alternative Transportation — Public
Transportation Access. Reduce pollution and land devel-
opment impacts from car use by situating the building near
mass transit facilities.
Credit 4.2: Alternative Transportation — Bicycle
Storage and Changing Rooms. Reduce pollution and
land development impacts from car use by encouraging
bike commuting and designing a building with bicycle stor-
age and changing rooms.
Credit 4.3: Alternative Transportation —
Low-Emitting and Fuel-Efficient Vehicles. Reduce
pollution and land development impacts from car use
by providing amenities such as alternative fuel refueling
stations or preferred parking for low-emitting and fuel-
efficient vehicles.
Credit 4.4: Alternative Transportation — Parking
Capacity. Reduce impacts from single occupancy vehicle
use by providing preferred parking for carpool vehicles,
sharing parking facilities with adjacent buildings, or mini-
mizing parking lot space.
Credit 5.1: Site Development — Protect or Restore
Habitat. Protect or restore habitat by conserving existing
Professional Development Advertising Section — CONTECH Construction Products Inc. PDH 3
natural areas or restoring areas to provide
habitat and encourage biodiversity.
Credit 5.2: Site Development —
Maximize Open Space. Design the building
with a minimal footprint and maximize open space on the
site to encourage biodiversity.
Credit 6.1: Stormwater Management — Quantity
Control. Reduce impervious surfaces, manage stormwater
runoff, and increase on-site infiltration to maintain natural
stormwater flows to avoid disturbing natural water hydrology.
Credit 6.2: Stormwater Management — Quality
Control. Manage stormwater runoff in order to reduce
disruption and pollution of natural water flow.
Credit 7.1: Heat Island Effect — Non-Roof. Reduce
heat island effect through the use of shaded surfaces, vege-
tated surfaces, and open-grid paving or high-albedo mate-
rials.
Credit 7.2: Heat Island Effect — Roof. Reduce effect
of heat island by installing high-albedo and vegetated roofs
(which reduce heat absorption).
Credit 8: Light Pollution Reduction. The site’s inter-
nal and external light levels should be minimized to reduce
impact on nocturnal environments, improve nighttime
visibility (through glare reduction), and avoid night-sky
pollution.
Prior to selecting a site, potential environmental distur-
bances that may occur as a result of the project need to be
evaluated. Sustainable Sites Credit 1 (SSc1), which focuses
on site selection, identifies the following six criteria that
should be avoided when choosing your location:
1) prime farmland as defined by the U.S. Department of
Agriculture;
2) previously undeveloped land with an elevation lower
than 5 feet above the elevation of the 100-year flood
as defined by the Federal Emergency Management
Agency;
3) land identified as habitat for any species on federal or
state threatened or endangered list;
4) land within 100 feet of any wetlands;
5) previously undeveloped land within 50 feet of a body of
water which supports or could support fish, recreation,
or industrial use, consistent with the terminology of the
Clean Water Act; and
6) land which was public parkland.
The Sustainable Sites category also focuses on develop-
ing a site in urban areas with existing infrastructure. The
site location will influence many things, including whether
people drive or use alternative transportation to reach the
site. Also, if fewer individual cars are traveling to your site,
fewer parking spaces are needed. According to the Natural
Resources Defense Council, automobiles are responsible for
approximately 20 percent of greenhouse gas emissions in
the United States each year.
 LEED Green Building Rating System and Sustainable Sites
Consider the proposed uses of the build-
ing and what services are located nearby.
Locating the development near other common
destinations and dense residential areas allows
access through alternative modes of transportation such as
walking, bicycling, or public transit, and the location can
improve quality of life as commuters spend less time in their
automobiles.
Sustainable Sites Credit 2 (SSc2): Development Density
and Community Connectivity focuses on reducing urban
sprawl. There are two ways to earn this credit. A dense
development is defined by LEED as property with an aver-
age density greater than or equal to 60,000 square feet
per acre (sq.ft./acre), including the area of the project.
Development density is calculated by dividing the total
square footage of the building by the total project site area
in acres (see Equation 1). The total project site area must
remain consistent throughout LEED documentation.
Development Density (sq.ft./acre) =
Gross Building Square Footage (sq.ft.)
Project Site Area (acres) (Equation 1)
Once the development density is determined, convert
the total site area from acres to square feet, then calculate
the square root of this number and multiply the result by
three to determine the density radius (see Equation 2).
