LEED Green Associate Exam Study Sessions Flashcards

o Sourced from Green Associate Exam References –official sources for the exam content

o Screened for definitions and standards related to Exam Specifications plus a few highly applicable to green building practice in general

The area comprised of all contiguous land that is associated with and supports normal building

operations for the LEED project building, including all land that was or will be disturbed for the

purpose of undertaking the LEED project.

LEED Boundary

Handles rating system and reference guide development and updates, as well as advocacy

and resource management associated with LEED.

United States Green Building Council

(USGBC)

Handles the building certifications and professional accreditations associated with LEED.

Green Building Certification Institute

(GBCI)

The minimum characteristics or conditions that make a project appropriate to pursue LEED

certification.

Minimum Program Requirements (MPR)

List the Minimum Program Requirements:

Must be in a permanent location on existing land

Must use reasonable LEED boundaries

Must comply with project size requirements

Required elements or green building strategies that must be included in any LEED-certified

project.

Prerequisites

List the eight credit categories in every LEED Rating System

Location & TransportationSustainable SitesWater Efficiency

Energy & AtmosphereMaterials & Resources

Indoor Environmental QualityInnovation

Regional Priority

What question do the Impact Categories answer?

What should a LEED project accomplish?

List the seven Impact Categories:

1. Reverse Contribution to Global Climate Change

2. Enhance Individual Human Health and Well-Being

3. Protect and Restore Water Resources4. Protect, Enhance and Restore Biodiversity

and Ecosystem Services5. Promote Sustainable and Regenerative

Material Resource Cycles6. Build a Greener Economy7. Enhance Social Equity, Environmental

Justice, and Community Quality of Life

List the four levels of LEED Certification:

CertifiedSilverGold

Platinum

Allows teams to obtain technical guidance on how LEED requirements pertain to their projects, but

does not guarantee credit award, remains confidential and generally applies only to the one

project.

Project Credit Interpretation Ruling

(CIR)

Published publicly online, these are precedent setting and projects must adhere to those

published prior to project registration.

LEED Interpretations

List 3 alternative green building rating systems:

Living Building ChallengeGreen GlobesEnergy Star

The below infographic represents what kind of process?

Iterative

ASHRAE (American Society of Heating,

Refrigerating and Air-conditioning

Engineers) 55 (-2004)

A standard for thermal comfort - air and radiant temperatures, air speed, and humidity.

ASHRAE (American Society of Heating,

Refrigerating and Air-conditioning

Engineers) 55 (-2004)

A standard for minimum ventilation rates for acceptable Indoor Air Quality.

ASHRAE(American Society of Heating,

Refrigerating and Air-conditioning

Engineers) 62.1 (-2007)

Mainly, this standard establishes minimum energy performance requirements in the EA category, but it is also referenced in relation to Light Pollution

Reduction, in the SS category.

ASHRAE(American Society of Heating,

Refrigerating and Air-conditioning

Engineers) 90.1 (-2007)

The effort to codify green building practices into adoptable, adaptable and enforceable green building codes has produced this regulatory document as an overlay to more traditional

building codes.

International Green Construction Code

(IGCC)

An alternate path to compliance with the IGCC.

ASHRAE Standard 189

An international association of HVAC contractors; which sets IAQ guidelines for occupied buildings

under construction - to maintain healthful indoor air quality during demolitions, renovations, and

construction.

SMACNA (Sheet Metal and Air-conditioning Contractors' National

Association)

Metric that combines reflectivity with emissivity, or the ability of a material to emit energy through

radiation.

Solar Reflectance Index (SRI)

The area of the site occupied by the building structure, not including parking lots, landscapes,

and other non-building facilities.

Building Footprint

Hydrocarbons that are used as refrigerants and cause depletion of the stratospheric ozone layer.

Banned by the Montreal Protocol as of 1995.

Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)

Captured rainwater, municipally reclaimed water, graywater.

Nonpotable Water

A joint program of the U.S. EPA and DOE that promotes energy-efficient buildings, products, and practices: it is

used mainly in regards to building Minimum and Optimized Energy Performance, as well as for Appliances and Office Equipment. However, the standard is also used for initial

reflectance measurements of Roofing Products.

ENERGY STAR

An online tool that helps track and assess energy and water consumption.

ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager

An online tool that can establish energy performance goals for a project.

ENERGY STAR Target Finder

A U.S. Act; and law, which is referred to in the Water Efficiency category in regards to fixtures and

fixture fittings (where applicable) such as: water closets, urinals, lavatory faucets, showers, kitchen

sink faucets and pre-rinse spray valves.

Energy Policy Act 1992

Land where development may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of hazardous

substances, pollutants, or contaminants

Brownfield

According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, transportation accounted for __% of total U.S. greenhouse gas emissions in 2008.

33%

List 3 strategies a project can use to encourage use of alternative transportation:

Locate near existing public transportation

Reduce parking availabilityProvide bike racks and

showersOffer incentives for alternative commuting

Provide reserved carpool parking

Provide alternative fueling stations

List 3 strategies a project can use for developing a sustainable site:

Minimize hardscapeUse native vegetationPrevent light pollution

Preserve open space and sensitive areas

Protect and restore habitat

Smart site lighting design can provide what benefits?

