LEED is a voluntary certification program that can be applied to any building type and any
building lifecycle phase. It promotes a whole-building approach to sustainability by recognizing
performance in key areas:
Sustainable Sites
Choosing a building's site and managing that site during construction are important considerations
for a project’s sustainability. The Sustainable Sites category discourages development on
previously undeveloped land; minimizes a building's impact on ecosystems and waterways; encourages
regionally appropriate landscaping; rewards smart transportation choices; controls stormwater
runoff; and reduces erosion, light pollution, heat island effect and construction-related pollution.
Water Efficiency
Buildings are major users of our potable water supply. The goal of the Water Efficiency credit
category is to encourage smarter use of water, inside and out. Water reduction is typically
achieved through more efficient appliances, fixtures and fittings inside and water-wise
landscaping outside.
Energy & Atmosphere
According to the U.S. Department of Energy, buildings use 39% of the energy and 74% of
the electricity produced each year in the United States. The Energy & Atmosphere category
encourages a wide variety of energy strategies: commissioning; energy use monitoring; efficient
design and construction; efficient appliances, systems and lighting; the use of renewable and
clean sources of energy, generated on-site or off-site; and other innovative strategies.
Materials & Resources
During both the construction and operations phases, buildings generate a lot of waste and use a
lot of materials and resources. This credit category encourages the selection of sustainably grown,
harvested, produced and transported products and materials. It promotes the reduction of waste as
well as reuse and recycling, and it takes into account the reduction of waste at a product’s source.
Indoor Environmental Quality
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that Americans spend about 90% of their day
indoors, where the air quality can be significantly worse than outside. The Indoor Environmental
Quality credit category promotes strategies that can improve indoor air as well as providing access
to natural daylight and views and improving acoustics.
Locations & Linkages
The LEED for Homes rating system recognizes that much of a home's impact on the environment comes
from where it is located and how it fits into its community. The Locations & Linkages credits
encourage homes being built away from environmentally sensitive places and instead being built in
infill, previously developed and other preferable sites. It rewards homes that are built near
already-existing infrastructure, community resources and transit, and it encourages access to open
space for walking, physical activity and time spent outdoors.
Awareness & Education
The LEED for Homes rating system acknowledges that a green home is only truly green if the people
who live in it use the green features to maximum effect. The Awareness & Education credits
encourage home builders and real estate professionals to provide homeowners, tenants and building
managers with the education and tools they need to understand what makes their home green and how
to make the most of those features.
Innovation in Design
The Innovation in Design credit category provides bonus points for projects that use new and
innovative technologies and strategies to improve a building’s performance well beyond what
is required by other LEED credits or in green building considerations that are not specifically
addressed elsewhere in LEED. This credit category also rewards projects for including a LEED Accredited
Professional on the team to ensure a holistic, integrated approach to the design and construction phase.
Regional Priority
USGBC’s regional councils, chapters and affiliates have identified the environmental concerns
that are locally most important for every region of the country, and six LEED credits that address
those local priorities were selected for each region. A project that earns a regional priority credit
will earn one bonus point in addition to any points awarded for that credit. Up to four extra points
can be earned in this way. Download the
Regional Priority Credits for Delaware.