Density Radius (feet) =
3* √(Property Area [acres]*43,560 [sq.ft./acre])
(Equation 2)
To determine the density boundary, overlay the density
radius on a map that includes the project site and center
the circle over the project site. For all properties inside the
boundary (or intersecting the boundary circle) determine
the building square footage, the site area, and add the total
for each. Divide the total building square footage by the
total site area (not including public roads and right-of-way
areas) in acres to find the average density (see Equation 3).
Average Density (sq.ft./acre) =
∑ (Sq.ft. of buildings within density radius)
∑(Total site area in acres) (Equation 3)
Community connectivity can be achieved by locating a
project within 1/2 mile of a residential zone with an aver-
age density of 10 units per net acre and at least 10 basic
services with pedestrian access. LEED identifies a list of basic
services that many people use on a regular basis and that
meet the community connectivity criteria for SSc2. These
services include banks, places of worship, convenience or
grocery stores, pharmacies, post offices, senior care facili-
ties, laundry facilities, day cares, fire stations, restaurants,
fitness centers, libraries, schools, salons, hardware stores,
4 PDH Professional Development Advertising Section — CONTECH Construction Products Inc.
medical/dental offices, public parks, theaters, and commu-
nity centers.
To document this credit, define a 1/2-mile radius circle
centered around the site on a map. Then identify on the
map each of at least 10 basic community services and the
area with a residential zone having at least 10 units per net
acre. Only one of each service, except restaurants which
can count for two, can be used to attain 10 total.
In addition to basic services, LEED prefers sites that
are located near mass transit. Sustainable Sites Credit 4.1
(SSc4.1) requires the building to be within 1/2 mile (via
pedestrian route) of an existing or planned and funded
commuter rail, or within 1/4 mile of one or more stops for
two or more public or campus bus lines usable by building
occupants.
To document achievement of this credit, submit an area
map that indicates the project site location and the location
of either a commuter rail stop or two bus stops. The map
must also include a scale bar and a north arrow indicator.
Stormwater management
The intent of USGBC credits for stormwater manage-
ment is to minimize the site development impact to the
natural hydrology of the project site.
SSc6.1 — Stormwater Design: Quantity Control
— The intent of this credit is to avoid potential downstream
flooding and excessive stream bank erosion by minimizing
the rate and quantity of stormwater runoff. By promoting
stormwater infiltration, this credit also attempts to keep the
natural hydrology of the pre-developed site.
The criteria for this credit are separated in two existing
condition scenarios: Case 1 — Existing imperviousness is
less than or equal to 50 percent; and Case 2 — Existing
imperviousness is greater than 50 percent. When the proj-
ect site existing surface conditions are equal to or less than
50 percent impervious, the design team must implement
a plan that prevents the post-developed peak stormwater
runoff rate and quantity from exceeding the pre-developed
(existing condition) rate and quantity. If the stormwater
design does not result in limiting the runoff rate and quan-
tity to pre-developed conditions and the project is located
near a stream or creek, the design team can implement
a plan that protects the receiving channel from excessive
erosion. A narrative must be written describing the strate-
gies that have been implemented to reduce stormwater
runoff and protect the stream bank from excessive erosion.
If the project site existing conditions reflect Case 2 —
Existing imperviousness is greater than 50 percent, the
design team must implement a stormwater management
plan that reduces the post-developed stormwater runoff
rate and quantity by 25 percent from the pre-developed
condition.
Documentation for this credit can be in the form of the
Letter Template associated to this credit. A Letter Template
is a standard LEED form provided by USGBC that outlines
the specific requirements of the
credit and provides direction as
to how to explain or justify how
the proposed strategies achieve
the credit. Calculations must be
submitted that show the pre-
and post-development storm-
water runoff rate and quantity
for the two-year, 24-hour storm
event. The Letter Template also
provides space for a written
narrative.
Strategies for stormwater
quantity control include green
roofs, infiltration trenches
or ponds, detention/reten-
tion facilities, or stormwater-
harvesting facilities. Green roofs
provide stormwater detention
in the growing medium of the
green roof and also provide
evapotranspiration. Design
considerations include addi-
tional structural load on the
roof, and irrigation to allow the
green roof plant material to
establish. Infiltration and deten-
tion/retention facilities have
several design factors, including
the size of contributing areas
draining to the facility, surface
runoff characteristics, and soil
infiltration rates. Stormwater-
harvesting facility design factors
also include the size of contrib-
uting areas draining to the site
and surface runoff characteris-
tics, but also consider average
annual rainfall and necessary
water demand for irrigation and
toilet flushing. These facilities
are typically supplemented with
a domestic water supply during
potentially dry summer months.
