LEED GA - Study Guide
The greatest threat to global warming potential is presented by which group of refrigerants?
HFCs (HydroFluoroCarbons)
LeadingGreen just signed a contract with the City of Toronto that allows the company to work out of an historic building. How can the city achieve carbon neutrality for the building?
Purchase carbon offsets
The LEED rating systems are updated on a regular development cycle. What are the basic types of improvements that keep the rating systems current? (Choose 3)
1. Maintenance of the current versions of the rating systems 2. Major updates to provide the next versions of the rating systems 3. Development of Addendas to supplement the rating systems
A major focus in LEED is to ensure that a building is located on a site that is near diverse uses, in a dense area and has developmental constraints. Which credit category specifically encourages that?
Location and Transportation
An integrated project team is reliant on:
Commitment to the sustainability goals
Transportation is the second largest contributor of global greenhouse gases at what percentage?
25%
Conventionally which of the following has been primary used to replace CFC-11?
HCFC-123 - Although not the best option, especially for LEED, HCFCs were the first refrigerants to replace CFCs and are the most commonly used alternatives today.
Production of CFCs are banned under the Montreal protocol and HCFCs will be phased out by when?
2030
An extermination company is going out of business because building owners are reducing the need for pesticides by:
An extermination company is going out of business because building owners are reducing the need for pesticides by:
How can a civil engineering team properly grade the site and determine the baseline measurement for outdoor water use on a project?
Use the EPA WaterSense Water Budget Tool - A water budget is a site-specific method of calculating an allowable amount of water to be used by the landscape and then designing the landscape to meet this budget. The budget takes into account plant type, water needs of the plants, irrigation system design, and applied water that the landscape receives either by irrigation or by precipitation.
Which type of water is permitted as an alternative water source for indoor water use?
Used process water
Who is the stakeholder on a project team responsible for verifying the performance and testing of building systems?
Commissioning Authority
The existing TD office towers in downtown Toronto, which were constructed with single-pane windows, is retrofitted to include double-pane glass. This can lead to:
Decreased energy demand
Which of the following is not from a source of alternative or renewable energy?
Demand response
Value engineering can result in reduced level of sustainability or just a more cost-effective approach. Which of the following would be an example of one?
Replacing an asphalt parking lot with a cheaper, cool-coloured gravel
During the integrative process, a team is trying to find the best strategy to protect and/or restore the habitat on a previously developed site. What is one common strategy that helps lead to this credit?
Restore soils and revegetate the site
Employee health is addressed in two categories, EQ and LT. Which of the following would earn LEED point(s)?
Select a site within walking distance of a bicycle network - A bicycle network directly translates to LEED points. In the credit for Green Vehicles, preferred parking must be created as well as a percentage of those parking spaces equipped with EV charging stations.
Smart growth is a commonly used term to describe a best practice. Which of the following does not comply with this best management practice?
Selecting a site that is far from existing communities
LeadingGreen's enormous parking lot utilizes constructed shading towers equipped with PV panels to generate electricity for vehicle recharging stations. Which credits would be impacted by this? (CHOOSE 2)
1. Heat island Reduction 2. Green Vehicles
A team is not sure how to set its baseline for outdoor water consumption. Which of the following techniques would not help earn the outdoor water use reduction credit? (Choose 2)
1. Install a vegetative roof 2. Use turf grass for groundcover
The Integrative Process is used to identify synergies, which result in short and long term cost savings. What is also true about the IP? (CHOOSE 2)
1. It reduces change orders during construction 2. It can decrease the likelihood of delays and costs resulting from design changes during the construction documents phase
A project has reduced its water consumptions by 65% from EPA's baseline. The owner can now ensure a healthy work environment by monitoring 2 of the following: (CHOOSE 2)
1. Outdoor airflow 2. Carbon dioxide levels
LEED projects cover a wide range of building types and occupants. How does LEED define visitors (transients)?
1. Retail customers 2. Retail customers
A municipality has been losing a lot of tourism due to its coal power plant and the detrimental environmental effects associated with it. What can the city use to financially incentivize a developer to develop green buildings? (CHOOSE 3)
1. Revolving loan funds 2. Fee waivers 3. Tax credits
In the site selection credit, which 2 governing bodies discourage developing on sensitive habitats? (CHOOSE 2)
1. State/local fish and wildlife agencies 2. The NatureServe Natural Heritage Program
What two standards are found in many building codes? (Choose 2)
1. Uniform Plumbing Code (UPC) 2. International Plumbing Code (IPC)
There is a prerequisite for LEED BD+C projects in Sustainable Sites that ensures the environment is protected by
1. Waterway sedimentation 2. Airborne dust 3. Soil erosion
The EPACT of 1992 states that the baseline water use of an apartment's bathroom faucet is:
2.2 gpm
Energy use intensity is metric of how much energy (kWh) a building uses per area (SF). Green buildings generally have how much of a lower energy use intensity than typical buildings?