Improved safety by reducing glare and contrast

Maintain view of night skyReduce stress on nocturnal

animals

Give two examples of approaches to land management that mimic natural systems and manage rainwater as close to the source as

possible

Low impact design (LID) Green Infrastructure (GI)

Using reflective roof areas, reducing paved areas and installing a green roof are all strategies that

contribute to what?

Reducing Heat Island Effect

List 3 strategies a project can use for rainwater management:

Minimize impervious areasControl rainwater

Incorporate rainwater management into site

designHarvest rainwaterRedirect rainwater

Metering and monitoring indoor water systems allows a building to do what?

Track consumption trendsDetermine fixture

performancePinpoint leaks

A building’s orientation can provide what free energy strategies?

Natural ventilationSolar energy

Daylight

Encourages electricity customers to reduce their usage during peak demand times, helping utilities optimize their supply-side energy

generation and delivery systems.

Demand Response

List 3 strategies a project can use for achieving energy efficiency:

Address the envelopeUse high performance systems and appliancesUse high efficiency

infrastructureCapture efficiencies of scale

Use energy simulationMonitor and verify

performance

___________ and __________ provide the basis for tracking energy performance, with the goal of identifying and resolving any problems that may

arise.

Monitoring Verification

A commissioning agent is responsible for comparing building performance with what three

things?

Performance goalsDesign specifications

Owner’s project requirements

___________ has the highest percentage of total energy consumption in commercial buildings.

Space heating

A testing program which certifies floor covering products for compliance with indoor air quality

emissions. Floor covering products include: vinyl, linoleum, laminate flooring, wood flooring, ceramic

flooring, rubber flooring and wall base.

FloorScore

An independent, non-profit organization established to promote the responsible

management of the world's forests. It labels products that come from responsibly managed

forest and from verified recycled sources.

FSC (Forest Stewardship Council)

Created by the Carpet and Rug Institute (CRI), this standard sets VOC limits for carpet and carpet

cushion products

Green Label Plus

A standard for low VOC material and green cleaning products. This standard includes adhesives, paints, coatings, and cleaning

products.

Green Seal

The highest form of materials conservation

Reuse

Attempts to identify and quantify environmental effects throughout the life of materials, products, or buildings

from raw material extraction to end of life disposal.

Life Cycle Analysis (LCA)

This process looks at both purchase and operating costs as well as relative savings over the life of the building or product and calculates payback periods for first costs.

Life Cycle Costing(LCC)

List five environmentally preferable materials attributes:

Support the local economySustainably grown and harvested

Have intended end-of-life scenarios that avoid landfill

Contain recycled content from industrial or consumer sourcesMade of bio-based material

Free of toxinsLong lasting, durable, and

reusableMade in factories that support

human health and workers’ rights

Solid waste disposal contributes to greenhouse gas emissions in what two ways?

TransportationProduction of methane in

landfills

List three ways building design can reduce waste:

Dimensional construction materials

Pre-fabricated materialsMaterial efficient framing

A statement that the item meets the environmental requirements of ISO 14021–1999, ISO 14025–

2006 and EN 15804, or ISO 21930–2007

Environmental Product Disclosure (EPD)

A statement that the item meets the environmental requirements of ISO 14021–1999, ISO 14025–

2006 and EN 15804, or ISO 21930–2007

Environmental Product Disclosure (EPD)

A roof or portion of a roof on a building that is covered with vegetation and a growing medium, planted over a waterproofing membrane. They

help keep air above roofs cool, treat stormwater, create habitat and reduce heat island effect.

Green Roof

A filter rating established by ASHRAE in its Method of Testing General Ventilation Air Cleaning Devices

for Removal Efficiency by Particle Size.

MERV (Minimum Efficiency Reporting

Value)

A landmark international agreement designed to protect the stratospheric ozone layer. Within

LEED, this standard is referred to in regards to phasing out CFCs and HCFCs in refrigerants.

Montreal Protocol

This Institute is a nonprofit, public-benefits corporation Its mission is to promote energy efficiency in buildings through

technology research, guidelines, and codes. They also conduct studies in on the benefits of green building and

LEED.

NBI (New Buildings Institute)

This standard identifies water-efficiency products and programs for some high-efficiency fixtures or fittings. It is a partnership program created by the

EPA.

WaterSense

The percentage of materials in a product that is recycled from manufacturing waste. Examples include sawdust, trim materials, and agriculture wastes. Excluded are materials such as rework,

regrind, or scrap being reclaimed within the same process that generated it.

Pre-Consumer or Post-Industrial Recycled

Content

List three building products that can pollute the indoor environment through VOCs

PaintsAdhesivesFlooring

Composite woodInsulation

Wall materialsFurniture

List four design strategies to promote good indoor environmental quality:

Prohibit smoking in the building

Proper ventilationProtect the air that comes

into the buildingTest for radon/on-site

contaminantsEntryway systems

Specify low-emitting materials

Enclosed areas where people normally spend more than one hour of continuous occupancy per person per day; the occupants may be seated or

standing as they work, study, or perform other activities.

Regularly occupied space

Good lighting design considers the _________, the _________ of the building, the layout of the

______, the type of ________and configuration of the windows, even the type of furnishings and

________ of surfaces.

Tasks to be done in the spaceOrientation

RoomGlassColor

What are the three components of the Triple Bottom Line?

PeoplePlanetProfit

The costs or benefits incurred by parties who are not part of a transaction.

Externalities

The ultimate goal of these is to encourage projects to focus on environmental priorities unique to their

geographical areas.

Regional Priority Credits