Green Use of Stone Detailed

    The case study – “Application of Green Building Certification Programs to Natural Stone” – deals with two projects that received certification from the U.S. Green Building Council’s (USGBC) Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design® (LEED®) and the Sustainable Project Rating Tool (SPiRiT), developed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
    Under LEED guidelines, natural stone may contribute to certification in several categories – Sustainable Sites (SS), Energy and Atmosphere (EA), Materials and Resources (MR), and Innovation and Design (ID). SPiRiT is based on LEED 2.0® and is tailored to Army-specific needs allowing them to create and maintain sustainable facilities. 
    The study details ImaginOn in Charlotte, N.C., which received a silver rating, the first USGBC LEED-certified public building in that city. Stone cladding used in the project, completed in 2005, helped contributed to a LEED MR credit.
    The study also looks at A SPiRiT bronze rating was awarded to Jefferson Hall Library and Learning Center at the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, N.Y., which gained a SPiRiT bronze rating. Natural stone was a key element in the design; more than 130 tons of granite, was quarried regionally for the just-completed project.
    “The NSC has worked diligently to gather accurate data in order to characterize the environmental impacts of natural stone,” said John Mattke, NSC Sustainability Committee chairman. “We are now in a position to share what we’ve learned with the design and building communities as evidenced by this case study and to highlight stone’s positive attributes as a green building material.”