Decorative Concrete and LEED Certification
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is an internationally recognized green building certification program developed by the U.S. Green Building Council. It provides third-party verification that a building or community was designed and built using materials and methods that contribute to energy savings, water efficiency, carbon dioxide emissions reduction, improved indoor environmental quality, stewardship of resources, and sensitivity to their impacts.
LEED applies to both new and retrofitted commercial and residential buildings. Buildings are awarded points, or credits, for meeting criteria and can earn the distinction of Certified, Silver, Gold, or Platinum.
Decorative concrete can directly impact a building’s LEED certification in several ways. It can also have an indirect effect.
One goal of LEED is to minimize a building’s impact on the environment, community, and ecosystem. “Heat islands” are differences in the thermal gradients between developed and undeveloped areas that can affect microclimates and human and wildlife habitats. Colored concrete can increase a surface’s solar reflective index, reduce heat islands, and lessen a building’s impact on the surrounding environment. This goal can be met with colored standard, stamped, or pervious concrete.
Another goal of LEED is to reduce the use of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that can be irritating or harmful to the occupants or installers of buildings. Modern stains, dyes, tints, coatings, and sealants used with concrete meet LEED’s strict low-VOC requirements. Decorative sealers can be both solvent- and water-based and can be used on concrete floors, walls, precast panels, and countertops.
Since decorative concrete does not require an additional layer of floor covering, such as carpet or tile, it contributes to lower material consumption, transportation costs, and installation time and costs. This can earn the building additional LEED credits.
Decorative concrete can also indirectly affect LEED certification. Pervious concrete can direct storm water runoff back to the environment without requiring the use of large artificial collection areas. Integral color that is used to improve the appearance of pervious concrete can indirectly impact LEED credits. The use of existing concrete floors, walls, and roofs to retrofit a building can earn credits. Builders can also earn credits by using recycled and regionally-sourced materials.