The difficult part of this credit
is meeting the stormwater runoff
quantity criteria. The stormwater
rate can be managed through
the use of detention facilities
and orifices that are designed
to release at a specific rate.
But, the quantity of stormwater
runoff leaving the site is much
more difficult to manage. The
most effective and efficient way
Professional Development Advertising Section — CONTECH Construction Products Inc. PDH 5
This flow-through planter, located at Clackamas to achieve this
Community College in Oregon City, Ore., provides is by using infil-
stormwater quality control for the roof area and is an tration facilities.
example of a water quality strategy. However, if the exist-
ing soils on the project site are
not conducive to infiltration, the
quantity of stormwater runoff
must be managed by a retention
or harvesting facilities. Retention
facilities will allow gradual infil-
tration and evapotransporatation
of stormwater. The stormwater
harvesting facilities will utilize the
stormwater for other uses such
as landscape irrigation or toilet
flushing within the building.
Integrating the stormwater
management facilities into the
overall site plan can be chal-
This water quality swale is another example of a water
lenging. Stormwater facilities
quality strategy. It provides stormwater quality treat-
may impact site grading, build-
ment for all impervious areas on the project. This swale
ing plumbing, pedestrian and
is located at the Nike Vivian Stringer Child Development
vehicular traffic, and landscape
Center in Beaverton, Ore.
planting.
Coordinated design teams
can achieve multiple credits
using one strategy. For exam-
ple, a stormwater-harvesting
facility utilizing stormwater to
irrigate landscaping and flush
toilets within the building can
also assist in achieving Water
Efficiency credits WEc1.1 and
WEc1.2 for water-efficient land-
scaping, and credits WEc3.1
and WEc3.2 for potable water
use reduction. Another example
is to utilize a pervious pavement
On this tight site in Baltimore, a manufactured storm- material to infiltrate stormwa-
water filtration BMP is installed in combination with a ter, which may also have mate-
swale to allow both stormwater management regula- rial characteristics to achieve
tions and low impact development goals to be met. Sustainable Sites credit SSc7.1
for reducing the heat island
effect for non-roof areas.
SSc6.2 – Stormwater
Design: Quality Control
— The criteria for this credit
include implementation of a
stormwater management plan
that captures and treats 90
percent of the average annual
rainfall. The treatment must
remove 80 percent of the aver-
age annual post-development
total suspended solids (TSS).
 LEED Green Building Rating System and Sustainable Sites

The criteria “90 percent of the average
annual rainfall” are defined for three differ-
ent watersheds: humid, semi-arid, and arid.
Humid watersheds are defined as those that
receive at least 40 inches of rainfall in a year. Semi-arid
watersheds are those that receive between 20 and 40 inches
of rainfall in a year and arid watersheds receive less than 20
inches of rainfall in a year. For humid, semi-arid, and arid
watersheds, “90 percent of the average annual rainfall” is
1-inch, 3/4-inch, and 1/2-inch of rainfall, respectively.
Documentation for this credit can also be in the form
of the Letter Template associated to this credit. The
Letter Template separates natural or “non-structural” best
management practices (BMP) from “black box” or “struc-
tural” treatment facilities. The template also allows for
multiple treatment facilities and calculates their total rainfall
treatment volume by percentages automatically. The Letter
Template also provides space for a written narrative.
Natural treatment systems include green roof, biofiltra-
tion or grassy swales, infiltration basins or trenches, sand
filters, filtration basins, or extended wet detention ponds.
These treatment facilities will require a certain amount of
property area on the site. The size of the area is dependent
on the proposed facility and the amount of stormwater
being treated. These facilities can also add an aesthetically
pleasing component to the site by using appropriate land-
scape planting.
There are also products on the market that can provide
effective treatment of the stormwater without taking up
potentially expensive real estate. These “black box” facilities
are compact, located at specific points, and are typically
below grade. Both the natural and black box treatment
facilities require at least annual maintenance to ensure they
are operating effectively. These types of treatment facilities
are acceptable solutions to meeting the water quality credit
if in-field performance exists for monitoring data demon-
strating compliance with the listed criteria.
