| Green construction is something increasingly deemed | | | | can point more directly to opportunities for green |
| worthy of recognition by society in the form of | | | | builders and material suppliers. While traditional |
| various programs and incentives to encourage green | | | | segmentation and "sell side" revenue counting is |
| construction practices and products. The desire to | | | | important for identifying and quantifying market |
| reward green projects implies a need to track them. | | | | values and trends in specific market segments, such |
| And that has led to the creation of new monitoring | | | | information doesn't tell us enough about where |
| and counting systems in the form of certifications | | | | specific sales opportunities are likely to be found. |
| and accreditations. Armed with those forms of | | | | This is especially true in a rapidly growing market |
| recognition, government agencies as well as private | | | | where virtually all observers agree that sufficient |
| stakeholders are able to offer rewards and incentives | | | | opportunity exists in virtually every market segment |
| both for projects that involve public funding and for | | | | and that the incentives for participating in the market |
| private projects that may be subject to local | | | | are already quite clear. In such a market, green |
| permitting, compliance or other regulatory or | | | | builders, manufacturers and investors are less |
| community oversight. The most robust and rapidly | | | | concerned with issues of market share or |
| growing program that captures at least some | | | | competitive position and instead tend to be focused |
| significant portion of green building activity is the | | | | on precisely where to point their sales and marketing |
| LEED certification program administered by the United | | | | resources. For these reasons, this report takes a |
| States Green Building Council (USGBC). USGBC is a | | | | project perspective that focuses on the "buy side" |
| private, nonprofit organization with a mission to | | | | of the market where sales can be pursued and |
| "...promote buildings that are environmentally | | | | realized. There is no better barometer of the "buy |
| responsible, profitable and healthy places to live and | | | | side" of the market than USGBC's LEED data. But |
| work." To accomplish this, the LEED program creates | | | | exactly how good is it? While it is clear that the LEED |
| a protocol by which builders can qualify for credits | | | | program is the leading tool for recognizing green |
| ultimately toward some level of LEED certification. | | | | building activity, it is less clear exactly how much of |
| That certification is then - hopefully and increasingly - | | | | the total green building materials market is accounted |
| recognized by local, state or federal government and | | | | for by LEED projects. Surely there are many green |
| then rewarded in some way - typically through tax | | | | building projects that never apply for or receive LEED |
| breaks, rebates, grants, expedited permitting and | | | | certification. SBI estimates that the USGBC will certify |
| other such incentives. Not only does the LEED | | | | close to 4,000 projects in 2007. With estimates of |
| program provide yet another tool for measuring | | | | the total green building market starting at |
| green building activity but it is particularly useful for | | | | approximately $20 billion in 2006, and LEED-certified |
| our specific purposes. Unlike market segmentation | | | | projects representing a green building materials value |
| and forecasting based essentially on attempts to | | | | of approximately $15 billion, LEED projects would |
| measure the revenues earned by the various | | | | appear to account for approximately 75% of total |
| manufacturers and suppliers of green building | | | | green building revenues. |
| materials, an analysis of LEED programs and projects | | | | |