Bill Penny
Bill Penny

Bill Penny is a Member in the Nashville office of Stites & Harbison. He is a member of the firm's Environmental, Natural Resources and Energy Service Group as well as the Green Industry Practice Group. Bill has more than 25 years experience in environmental law. You can contact him at william.penny@stites.com or by phone at 615-782-2308.

Bill Penny
Christina Davidow

Christina Bodewig Davidow is an Associate in the Nashville office of Stites & Harbison and a LEED Accredited Professional. She is a member of both the Environmental, Natural Resources and Energy Service Group as well as the Green Industry Practice Group. She may be contacted at christina.davidow@stites.com or by phone at 615-782-2323.

green building

New Report on LEED Shows Proof is in the Pudding

11.06.09 2:59 PM
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There has been a lot of back and forth lately on how effective LEED really is.  It all started a few months ago with an article in the NY Times in which the author exposed several LEED buildings that were underperforming, and basically gave the impression that LEED is not everything it was cracked up to be.  Yesterday, Rob Watson, the “Father of LEED,” published a report in conjunction with Greener World Media  that shows just how much energy, water, and other resources have been saved by building green. The report brings good news, and informs us that: 

• Total water savings from LEED through 2009 is estimated at 15 billion gallons 
• Annual CO2 savings from LEED buildings is approximately 2.9 million tons from energy efficiency and renewables 
• Green building materials represented approximately $7 billion in cumulative spending through 2009.  Moreover, the embodied energy in buildings that are renovated instead of demolished is expected to save as much energy in 2030 as we import this year from Saudi Arabia. 
• An average of over 60% of construction and demolition waste was diverted from LEED projects, totaling 25 million tons to date 
• An average of at least 580,000 employees are currently enjoying improved indoor environments in LEED buildings at present, and the "green building workforce" is expected to approach 29 million by 2020 and almost 64 million by 2030. The productivity benefits from LEED buildings to date range from $230 to $450 million.
 
The full report can be found here

 

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