LEED Platinum is Bustin' Out All Over
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto 
on 12.26.08
TreeHugger doesn't show as many LEED buildings as it used to; they have become almost common, and many, LEED notwithstanding, have "issues," such as being overly large, strange uses, (a LEED airplane hanger?) or boring LEED categories like Existing Buildings: Operations and Maintenance oops, that's the Mother Ship.
However Preston at Jetson Green gathers together thirty-three LEED Platinum buildings that he covered this year and it is clear that we missed a lot of neat stuff.
I am sorry we missed the Swaner EcoCenter in Utah; Preston covers it personally in great detail.
I am also a sucker for big galvanized rainwater tanks, I love the idea that such utilitarian things rarely seen outside of farm or industry become almost like icons. The Duke Smart home houses ten students who "in addition to experimenting with various green projects and modifications to the home, are ambassadors that conduct tours and explain its sustainable features."
One can gripe about LEED, which is constantly evolving so yesterday's complaint might not be appropriate today. But one cannot ignore the fact one actually CAN put together a post of thirty-three Platinum LEED buildings, which would have been a challenge in any other year.
And I can think of no better sign of the success of the program that we have so much to chose from that we actually call them "almost common."
LEED Platinum buildings that we did cover in TreeHugger:
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/12/worlds-first-leed-platinum-aviation-hangar-unveiled.php
5IVE: Diary of a LEED Platinum Home
Discovery Headquarters Get LEED Platinum
"Home of the Future" Is Sacramento's First LEED Platinum Home
LEED For Houses: Prada Label or Prickly Hair Shirt?
Follow @TreeHugger on Twitter & get our headlines with @TH_rss!
Thirsty for more? Check out these related articles:
- Planning a Green Building Project? Beware of Lawyers
- Chipotle Goes Green, Plus Recipe for Hormone-Free Braised Pork with Chipotle Peppers
- How to Convince Your Family Contracting Business to Go Green
- Mini Blinds are Boring—Craft Them into Chic Fabric Shades
- 5 Reuses for: Watermelon
- Get Behind Supreme Court Nominee Sotomayor—60 Green Groups Already Have
I just want to point out - 'overly large' can mean density, which is far more environmentally friendly than more spread out development. Building a LEED Platinum building fifty miles from the center of the city when it could have been right in the middle is in itself environmentally unfriendly.