Why you need to be a LEED Accredited Professional: GLOBAL SHIFT IN VALUES REQUIRES EXPANDED KNOWLEDGE IN BUILDING AND DESIGN
Feb 18, 2010 logical green institute
Kimberly Rodale
Kimberly Rodale | LEED AP, Partner | Logical Green Institute
This article was featured January 5, 2010 in the Florida Investor Green Book, an online publication that addresses the changing trends and opportunities in the building industry and the significant affect of the Green Building Movement. Innovative professionals are able to utilize advancements in science and technologies in order to address the global changes in values and build green; therefore maximizing economic and environmental performance.
Green building professionals can become LEED accredited. Accreditation recognizes knowledge in green building and the LEED building rating systems developed by the US Green Building Council. The LEED Credentialing Process is explained in detail starting with Tier I: LEED Green Associate through Tier III: LEED Fellow.
For more information on green and LEED education and training, visit LogicalGreenInstitute.com.
The Dirty Truth About Your Drinking Water
Feb 9, 2010 logical green institute
Kimberly Rodale
Kimberly Rodale | LEED AP, Partner | Logical Green Institute
Scientific studies over the past several years have revealed the shocking truth that radioactivity, arsenic, gasoline additives, drugs, rocket fuel and disease causing micro-organisms have been detected in many drinking water systems.
Recent attention has been focused on “Trihalomethanes” (THM’s) which are chemicals formed by the action of chlorine with naturally occurring organic matter in water. Scientific studies have linked THM’s to increased risk of bladder and colorectal cancer, & may be linked to heart, lung, kidney and liver damage.
MTBE – A Dangerous New Health Risk
MTBE is a chemical added to gasoline to reduce carbon monoxide emissions from automobiles. MTBE has leaked into ground water, throughout the U.S., over a period of years. Reportsof hundreds of people becoming ill have come to light and are connected to MTBE contamination in drinking water. Because of the toxic health effects of MTBE, many states are phasing it out and eventually will ban it.
Neurological symptoms include headache, nausea, palpitations, anxiety, insomnia, and some visual disturbances. Some people complain of lethargy, and in some susceptible individuals, cardiac arrhythmia. Symptoms result from direct exposure to MTBE when pumping gas, oral exposure in drinking water, and inhaling exhaust fumes while riding in heavy traffic.
Every day, more and more toxic chemicals, heavy metals, and disease causing micro-organisms are finding their way into our air and drinking water. Demonstrating their commitment to public health, CWR Environmental Protection designs and customizes water filtration systems to address specific water contaminant problems using combinations of ceramic filters, reverse osmosis and integrated whole building and home systems. These products provide a new generation of water and air filtration to protect you, your employees and your loved ones against the most harmful air and water contaminants, including the THM’s, MTBE, Arsenic and parasites.
Scientific documentation provided by; Dr. Roy M. Speiser, PhD. Is a highly qualified scientist with advanced degrees in Biochemistry. A Certified Water Quality Specialist with over 30 years experience as a health care practitioner. Dr. Speiser has published numerous scientific articles on environmental health issues. He has appeared on national radio and T.V., lectured at numerous health conferences and was a member of a Long Island, NY EPA Task Force on Toxic Waste. Dr. Speiser is Vice President of CWR, Environmental Protection located in Jupiter, FL.
For more information about clean water, please visit cwrenviro.com
For more information about Green trends and education, please visit www.logicalgreeninstitue.com
2010 Promises to be the Greenest Year Ever
Feb 9, 2010 logical green institute
Rob Hink
Rob Hink | LEED AP, Partner | Logical Green Institute
The economy is in the tank. Construction starts were down 15% in 2009 and 2010 is not looking much better. Office vacancy rates are in the 23% range. So why would I project that 2010 will be an even better year for green buildings? It has nothing to do with medications, or lack thereof, it is simply a matter of looking at where the green building market is and what drivers are in place to continue the wave of LEED buildings.