24%
Adaptive reuse, selecting to build infill, and regenerative design are all items encouraged in LEED and green building in general. What is an example of regenerative design?
A building that generates electricity and sends the excess to the grid.
A new building is being constructed in the hot climate of Mexico City. The green building design includes a vegetative roof and an air-tight envelope to reduce air changes per hour and increase building efficiency. What will need to be considered due to this design?
Bringing in additional fresh air for indoor air quality
Which of the following LEED Impact Categories aims at supporting local economies and strengthening the green building industry through supply chain support?
Build a Greener Economy
LeadingGreen wants to establish green building goals across the entire design while using stakeholders' expertise. What workshop helps achieve this?
Charrette
A developer has selected to construct their headquarters beside a protected wetland. The goals of the project are to reduce energy consumption, mitigate the Heat Island Effect, ensure the buildings occupants will be healthy, and protect the wetland's habitat. How can the developer accomplish this?
Complete a site assessment in the integrative process
A company is looking at passive and mechanical methods of lowering the building's energy load, such as:
Configuring the building to minimize solar gain in summer and maximize it in winter
The USGBC requires reporting different building parameters at least every 5 years to increase transparency, as well as to:
Contribute to knowledge that will advance research in the future. The USGBC collects water and energy usage from LEED projects. This information helps the development of future versions of LEED rating systems.
Cork ceiling tiles have the ability to be recycled and completely reused for flooring at the end of their life. Which term describes this approach?
Cradle to cradle - Cradle to cradle is a term used in life-cycle analysis to describe a material or product that is recycled into a new product at the end of its useful life. Cradle to cradle is an example of a closed-loop system, while "cradle to gate (or grave)" is a destructive open-loop system that produces waste
LEED is developed through a consensus-based approach and evolves every few years. What is each LEED rating system composed of?
Credit categories - Within each of the credit categories, there are specific prerequisites that projects must satisfy and a variety of credits that projects can pursue to earn points. The number of points the project earns determines its level of LEED certification.
A LEED consultant is reviewing calculations required to manage rainwater and reduce irrigation needs on the site. What information is required?
Precipitation data - The consultant must know how much rain falls in order to manage it and use it for irrigation. Evapotranspiration is useful too, but not just evaporation.
What contributes to Heat Island Effect?
Reduced airflow due to tall buildings and narrow streets
A project team has decided to take an integrative approach for the design and construction of their new office project. The success of an integrated project team is reliant on:
Commitment to the sustainability goals
In November 2016, LEED v4 was released after being delayed a year and was renamed from LEED 2012 after an open consensus process. Which of the following ensures this process stays intact?
The balloting process with USGBC membership
Which LEED Rating system has performance periods?
LEED O+M: Existing Buildings
A manufacturing company is trying to determine if its roofing shingles comply with LEED requirements. Which factors help in this? (CHOOSE 2)
1 Emissivity 2. Reflectivity These are the two key factors in determining the SRI of a surface and its ability to reject heat
If a manufacturing company recycles used orange juice cartons for flooring, what would this result in? (CHOOSE 2)
1. A carpet that contains post-consumer recycled content 2. A reduced need for virgin materials
A project is located in northern Ontario where no mass transit infrastructure exists. How can this project still earn LEED points? (CHOOSE 2)
1. Encourage carpooling 2. Enforce compressed work week scheduling
For the Building Disclosure and Optimization credit that looks at the ingredients of materials, which standards would help earn points? (CHOOSE 2
1. GreenScreen 2. Cradle to Cradle Certified
What aspect of the Environmental Product Declarations credit is required to know if it leads to LEED points or not?
The number of different permanently installed products used from different manufacturers.
The Water Efficiency prerequisite requires an indoor water usage reduction of 20% from a baseline calculated from what?
The number of occupants , and their usage
When does commissioning take place?
Substantial completion phase
The Location and Transportation credit category awards points for selecting a site within a walkable proximity to a number of "diverse uses". Which is not a "diverse use"?
An automated teller machine
What provides legal protection of the ozone layer in the U.S.?
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
How does open space help promote sustainability? (CHOOSE 2)
1. Fosters social interaction 2Links habitat corridors in urban areas
A development team bought a brownstone house. What would be the best way to select windows?
A development team bought a brownstone house. What would be the best way to select windows?
Open space can contribute to many credits in multiple credit categories. Select the example of quality open space:
A jogging trail around a natural wetland.
Parking footprints are large contributors to the Heat Island Effect. What is an example of a local ordinance?
A law usually found in a municipal code
Which of the following options is not addressed in the minimum program requirement (MPR) in LEED?
