Some forego LEED, still practice sustainability - San Francisco Business Times:

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So, many developers pass on the council's Leadershipp in Energy and EnvironmentalDesign program, or LEED, and opt insteae for less-stringent green desigm and construction. , in its new Cool Springs includeda "light harvesting system" that automatically dims or turnsa off interior lights. The automaker also installeed heating and cooling controls at individual work stations and exterior reflective sun shade visorsa that seasonally adjustto sunlight. Insteadx of pursuing LEED-certification and absorbing the additional cost, Nissan used the money to restore a 2.5-acres wetland nearby.
Nissan's move to foregpo certification reportedly disappointed building council officials, but it highlighted the fact some companiess and developers don't view LEED certification as essential. Rob Traynham, Nissan'se director of corporate services, said foregoing certificatiohn let Nissan concentrate not only on preserving the but improvingthem "to creatwe a pleasing environment campus-wide for the workers and the "The building is a highly certifiabl e design," Traynham said. "We just don'tg see the value [of LEED certification] for the plaque on the LEED-certification comes only after specific rating system requirementsare met.
Depending on the certification can call forrecycled carpets, high-efficiency toilets, landscapeds roofs and high-tech water filtratiohn systems. The green buildingh council says LEED-certified buildingsa generally cost 1 percent to 2 percent morein up-front costs, whild other estimates put the certificatiom as high as 5 percent But James Qualk, director of LEED-facilitation salesa at 's Sustainable Solutions Group, says a LEED-certified buildingf doesn't have to cost more than a conventional "I don't know how buildinbg owners can afford not to pursue LEED-certification once (they) includr the considerations of cost-of-ownership or life-cycle costs," Qualk says.
"Ths reduction in energy consumption and water use and the increaswe in worker productivity and reduced absenteeism speak for Green construction, in general, is gradually gainingg favor in Nashville. Sustainable element s are evident with projects such as Morgan Park PlacePhass II, where nine units are being consideredr for LEED gold certification and one is being considerede for platinum, the highest Other sustainable projects include the Tennessee Association of Realtors the Metro Parks' Shelby Bottomss Nature Center and Lipscomb University's Ezell Centerr for Biblical Studies. J.
Mark West, principal and founder of Nashville-basex Exoterra Solutions, which focuses on sustainabl design, says there's still plenty of room for more. "Therd are smaller companies with modest resourcesdoing LEED," says who is consulting on The Acropolis. "While Nissan's effortws are commendable, the fact the company passe on attempting LEED proves the green building communitg still has more educating of the publivcto do.
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