BREEAM green building standard to target US commercial sector

Howard Chapman on how 5.6 million commercial buildings in US could benefit from BREEAM.

The UK green building standard BREEAM (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Methodology) is now being offered as a cost-effective alternative to the US-based LEED standard.

Whilst BREEAM is in wide use throughout the UK and Europe, LEED is still the most broadly adopted green building standard across the world. However, BREEAM proponents claim that LEED is more expensive and time-consuming to implement – and that an estimated 5.6 million existing US commercial buildings could benefit from BREEAM.

100% Net-Zero Buildings

The World Green Building Council has set a worldwide goal of achieving 100% net-zero buildings  by 2050 as part of its ‘Advancing Net Zero’ plan, with all new buildings and major renovations to be designed for the net-zero standard by 2030.

An increasing take-up of BREEAM in the US would make a significant impact toward reaching the net-zero standard by 2030.

Why BREEAM?

Established in 1990, BREEAM is the world’s first sustainability assessment method for buildings. It is applied in over 70 countries worldwide, with an 80% European market share.

Adaptable to local and climatic conditions, BREEAM takes a holistic measurement across 9 categories with 1000’s of licensed assessors worldwide.