LEED-Green-Associate Exam Dumps - USGBC Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Questions and Answers

The best way to prevent a building’s indoor pollutant(s) is to eliminate or control pollutants at the source. Indoor pollutants are substances or particles that can adversely affect the indoor air quality (IAQ) of a building and the health, comfort, and productivity of the occupants. Indoor pollutants can originate from various sources, such as building materials, furnishings, cleaning products, combustion appliances, outdoor air, or occupant activities. Eliminating or controlling pollutants at the source can prevent them from entering or spreading in the indoor environment, which can reduce the exposure and risk for the occupants. Some examples of source control strategies are: using low-emitting materials, installing local exhaust ventilation, sealing combustion appliances, implementing green cleaning practices, and prohibiting smoking13. References: LEED v4 Green Associate Candidate Handbook1, EPA’s Indoor Air Quality3

LEED BD+C: Multifamily Midrise is the appropriate rating system for residential buildings that are four to eight stories above grade1. Since the project scope includes 60% of the gross floor area, it meets the minimum program requirement of having at least 40% of the gross floor area certified2. The other rating systems are not suitable for this project because they either apply to different building types or heights23.

References:

LEED rating system selection guidance | U.S. Green Building Council2

LEED v4: Building Design + Construction Guide - U.S. Green Building Council3

LEED v4 Rating Systems | USGBC-LI1

Teams organize and work as part of an integrative process by working in small groups and as a whole with iterative processes. The integrative process is a method of design and construction that involves the collaboration and coordination of all project stakeholders from the beginning to achieve the project’s sustainability goals1. The integrative process requires teams to work in small groups, such as subcommittees or task forces, to focus on specific aspects of the project, such as energy, water, materials, indoor environmental quality, and site ecology2. The small groups then report back to the whole team and share their findings and recommendations, allowing for feedback and integration among different disciplines and systems2. The integrative process also requires teams to work with iterative processes, which means that they repeat and refine the design and analysis cycles until they reach the optimal solutions that meet the project’s performance targets3. The iterative processes enable teams to explore various scenarios, test assumptions, identify synergies and trade-offs, and evaluate the life-cycle impacts of their design decisions34.

References:

Integrative process | U.S. Green Building Council

LEED v4 | U.S. Green Building Council

The Integrative Process in LEED V4 — ArchEcology

New LEED Pilot Credit Establishes an Integrative Process for Health Promotion

LEED Integrative Process Credit Explained - Projectific, Inc.

Increasing density means building more units or floor area on a given site, which reduces the amount of land and resources needed per unit or occupant1. This also creates a smaller footprint and maximizes the floor area ratio (FAR), which is the ratio of the total building floor area to the site area2. Increasing density can help achieve credits in the Location and Transportation category, such as Surrounding Density and Diverse Uses3.

References:

LEED v4: Neighborhood Development Guide | U.S. Green Building Council1

Floor Area Ratio - Planning Department2

LEED v4: Building Design + Construction Guide - U.S. Green Building Council3

Occupancy sensors are devices that detect the presence or absence of people in a space and automatically turn the lights on or off accordingly. By installing occupancy sensors for the building’s lighting system, projects can achieve two benefits: improving the indoor environmental quality (IEQ) and reducing the energy consumption. Occupancy sensors can enhance the IEQ by providing lighting control for individual spaces, allowing occupants to adjust the light levels to their preferences and needs. Occupancy sensors can also save energy by avoiding unnecessary lighting when spaces are unoccupied, thus lowering the electricity demand and greenhouse gas emissions. References: LEED v4 Reference Guide for Building Design and Construction, p. 507 1; LEED v4 Reference Guide for Building Operations and Maintenance, p. 241 1

Using materials with a high recycled content is a strategy to reduce construction waste. Recycled content materials are made from pre-consumer or post-consumer waste that has been diverted from landfills or incinerators and reprocessed into new materials. Using recycled content materials reduces the demand for virgin materials, saves energy and resources, and prevents waste generation. The other options are not strategies to reduce construction waste. Performing a waste stream audit is a strategy to measure and analyze the types and quantities of waste generated by a building or project. Developing a construction waste management policy is a strategy to establish goals and procedures for diverting construction waste from landfills or incinerators. Hiring a consultant to sort construction waste off site is a strategy to outsource the responsibility of separating recyclable or reusable materials from construction waste, but it does not necessarily reduce the amount of waste generated. References: LEED Green Associate Candidate Handbook, page 26; USGBC, [Materials and Resources], page 2.

Integrated Project Planning and Design is a prerequisite for healthcare facilities under LEED v4. The intent is to maximize opportunities for the adoption of cost-effective integrated green design and construction strategies as early as pre-design1.

References:

LEED v4 | HPAC Engineering1

Green Seal is a third-party certification program that evaluates the environmental impacts of cleaning products and services. It has standards for various categories of products, such as cleaners, paper products, hand soaps, and floor care. Green Seal certified products meet rigorous performance, health, and environmental criteria. By using Green Seal certified products, projects can reduce the exposure of building occupants and maintenance personnel to potentially harmful chemicals, improve indoor air quality, and support sustainable purchasing practices. References: LEED v4 Reference Guide for Building Operations and Maintenance, p. 109 1; Green Seal website

LEED impact categories are the environmental, social, and economic issues that LEED projects aim to address1. They provide an overview of the market transformation that technical requirements work to achieve, as well as a guide to where points should be assigned2. The categories focus on LEED’s social, environmental, and economic goals, and they assess each strategy based on its ability to achieve those goals3.

Regenerative design is a type of design that goes beyond sustainability and aims to restore or enhance the natural systems that support life. Regenerative design projects not only minimize their environmental impact, but also contribute positively to the environment and society. An example of regenerative design is a building that generates electricity from renewable sources, such as solar panels or wind turbines, and sends the excess electricity to the grid, thereby reducing greenhouse gas emissions and supporting the transition to a clean energy economy.

References:

What Is Regenerative Design? | LEED Blog1

LEED v5 | U.S. Green Building Council2

The Future of LEED Will Be Positive | BuildingGreen3