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FROM THE EDITOR
As a Chicagoan, I’m always excited to see Illinois at the top of a leader board, especially one that has nothing to do with terrible traffic or political corruption. So I was stoked to see Illinois at the head of the class on USGBC’s recently released list of Top 10 LEED States of 2015. Indeed, it’s Illinois’s third year in a row at the top of the heap!
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But what’s interesting about this annual list isn’t the leaders — though again, the usual suspects are on the list: California, Maryland, Virginia, Washington, etc. What’s interesting about this year’s list is the newcomers: Red states Texas (for the first time since 2012) and Utah (first time ever) crack the top 10.
Beyond the stat that 2015 was again the best year ever for LEED-certified space (4,837 certified worldwide, comprising 818.9 million square feet), the fact that these states you wouldn’t immediately think of as hubs of sustainability are on the list is another indication that green building and operations are more than just feel-good marketing strategies. They’re smart and savvy business practice. And they continue to spread rapidly.
Another interesting part of the information released with the list is that, again, LEED for Building Operations and Maintenance was the “most popular rating system,” according to USGBC. LEED O+M made up 49 percent of all square footage certified in 2015, while LEED for Building Design and Construction made up 46 percent.
Did you do a LEED project in 2015? If so, I’d love to hear about it!
Cheers,
Greg Zimmerman, editor
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