Resources and the future of green building
Although this article focuses primarily on several signifi-
cant credits within the Sustainable Sites category, additional
detailed information about all of the credits within the LEED
Green Building Rating System can be found on USGBC’s
website (www.usgbc.org). The site also contains informa-
tion about registering a project and the fees and certifica-
tions involved.

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Article Title: LEED Green Building Rating System and Sustainable Sites
Publication Date: November 2008
Sponsor: CONTECH Construction Products Inc. Valid for credit until: November 2010

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mation. Fax this Reporting Form to 513-645-7993. (You do not need to send the Quiz; only this Reporting Form is necessary to be
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 With architects, real estate professionals, facility manag-
ers, engineers, interior designers, landscape architects,
construction managers, lenders, and government officials
all taking a vast interest in helping to transform the built
environment toward a more sustainable environment, the
green design field grows and develops constantly. With the
bar of sustainable living ever increasing and new technolo-
gies and products surfacing on the marketplace every day,
there is infinite opportunity to effect change in the way
buildings are designed, built, operated, and maintained.
Steven Harrison, P.E., LEED AP, is a
project manager for David Evans and Associates,
Inc. He can be contacted at sdh@deainc.com. Jim
Noll, P.E., is director of Engineering Services for CONTECH
Construction Products Inc. He can be contacted at jnoll@
contech-cpi.com.

Professional Development Series Quiz

1. The acronym LEED stands for:
a) Lighting and Energy Efficiency
Design
b) Land, Environment, and Energy
Demands
c) Leadership in Energy and
Environmental Design
d) Leaders in Energy Efficient Design
2. All of the following credits pertain
to the Sustainable Sites category
of the LEED Green Building Rating
System with the exception of:
a) Development Density and
Community Connectivity
b) Alternative Transportation
c) Stormwater Management
d) Construction Waste Management
3. Identifying potential environ-
mental impact due to construction
of a new building is a key focus of
the Sustainable Sites Credit. Criteria
to be concerned with include:
a) Land classified as habitat for any
species included on the federal or
state endangered species list
b) Land set aside as a public park
c) Any lands within 100 feet of a
classified wetland
d) Both (a) and (b)
e) All of the above
4. The Community Connectivity
Credit (SSc2) identifies key
basic services needs for the local
community that must be located
within the following distance of
the planned construction site
being evaluated:
a) 10 miles c) 1/2 mile
b) 1 mile d) 2 miles
5. SSc2 criteria for identifying basic
service needs of a community
include all of the following
businesses with the exception of:
a) Restaurants d) Banks
b) Fire stations e) Sports bars
c) Laundromats
6. LEED Credit SSc6.1 — Stormwater
Design: Quantity Control permits
the designer to exceed the
pre-developed site runoff rate as
long as the design includes:
a) A plan to prevent excessive erosion
of the banks of the stream channel
receiving the site runoff.
b) A pretreatment system for the site
runoff.
c) Sufficient green space on the site to
maximize open space.
d) A plan to provide habitat and
encourage biodiversity.
7. The most efficient method
of controlling the quantity of
stormwater runoff from the
building site is to:
a) Collect and treat the water first.
b) Incorporate detention ponds into
the site design.
c) Use infiltration or retention
facilities.
d) Use stormwater for irrigation.
8. Identify which of the following
statements is most applicable to
the Letter Template associated
with SSc6.2:
a) Enables the designer to incorporate
multiple treatment facilities
b) Incorporates stormwater harvesting
facilities to control site runoff
c) Separates natural best
management practices from
structural treatment facilities
d) Both (a) and (c)
e) None of the above
9. An important aspect of “black
box” treatment facilities is:
a) They must be located offsite.
b) They can not be located within
100 feet of wetlands.
c) They require annual maintenance
to ensure operational effectiveness.
d) They must incorporate both
detention and infiltration
capabilities.
10. Pertaining to LEED Sustainable
Site Development, development
of the wrong site can:
a) Increase the cost of construction
b) Result in excessive construction
material waste
c) Require longer lead times for
design review and approval
d) Increase the building’s water
demands and environmental
impacts
e) Both (a) and (d)

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