A project's energy efficiency - Each LEED rating system has 3 identical MPRs. The project in question must be in a permanent location on existing land, it must use reasonable LEED boundaries, and it must comply with minimum project size requirements (GFA).
There are many new alternative compliant paths (ACPs) in LEED v4. Which of the following is an ACP for the International Green Construction Code (IgCC) for an entire building?
ASHRAE 189.1 - ASHRAE 189.1 Standard for the Design of High Performance Green Buildings - Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings is a set of technically rigorous requirements, which (like the IgCC), covers criteria including water use efficiency, indoor environmental quality, energy efficiency, materials and resource use, and the building's impact on its site and its community.
Which of the following decreases as a project's timeline progresses?
Ability to control costs
In LEED v4, credits have been streamlined and numerous standards have been introduced in the Materials and Resources Category. Which group of credits is Environmental Product Declarations under?
Building Product Disclosure and Optimization - While Environmental Product Declarations are meant to reduce the life-cycle impact of the building, that is not the name of the credit category. Environmental Product Declarations (MRc2) is a credit under Building Product Disclosure and Optimization. MRc2 rewards teams for selecting products from manufacturers who have verified they have improved environmental life-cycle impacts.
Which strategy can the project team suggest if the building owner wants to maintain ongoing energy efficiency and performance?
Building automation systems
How can an infill site positively affect the economic side of the triple bottom line?
By reducing infrastructure costs - An infill site would already be connected to existing utility lines, streets, and other infrastructure, thus saving money that would otherwise be spent developing these items.
The Integrative Process was previously just a principle of sustainability, but with LEED V4, it is now actually worth a point. Which of the following demonstrates a team using the Integrative Process concept of the Systems Thinking approach?
Establishing water saving metrics for measuring success
These are the two key factors in determining the SRI of a surface and its ability to reject heat
Flora, fauna, or sky - Objects close to the windows and flora, fauna, or sky are the definitions noted in the reference guide.
Renewable energy purchased as a carbon offset must meet which of the following criteria
Green-e Climate Certified - For the Green Power and Carbon Offsets credit category (EAc7), a project must purchase 35% of the building's electricity consumption for at least 2 years. The project team can purchase renewable energy certificates (RECs) (or tradable renewable certificates (TRCs)), carbon offsets, or renewable power from a Green-e certified provider. Green-e is a certification program for renewable energy producers. LEED typically recognizes renewable energy if it has been certified by the Center for Resource Solution or meets the Green-e requirements. Green-e Climate certification is for qualifying carbon offsets for LEED.
The USGBC is a not for profit organization that promotes the triple bottom line through its:
Guiding Principles
What type of energy is used by products that are powered by means of an ordinary AC plug?
Plug load - Plug load is the electrical current drawn by all equipment connected via wall outlets.
Which one of the following does not need to be considered when setting aside a location for the storage and collection of recyclables?
Having a separate dumpster for each material
How can satisfying the credit for High Priority Site benefit the community?
Help to revitalize the neighbourhood - A high priority site can help to revitalize the neighbourhood, otherwise derelict sites would be left untouched and risk polluting surrounding areas.
Northeastern University is attempting to create a LEED Platinum® laboratory for its engineering department. What task must the integrative project team complete?
Identify opportunities for synergy
The integrative process is a crucial part of every credit category and results in environmental protection and money saved. How can the architect work with the contractors to ensure that the contractors purchase the correct materials?
Include the specifications in the purchasing policy
A project is under construction in Manhattan and has a near zero lot line, which makes it difficult to manage rainwater. What can this project do?
Install a vegetative roof - Projects on an urban site with a zero lot line (the building footprint is on the site limit) will have to use green infrastructure (GI) (ex. vegetative roofs) and low-impact development (LID) rainwater management strategies (harvesting rainwater) since there is no land.
Innovert Real Estate Investment Trust is reviewing its current portfolio and notices an immense amount of water being consumed in its older building stock, which is costing a lot due to increasing water prices. It is cost-prohibitive to replace all the plumbing, so the project team suggested alternative approaches to reduce potable water. Which are the most efficient ways to reduce potable water?
Installing new low-flow aerators - The best option here is to install new aerators to reduce outdoor potable water usage. All other options are incorrect and reducing cooling tower cycles = increase in water usage. On a more general note, the purchasing plan requires that all new fixtures be WaterSense labeled. Because these items are new, we know that these items will reduce the amount of potable water used in lavatories or showers.
Which LEED rating system has precertification?
