In a recent email sent out to its members, the United States Green Building Council (USGBC) announced that their new Building Performance Initiative “will be in full swing with the first of five summits planned to raise the level of discussion about how we can ensure that all green buildings perform the way they are intended.” In addition, the new initiative seeks to improve the performance of all buildings in the country by upgrading for “measurably better energy, water, human health and natural resources outcomes.”

The following cities will host the summits, Chicago, IL (September 29th), San Francisco, CA (October 6th), Los Angeles, CA (October 8th), New York City (October 15th), and Washington, D.C. (October 21st). “These summits will convene between 75 and 100 people each, and attendees will bring the experience and expertise of a diversity of sectors, including representatives from local, state and federal governments, USGBC chapters, [Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design] project teams, developers, architects, engineers and many others.” The final report from these summits will be delivered at the 2009 Greenbuild International Conference and Expo in Phoenix, Ariz., Nov. 11-13.

Earlier this month, The New York Times’ Green Inc Blog carried a story about the shortcomings of USGBC’s LEED certifications. According to the article, among architects’ primary concerns is the lack of specificity for the certification, which relies largely on a checklist for builders and architects to follow. The Building Performance Initiative (released last month) aims “to beef up data collection, so a building’s overall performance can be more accurately measured.”

In the email, the USGBC states their “ultimate goal is that one day, every owner or manager of a LEED-certified building will be actively engaged in measuring, analyzing and improving that building’s performance.” Recent changes to LEED certification “will require project teams to collect and submit ongoing performance data, either through their own measurement or by allowing USGBC access to utility bills and other information.”

The second outcome of this data-collection campaign will be its ability to “drive the ongoing evolution of LEED, USGBC’s strategic planning, future breakthroughs in green building science and technology, improvements in public policy and private-sector initiatives, and an overall better understanding of how we can continue to work toward our goal of green buildings for all within a generation.” Click here to learn more about the Building Performance Initiative.

As the process for LEED certification evolves, buildings will become more energy efficient, environmentally sound, and fiscally viable. The energy savings will yield important cost reductions and positively impact the triple bottom line.

- Eric Wilson