CBRE Group Leads in Sustainable Design

LOS ANGELES — CBRE Group can now claim the lead in LEED for Existing Buildings. The firm, headquartered in Los Angeles, announced last week that it has certified more than 300 buildings, making it number-one in the commercial real estate services and investment industry.
CBRE’s Global Energy & Sustainability LEED Programs team has now certified 305 buildings totaling more than 95 million square feet in 30 states. The 305 buildings that CBRE has certified with LEED make up approximately 10 percent of the 3,100 buildings with the LEED for Existing Buildings certification globally. Gary Thomas, director of CBRE Global Energy & Sustainability, leads CBRE’s LEED programs.
“The Green Building Adoption Index recently published by CBRE and Maastricht University demonstrated the growing prominence of environmentally certified assets in major U.S. cities,” said Dave Pogue, CBRE’s global director of corporate responsibility, in a statement. “CBRE made a bold commitment seven years ago to gain 100 LEED Existing Building certifications. Reaching 300 is a tribute to Gary, his team, and our many clients who have also made a commitment to achieving improved environmental performance in their assets.”
All told, the positive environmental impacts of the certifications include annual savings of more than 150 million gallons of water and more than 162 million kWh of electricity. At an average rate of $.10 per kWh, this would result in annual energy cost savings of more than $16 million and eliminate more than 112,000 metric tons of CO2 emissions. That equals taking 23,591 passenger vehicles off the road for one-year, according to CBRE.

“There are some 5.4 million existing buildings in the U.S. today, and every one of them would benefit from the protocols of continuous building performance improvement that is a hallmark of the LEED for Existing Buildings certification program,” said Rick Fedrizzi, president, CEO and founding chair, USGBC, in a statement. “While some view green buildings as a ‘nice to do,’ CBRE has embedded sustainability values across its far-reaching footprint, and this latest milestone specifically focused on green buildings is a significant example of the kind of leadership CBRE provides the global real estate community.”