LEED-Green-Associate Exam Dumps - USGBC Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Questions and Answers

Soft surfaces contribute to a comfortable acoustic environment by absorbing sound waves and reducing noise levels. This can include items such as carpets, upholstered furniture, and acoustic ceiling tiles. In contrast, hard surfaces (like wood cabinets, hollow metal doors, or glass partitions)can reflect sound waves and increase noise levels. References: LEED Green Associate Candidate Handbook, U.S. Green Building Council resources

 Life-cycle costing is an economic analysis method that considers all costs associated with an asset over its entire life cycle, from acquisition and installation to operation, maintenance, and disposal. In this case, the building manager is comparing the total costs of owning and operating two different boilers over their respective lifetimes. References: LEED Green Associate Candidate Handbook, U.S. Green Building Council resources

The scope of the LEED impact category component Protect Human Health from Direct Exposure to Negative Health Impacts is building occupants and design and construction crew during the construction phase and use phase of the building cycle, within the project boundary and its immediate surroundings. This component aims to reduce the exposure of people to harmful substances or conditions that may affect their health and well-being. This includes indoor air quality, thermal comfort, lighting quality, noise levels, water quality, and safety hazards. The component covers both the construction phase and the use phase of the building cycle, as both stages can pose potential health risks to people involved or affected by the project. The component also considers both the project boundary and its immediate surroundings, as some health impacts may extend beyond the site itself. References: LEED v4 BD+C Reference Guide, Introduction, page 9

The Facilities Manager is typically responsible for ensuring the comfort and safety of a building’s occupants. They would be best equipped to evaluate responses to a survey about comfort levels in the building and develop a corrective action plan to address any problems identified. References: LEED Green Associate Candidate Handbook, U.S. Green Building Council resources

The protection and restoration of natural vegetation, wetland areas and bodies of water through building footprint consolidation helps to preserve open space and sensitive areas, which are important for maintaining biodiversity, ecosystem services, and human well-being. Building footprint consolidation refers to the strategy of minimizing the area of land that is occupied by a building and its associated infrastructure, such as roads, parking lots, and utilities. By reducing the building footprint, project teams can avoid or minimize the impacts of development on natural habitats, wetlands, and water bodies, which often provide critical functions such aswater quality improvement, flood control, wildlife habitat, and recreation. LEED v4.1 recognizes and rewards this strategy in the Sensitive Land Protection credit1, which aims to conserve existing natural areas and restore damaged areas to provide habitat and promote biodiversity2. References: LEED Link: Sensitive Land Protection, section “LEED v4.1 BD+C: Sensitive Land Protection”; Sensitive Land Protection | U.S. Green Building Council, section “Intent”

Energy use intensity (EUI) is a measure of energy use per unit of floor space. It is calculated by dividing the total energy consumed by the building in one year (measured in kilowatt-hours or kilo-British Thermal Units) by the total gross floor area of the building (measured in square feet or square meters). EUI is a useful metric for comparing the energy performance of different buildings or benchmarking against national averages. EUI can vary depending on building type, climate, occupancy, and other factors. Generally, a lower EUI indicates better energy efficiency and lower environmental impact. References: What is Energy Use Intensity (EUI)?2; Energy Use Intensity (EUI)3

One of the values and benefits of building green is that it will enhance the health of the building occupants. Building green is a process that incorporates environmental considerations into every stage of a building’s life cycle, from design to construction to operation to end-of-life. Building green can improve the indoor environmental quality (IEQ) of a building, which is the physical and psychological conditions of the indoor spaces that affect the health, comfort, and productivity of the occupants. Building green can enhance IEQ by using low-emitting materials, providing adequate ventilation, controlling temperature and humidity, optimizing daylighting and lighting quality, reducing noise levels, and promoting occupant well-being12. References: LEED v4 Green Associate Candidate Handbook1, LEED v4 BD+C Reference Guide2