USGBC Group Will Focus on Sustainable Products

WASHINGTON — A working group formed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) will focus on a new LEED v4 credit that encourages and rewards project teams for selecting sustainable and environmentally protective products in buildings.

At the Greenbuild International Conference and Expo in New Orleans last week, the USGBC announced its plan for the newly created Supply Chain Optimization Working Group, which was approved by the USGBC’s LEED Steering Committee and launched with the support of the American Chemistry Council (ACC). The group includes chemical suppliers, building product manufacturers, design teams, raw materials producers, academics and government entities along with USGBC staff. The Vinyl Institute (VI) announced last week that it also will work with the group.

“The formation of the Supply Chain Optimization Working Group represents an extraordinary opportunity to improve communication and collaboration as we work together toward better, healthier buildings and communities,” said Rick Fedrizzi, CEO and founding chair, USGBC, in a statement. “The participants in the working group are a true reflection of the inclusive and technical development process that defines LEED and sets it apart.”

The group will focus on advancing the LEED v4 Materials and Resources (MR) credit. The credit encourages the use of products and materials that offer life-cycle information and that have environmentally, economically and socially preferable life-cycle impacts. It also rewards the manufacturers of these types of products. The group will focus on ways to evolve options within the credit.

The group will also concentrate on producing guidelines and implementation guidance for specific credits within the MR credit category. Nadav Malin, president of BuildingGreen in Brattleboro, Vt., will be the facilitator of the group, working closely with Scot Horst, USGBC’s chief product officer.

The USGBC announced in August that it will work with the ACC on a new initiative to ensure the use of environmentally protective products in buildings, which resulted in the formation of the working group. LEED is regularly updated through a process that includes public comments, technical review and balloting.

“USGBC and ACC share the goal of advancing sustainability in the built environment, and we will work together to take advantage of our collective strength and experience,” Fedrizzi said. “The looming impacts of climate change and the possibilities of improving human health and wellbeing favor collaboration and engagement as key strategies. The goal is forward progress.”