Parents want to know: why is building a school as a LEED school so expensive? Initial construction costs may be high, but with a careful budget and post construction energy performance studies, it has been proven conclusively that building to LEED standards saves a great deal of money for the School District of Palm Beach over time.
An excellent case in point is that Pirtle Construction, which has been contracted for the LEED Platinum Galaxy Elementary project, looks to have brought the base bid and alternates for the project in under budget thus far. Once the building is occupied there will be studies of the energy consumed (energy performance studies) over the years to show the cost savings.
An important fact to note is that $2.3 million of the dollars necessary for the construction of Galaxy Elementary will be secured through grants and donations, not through taxpayer dollars.
Even though the school board for the district of Palm Beach has made it mandatory for the district to build all new construction to LEED standards, many people still do not know the meaning of the acronym LEED. Developed by the U.S. Green Building Council in 2000, LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, and the LEED rating systems are developed by an open consensus based process, and it stands for a set of international standardized building construction benchmarks.
According to the USGBC; “LEED certification provides independent, third-party verification that a building, home or community was designed and built using strategies aimed at achieving high performance in key areas of human and environmental health: sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality.”
LEED is a rating system with six components: sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials and resources selection, indoor environmental quality, and innovation in design. The levels of LEED certification are certified, silver, gold, and platinum. Buildings are certified with the LEED ratings, not people, and the certification process is done by a third party organization known as the GBCI, or Green Building Certification Institute. These standards were created to encourage building owners to construct, renovate and operate facilities in an environmentally sensitive manner. In order to achieve a LEED Platinum rating, the building process entails achieving the highest number of points in the six component rating system.
Along with governmental incentives, there are distinct advantages afforded by high performance (LEED) construction. Building “green” makes sense, especially with high energy costs.
Here are some surprising statistics:
- Buildings account for as much as 60 percent of all electricity consumed in the United States.
- On a school campus, school buildings account for a large portion of the operating budget.
- Many school districts are now making it a requirement for all new buildings constructed within the school districts to meet LEED standards.
- Commercial buildings also generate nearly 40 percent of all greenhouse gas emissions.
- Did you know that LEED projects award points for taking action to make sure the construction project takes into account a wide variety of environmentally friendly actions by the construction company during the duration of the project? Every environmentally friendly action is considered, from demolition of the previous building, to the construction site waste and how it is handled, and materials re-use.
The Galaxy state of the art campus is the eighth “green” school for the district. Green schools provide the community with sustainable and healthy learning environments for administrators, educators, and their students, enhanced teaching tools, and provide connections with the surrounding businesses and cultural resources. Research has proven the occupants of LEED certified buildings experience a higher satisfaction level, better health, and improved personal productivity. As a matter of fact, research has been conducted to show that among occupants and attendees at green schools, more than 70 percent reported that these new facilities reduced student absenteeism and improved student performance. An added bonus in regard to Galaxy is that according to community leaders, the new Galaxy Elementary School is considered an important part of the economic revitalization of Boynton Beach.
The argument can be made that with the shortfall in district budgets it can be perceived as extravagant to build a school to LEED Platinum standards due to the initial cost. Thankfully the costs of building to LEED standards have flattened out, especially since one of the requirements of certification in the process requires that everyone involved with the project submit a precisely specified budget for the building to be built. Most importantly, a building constructed to LEED standards will quickly recoup the investment with a facility that’s less costly to operate each year, and the investment will yield returns for the life of the building.
So the next time you hear someone talking about LEED schools and why they are important, hopefully you will understand more of the details about the LEED rating system. Most importantly you will know why building to LEED standards saves money, provides both educators and students with a healthier learning environment, and is so important to our future.