The Past Year
Let’s first look at 2009. A pretty dismal year by almost every accounting. Yet, the number of LEED projects that were certified went through the proverbial roof. In fact, of the 4,388 LEED – Certified Projects worldwide, 2090 of those were certified in 2009. This is more than 48% of all buildings were certified last year. In the eight years of LEED, 2009 saw almost half of all certifications! If we look at the number of project registering for LEED we see a similar increase over the past two years.
Government Action
A perfect green storm is on the horizon. $131 billion dollars is allocated for construction related spending from the federal governments stimulus package. With every federal government agency, the majority of states and now most local governments requiring LEED certification for their new construction, that stimulus money will be building energy efficient, healthy green building. At present time, 30% of all LEED projects are government projects.
Existing Building Markets
The fastest growing segment of LEED is the Existing Building: Operations and Maintenance. The reasons are fairly simple. With the capital market still tight for commercial real estate and the vacancy rates high attention will continue to be focused on the vast portfolio of existing buildings. Lowering operating costs, raising indoor air quality while minimizing the buildings ecological impact will not only increase asset values it will be a strong marketing differentiators as more Fortune 500 companies and government agencies search for LEED certified office space.
Additionally 2010 should see the release of LEED Existing Buildings for Schools. The rating system will allow a much simpler and cost effective way to certify the 130,000 schools in the US. This will give the existing schools department a tool to work through processes at the district level and then implement the process district wide and count them for all schools.
2010 will still continue to be a challenging year for the A/E/C community but those individual and companies who have positioned themselves on the top of the green wave, should continue to see personal, professional and business growth far above the rest of the industry.
For more information on Green trends and education, please visit LogicalGreenInstitute.com.
Palm Beach Zoo Achieves First LEED Certified Animal Hospital in the World
Feb 6, 2010 logical green institute
Rob Hink
Rob Hink | LEED AP, Partner | Logical Green Institute
On Monday, Jan 11, 2010 I had the opportunity to present the Gold LEED plaque to Dr. Terry Maples, the Zoo Director. Palm Beach Zoo incorporated sustainable strategies such solar power to reduce its energy consumption by 15%, water efficient fixtures to reduce potable water consumption by more than 30% and environmentally friendly products to ensure a safe indoor environment. I do believe there are still some firsts for LEED projects. To my knowledge this is the first LEED plaque presentation with an anteater and a sloth. Of course the anteater is name EO after E.O. Wilson, the great ecological biologist.
LEED is an internationally recognized green building certification system developed by the US Green Building Council. The Spinnaker Group provided LEED consulting and building commissioning services for the Zoo.
For more information, please visit TheSpinnakerGroupInc.com.
Logical Green Institute Presents first LEED Green Associate Exam Prep course in Colombia
Feb 5, 2010 logical green institute
Rob Hink
Rob Hink | LEED AP, Partner | Logical Green Institute
Last week I had the opportunity to teach the first ever LEED Green Associate Test preparation course to a group of Architects and Engineers in Bogota Colombia. The course was provided to Construcciones Planificadas of Bogota. CP is one of the largest Developers/Architectural firms in South America and is developing over 2 million square feet of property called Ciudad Empresarial. The project will be built for LEED certification of the core and shell components.
Teaching LEED outside of the United States has its own challenges, not the least of which is the language barrier. To overcome this obstacle we produced the presentation and handouts in English and used a simultaneous translator to translate my words back to Spanish. We chose to do the presentation material in English since the GA test is in English and all LEED documentation must be in English.
The second most difficult hurdle was not only teaching the LEED rating system but also teaching all of the standards, such as ASHRAE, that are US based. Luckily this group of professionals was able to overcome these roadblocks and most did very well on the Green Associate sample exam. We will be following this up with several more LEED AP training classes in the future as there is a thirst for Green Building knowledge with very few practitioners who can bring the over 150 LEED projects worth of experience to the classroom like we do at Logical Green Institute (LGI).
Click here for more information about Logical Green Institute’s LEED Exam Prep Courses.