LEED BD+C: Core and Shell - LEED for Core and Shell is used when the project owner/developer controls only the design and construction of the building's core and shell (i.e. the mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems, as well as the envelope). Once a project is registered as a LEED BD+C: Core and Shell project, the project team may apply for precertification. The precertification is a formal recognition by the USGBC, given to a candidate project for which the developer/owner has established a goal to develop a LEED BD+C: Core and Shell building. When precertification is granted, the developer/owner can market the building's proposed green features to potential tenants and financiers.
The date is January 1 2022. LEED® v4 is outdated and will be replaced by LEED 2022. What is the committee that is responsible for overseeing a consensus based approach in accordance with LEED protocols?
LEED Steering Committee
A LEED consultant is reviewing project site plans and documentation prior to submitting the project for review. What has the lowest priority in building design?
LEED rating system
Evaluation of the economic performance of a product over its life-cycle is useful in determining using which procedure?
Life-cycle costing - The key term here is economic performance (cost) over the life-cycle.
A project is attempting to meet the EQ credit for enhanced air quality. Which of the following would be well suited for an entryway system?
Low VOC rubber mat
The forms can be changed until they are submitted for review to the GBCI
Low-flow water closets - Low-flow water closets or toilets help reduce indoor, not outdoor, water use.
The facility manager has installed permanent submeters for a few systems. What will this not help with?
Measuring the quality of reused stormwater
What is the overarching goal of the Materials and Resources credit category?
Minimize the embodied life-cycle impacts of the building materials.
While minimum program requirements are essential to LEED in order to ensure compliance, prerequisites are also mandatory. What do all buildings pursing LEED BD+C: New Construction have to meet?
Must be a permanent structure, use a reasonable site boundary, and have a minimum floor area
Where would it be appropriate to use the USGBC member logo for LeadingGreen, a member company of the USGBC?
On company letterhead
A facility manager is looking for information on how to improve IAQ throughout the life of the building. Which of the following strategies will support this goal?
Outlining green cleaning procedures and goals for custodians
What does every credit category begin within the LEED reference guides?
Overview
Looking at the economic side of the triple bottom line, what is the most significant savings that results from water efficiency?
Reduced maintenance costs
How would a larger parking lot impact the Water Efficiency Category?
Reduced need for irrigation
A project is located in northern Ontario and wants to take advantage of the area's environmental assets. Which credit category addresses the needs of this unique location?
Regional Priority credits - Regional Priority credits are bonus points that projects can earn by addressing environmental concerns (water shortages) and environmental assets (abundant sunlight) in their areas.
A project development team just purchased an entire city on the coast of Oregon. Which of the following is one way that the project developer could successfully complete 'adaptive reuse'?
Renovating an old steel mill into an apartment complex
Which of the following statements is TRUE regarding occupant surveys?
Surveys identify areas that need improvement
Quadrel Development Inc. is beginning their first LEED project and has contacted LeadingGreen for some consulting services. What obstacles will Quadrel face?
The additional time for the integrative process
Bringing in additional fresh air for indoor air quality
The amount of LEED credits pursued. Prerequisites and MPRs must be met regardless so they are not the answer. The actual number of credits pursued has no affect on the certification fees paid to the GBCI and its reviewers
What is TRUE about credit forms submitted via LEED Online?
The forms can be changed until they are submitted for review to the GBCI
The most significant difference between a conventional linear design process and an Integrative Process is?
The integrative process is an iterative, collaborative approach that involves a project's stakeholders throughout the process, from visioning through completion of construction and during building operation.
According to LEED, who defines the site's open space requirements?
The local zoning authority
Looking at the economic side of the triple bottom line, which of the following factors impact the cost of LEED certification?
The square footage of the building - The square footage of the project is the primary cost consideration for LEED certification. Remember certification and registration fees are not the same. Generally, the bigger the building, the higher the cost and the smaller the building the lower the cost as compared to the other options here.
The LEED rating systems must continue to push the envelope and to ensure that it keeps improving over time. Who develops the ongoing improvements?
USGBC member-based volunteer committees - LEED is developed by USGBC member-based volunteer committees, subcommittees, and working groups in conjunction with staff. LEED development follows a structure that includes a balanced representation of stakeholders and management of conflict of interest, to ensure that the development of LEED is transparent and consensus-based
Which of the following is an example of greywater?
Used Water that has not come in contact with toilet waste or kitchen sinks
Off-gassing of contaminants is a major degrader of the indoor air quality of a building. What products need to be analyzed to determine their VOC content?
Wall paint
Apple Inc. promotes an open-office concept, but also wants to use daylighting for entire floors, which has a number of trade-offs. How can they ensure that everyone receives adequate light?
Zoned daylighting controls - Different areas of the project will receive different levels of lighting throughout the day. The best way to make sure all occupants have quality lighting is to have a zoned system that adjusts lighting levels based on the amount of daylight coming in. People in darker areas would have more artificial light than those in the sunnier areas.
