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Is it worth it?
This credit can be easy and with little or no cost premium if your project only has a small amount of wood. A multifamily high-rise, for example, may have little wood on the project except for doors and cabinetry. In this case, it would be easy to reach the 50% Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) threshold.Projects with more wood might encounter a larger upfront cost, but have the potential to demonstrate their environmental values of sustainable forestry management. Projects can also go above the 50% threshold and earn an ID point for 95% FSC certified woodWood from a...
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4 Comments
Is this a typo?
This is the same text as the MRc7 credit for CS, Schools, etc., while there's another MRc6 credit right alongside it. Do we have an error here?
Tristan Roberts replied Editor – LEEDuser, BuildingGreen, LLC Sep 29 2009
Nick, MRc6: Certified WoodWood from a source that has been determined, through a certification process, to meet stated ecological and other criteria. There are numerous forest certification programs in general use based on several standards, but only the Forest Stewardship Council's standards, which include requirements that the wood be tracked through its chain-of-custody, can be used to qualify wood for a point in the LEED Rating System. in CS is the same as MRc7: Certified Wood for Schools and NC, hence our guidance being mostly the same. There are specific items included for each different version.
In NC, CS, Schools, and CI, the MRc6 slot is held by MRc6: Rapidly RenewableTerm describing a natural material that is grown and harvested on a relatively short-rotation cycle (defined by the LEED rating system to be ten years or less). Materials, which is not included in CS, because it tends to be oriented around finish materials that would not be relevant to a CS project.
So, the numbering for CS is a bit different. Is this what you were asking about?
PEFC-certified
USGBC are about to change their policy and allow other sustainable wood certifications than FSCIndependent, third-party verification that forest products are produced and sold based on a set of criteria for forest management and chain-of-custody controls developed by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), an international nonprofit organization. FSC criteria for certifying forests around the world address forest management, legal issues, indigenous rights, labor rights, multiple benefits, and environmental impacts..
See https://www.usgbc.org/ShowFile.aspx?DocumentID=6779
But what is the outcome? When will other certifications be allowed and which will be allowed? I can´t find the answer on USGBCs homepage.
Tristan Roberts replied Editor – LEEDuser, BuildingGreen, LLC May 25 2010
USGBC is considering this change, but it's still very much in process and I wouldn't be surprised if there is a fourth public comment period on the proposal, and then it must be voted on by a consensus body of USGBC members. Then there would be some practical work needed to make it available to LEED 2009 projects.
It's possible that SFI, PEFC, and other certifications will be allowed to earn some credit under the revised system, but it's not clear how much.
LEEDuser will be covering this situation as it develops—look for updates in our e-newsletter.
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