What is missing in LEED? (Rocky Mountain Masonry Blog)

Well written article. Good, thoughtful read.

http://rockymountainmasonry.blogspot.com/2008/02/what-is-missing-in-leed.html

• Life Cycle Assessment
• Repair and Maintenance
• Passive Heating, Cooling, and Lighting
• Embodied Energy and Embodied Water
• Retiring Carbon Credits
• Social Equity Credits

Ontario's 1st LEED Platinum Green Building

• Architect: Montgomery Sisam Architects Inc.
• located in Vaughan, Ontario
• 2-storey, 1095 m2 building: office space for 25 occupants and a works garage
• construction is engineered wood framing with brick and wood siding
• cost premium aprox 10%
• expected to achieve a 66 % annual energy savings
• heating: heat pump system with a slinky ground source loop
• cooling: chilled water fan coils supplimented by cooled floor, using the same tubing as the radiant heating system
• concrete “earth tube” delivers outdoor air to the basement mechanical equipment
• 2 heat-recovery ventilators deliver 100 % outside air to the offices via displacement ventilation
• power: partly by photovoltaic system and remaining needs buying electrical power from a supplier of green (renewable) power—Bullfrog Power
• composting toilets (rarely used in offices) and waterless urinals means that the centre uses no water for wastewater conveyance, , together with low-flow plumbing fixtures throughout the building conserve 80% of the potable indoor water normally used in a building of this size
• 95 % of regularly occupied spaces have an abundance of daylighting and 90 % of these spaces have a view to the outdoors
• furniture is certified as “low off-gassing.”

Source: http://www.trca.on.ca/Website/TRCA/website.nsf/frmNewsArticleDisplay?OpenForm&NoteID=NT0001A1E6

TruStile’s MDF doors

• Available in TruStile’s 350+ door styles
• Certified by SCS (Scientific Certification Systems) to be constructed of 82% recycled content
• Eligible for LEED^® credits for Materials and Resources
• Manufactured with low-emitting adhesives
• No-added formaldehyde MDF option is an ideal choice for builders who are concerned about indoor air quality
• More durable and long-lasting than hollow-core doors