The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) is delaying ballot on the 2012 update of its Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) green-building rating system until June 1, 2013—possibly earlier in 2013, if USGBC members and the market indicate readiness for ballot—and renaming the update LEED v4.
LEED 2012 was to be balloted in June and launched in November of 2012.
“This is 100 percent in response to our members’ desire that we give them a bit more time to absorb the changes in this next version of the rating system,” USGBC President and Chief Executive Officer Rick Fedrizzi said. “We want to do everything we can to ensure that the market can fully embrace LEED v4 because it represents significant progress on carbon reduction and human health.”
In addition to changing the ballot date, the USGBC is:
• Keeping LEED 2009 open for registration for three years.
• Continuing to ask for the market’s assistance in “test driving” LEED v4.
• Committing to a fifth public-comment period, which will run from Oct. 2 through Dec. 10, 2012, to take advantage of the USGBC’s annual Greenbuild International Conference and Expo (Nov. 14-16, San Francisco), where public forums and educational sessions on LEED v4 requirements and any final changes that may appear in the new draft will be held and new forms, submittal documents, and LEED Online enhancements will be introduced.
“Greenbuild will provide us the perfect venue to experience the look and feel of the new system as an integrated package,” Fedrizzi said. “Then, we can take the first part of 2013 to make sure the consensus body has everything it needs for a successful ballot.”
For more information about LEED v4, click here.
Editor’s note: The ballot-date change was announced on June 4, four days after HPAC Engineering went to press with an article on expected changes to LEED 2012. The article has been updated online.