Only LEED Meets Its Needs, Says GSA

The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA), which is responsible for a large percentage of federal workplaces, has required since 2003 that all of its new construction projects and major renovations be certified through the LEED^® Rating System of the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC; see EBN Vol. 11, No. 7). Congress asked GSA earlier in 2006 to report on “progress and next steps toward recognition of other credible sustainable building rating systems within the GSA sustainable buildings procurement process.” Given changes in the marketplace since GSA chose to use LEED, Congress was essentially asking GSA to update its standards. A report released in September 2006, however, from the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) on behalf of GSA, screens nearly 100 rating systems, looks in depth at five, and supports GSA’s current stance, saying LEED “continues to be the most appropriate and credible” system available.
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