Campus project registrations in LEED v4

There is a new approach for Canadian project teams to award credits campus-wide with LEED v4. With LEED Online, eligible LEED credits and prerequisites are pre-approved as campus credits within a master site and then automatically applied to all projects registered within that master site.

What is a “campus credit”?

• A LEED prerequisite or credit that can be attempted for most or all projects within a LEED campus boundary because of shared site features and uniformity in project or management traits.
• Campus credit compliance is documented for the entire area and development within a LEED campus boundary.
• Campus credits reviewed and earned in the master site may then be claimed by all LEED projects associated with that master site.
• The master site itself receives no certification.

The LEED Campus Guidance outlines the steps for projects on shared sites. To use the campus approach, project teams must first register a campus, then the master site (or multiple master sites), and then the individual or group project(s) within that site. (Note, that while the LEED Campus Guidance indicates that it applies to “LEED 2009 and LEED v4” projects, this does not include LEED Canada 2009 Rating systems.)

Getting Started

• Register the campus and master plan first in LEED Online. Follow the guidance outlined in the document “How to set up a campus in LEED Online”. Questions? Check out this FAQ.
• Projects can only link to campus credits that are already registered in LEED Online through a master site. If you register a project before the campus and master site were registered in LEED Online, your project registration will need to be withdrawn and re-registered under the master site linked to the campus registration. Contact LEED Coach Canada for assistance.
• Up to three rating systems can be included for the master site (e.g., BD+C: NC, BD+C: CS, ID+C:CI). Where requirements are similar, project teams need only demonstrate to the most stringent of the three rating systems attempted. However, if there is any difference in requirements between the rating systems, project teams should provide three sets of documentation.

Important tips for using the campus approach for your LEED v4 projects

• Each credit’s eligibility for the Campus Approach is indicated in the applicable reference guides under Further Explanation and summarized in Appendix C (for BD+C) and D (for O+M) of the LEED Campus Guidance.
• In all instances, prerequisite or credit requirements must be implemented, so while a prerequisite/credit may be eligible for campus master site review, it may not be appropriate if the work is not yet completed.
• Where the requirement is simply to provide the design or plan, the campus master site credit is awarded based on that design. If the design changes, it is up to the project team to revise the master site credit or document the credit on each individual project separately.
• The master site can be large or small. For example, even “attached” buildings can utilize the master approach to achieve site related campus together.

Need information on Group certification? Read the July 2020 bulletin here.