ShareThisWho Do You Follow When you LEED? (part 1)
-Reprinted from Construction ink | The Magazine of the Construction Association of South Florida
Gerry Klein | Director of Communications for the Construction Association of South Florida
gklein@casf.org
You may recall, a few issues ago we covered how unbelievably huge “green marketing” has taken hold of the construction industry. Not surprisingly, as we begin a new year and move a little further down the road this fact has not changed. Even if you conducted a comprehensive survey, like a professional US Census worker making $1.25 an hour, it would be pretty hard to find anyone still employed in this industry that forecasts a major shift in this trend back to the way things used to be – before “environmental impact”, “sustainable design” and “cradle to grave analysis” were ever uttered at a pre-con meeting or on a 24 hour cable news station. However, as the months tick by and the economy continues to strangle new construction projects like a Burmese Python greeting a Poodle in a backyard in Weston – more and more companies are questioning the value of green. Sure, you can argue that every story has two sides and its just hot air coming from a bunch of cranky, old dinosaurs living in the past, resisting change until their last dying breath, but you’d be wrong. Respected developers, architects, contractors, industry experts, environmental economists, and other egg-head bean-counter types are reanalyzing what it really means and how much it costs to be green. Some are even calling the whole green construction trend a fraud. Yes, the “F” word.
For many involved in the construction industry, the argument usually begins and ends with LEED certification. Not too long ago, as you know, it was a non-existent term. Now “LEED” is printed on more business cards than a company fax number. With every intention of provoking a healthy debate and stoking the fires a bit, here’s a brief taste of what are considered the meat and potato Pros and Cons of LEED. From there we’ll either join hands, sing Kumbaya in joyous unison and enjoy the sugary goodness of melting smores – OR – we’ll go all Quentin Tarantino on each other and use nasty, sharp weapons to attempt to violently remove the heads from anyone that disagrees. Let the battle begin!
Pros of LEED
- It’s quantifiable and measurable.
- It’s a broadly accepted standard, providing agreed-upon measurements.
- There’s a third-party certification process.
- It provides very specific direction for companies who want to decrease their buildings’ impact.
Cons of LEED
- Companies incur added cost, time, and certification fees – where the same end result could also be achieved without certification.
- Not all points are created equally, although they’re often measured equally.
- There are many processes, materials, and approaches that go beyond the current LEED certification categories.
- Marketing LEED as “the answer” may limit a company’s efforts to make further strides in new, eco-friendly buildings.
- A project can receive LEED certification even if it is located in an environmentally inappropriate area, such as a sensitive watershed, wetland, forest, or prime farmland.
Those are some pretty valid point’s right? So, which side of the battle are you on now? Before you answer that let’s make one thing clear – this is NOT about saving the world! There’s no need to get way off topic and choose sides about environmental responsibility, global warming and saving the Northern Hairy-nosed Wombat. That is not going to happen (not in this article anyway). We are simply trying to poke a stick into the issue of whether or not “green” is good, bad or a just a trendy fad buzzing around the construction industry. If you want to argue your point about how the melting polar ice caps are an irreversible catastrophe of Biblical proportions that threaten everything on the planet including the Cochabamba Mountain Finch – then go outside and toss this magazine in your blue recycle bin and boot up your laptop with its energy-efficient power settings. I’m sure there are a few hundred thousand blog communities out there just waiting to nurture your seething, bitter opinion on the blight of the global condition. If online blogs aren’t your thing – then you could always subscribe to Rolling Stone magazine and read their latest feature article on how the world is going to end because the Republican party doesn’t pass legislation enforcing McDonald’s, Burger King and Wendy’s to increase the recycled paper content of the containers used for double bacon cheese burgers. Sorry, to burst your eco-friendly bubble made from citrus juice and organic, non-toxic, tulip pedal extract from Montpelier, Vermont, but we’re just talking CONSTRUCTION here! You know what I mean? Building stuff with all-natural, environmentally safe concrete, steel, glass, aluminum, plaster, asphalt, wood, cooper, paint, plastic, ceramic, drywall, chemicals, rock, stucco, florescent tubes, sand, and lots of diesel fuel. Lots and lots of diesel fuel.
Stay tuned for Part 2 of this 5-Part series…
Editor’s Note:
Gerry Klein is the Director of Communications for the Construction Association of South Florida and has over 23 years of marketing experience. He handles all Marketing, Advertising and Public Relation Services, as well as, individual marketing services for all CASF members. If you would like to arrange a seminar or confidential meeting to help your business grow, Gerry can be reached at gklein@casf.org.
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