The LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) system was created in 1998 by the U.S. Green Building Council. Presently, it is one of the most popular systems of multi-criteria assessment of buildings in the world. It is highly appreciated by the real estate sector and by the users of certified buildings, as evidenced by over 82 000 projects certified so far by more than 200 000 consultants around the globe. It is most popular in the United States, where over 1/3 of the certified structures are located. Certification is carried out in 162 countries, and it includes buildings of all types – from commercial buildings to residential buildings.
Certification is conducted in accordance with the guidelines and under the supervision of U.S. Green Building Council – non-profit organization promoting green construction and gathering companies and institutions that popularize sustainable development. To receive a certificate, it is necessary to cooperate with a LEED consultant, who will manage the project implementation process in a manner that produces the greatest number of points possible. It is important to make the decision on certification early enough because this will enable low-cost or even no-cost certification with the highest possible rating.
The criteria for building assessment are divided into 7 categories:
Sustainable Sites
Water Efficiency
Energy and Atmosphere
Materials and Resources
Indoor Environmental Quality
Innovation in Design
Regional Priority
Each of these categories includes a number of requirements awarded with points. The selection of the requirements to be met is voluntary, but there are several critical requirements that have to be met by every building to be certified. The maximum number of points that can be awarded is 110. The certificate rating depends on the number of points as follows:
Certified (40–49 points)
Silver (50–59 points)
Gold (60–79 points)
Platinum (80+ points)
LEED provides the users and operators of buildings with the tools to identify and implement practical and measurable solutions for environmentally friendly design, construction, use and maintenance of buildings. The most important benefits of building certification are as follows:
reduced operating costs
independent certification of the high quality of the building
improved user comfort
marketing, PR and CSR benefits

Jerzy Wójcik