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LEED v4
Schools – New Construction
Indoor Environmental Quality

Environmental tobacco smoke control

LEED CREDIT

Schools-NC-v4 EQp2: Environmental tobacco smoke control Required

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Virginia Leary

LEED AP BD+C; TRUE Advisor, Fitwel Advisor

WSP USA
Assistant Consultant

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Credit language

USGBC logo

© Copyright U.S. Green Building Council, Inc. All rights reserved.

Requirements

Prohibit smoking on site.

Signage must be posted at the property line indicating the no-smoking policy.

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What does it cost?

Cost estimates for this credit

On each BD+C v4 credit, LEEDuser offers the wisdom of a team of architects, engineers, cost estimators, and LEED experts with hundreds of LEED projects between then. They analyzed the sustainable design strategies associated with each LEED credit, but also to assign actual costs to those strategies.

Our tab contains overall cost guidance, notes on what “soft costs” to expect, and a strategy-by-strategy breakdown of what to consider and what it might cost, in percentage premiums, actual costs, or both.

This information is also available in a full PDF download in The Cost of LEED v4 report.

Learn more about The Cost of LEED v4 »

Frequently asked questions

What about vaping and e-cigarettes?

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Addenda

10/1/2014Updated: 2/14/2015
Reference Guide Correction
Description of change:
Required Documentation section, revise the last documentation requirement in the table so it reads: "Any code restrictions that prevent establishment of no-smoking requirements."
Campus Applicable
No
Internationally Applicable:
Yes
7/1/2014
LEED Interpretation
Inquiry:

Are electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) covered under the Environmental Tobacco Smoke Control prerequisite?

Ruling:

Yes, electronic cigarettes are considered a form of smoking for the purposes of both the interior and exterior smoking provisions of the LEED Prerequisite Environmental Tobacco Smoke Control. As recommended in the December 2013 report[1] prepared for the World Health Organization, “e-cigarettes should be prohibited anywhere where the use of conventional cigarettes is prohibited”. The indoor air quality impacts from electronic cigarettes are not fully characterized, but there is sufficient evidence that electronic cigarettes produce emissions in fine aerosol form that can expose building occupants. For example, according to the report, “several chemicals that have been found in e-cigarette aerosol and e-liquid are on California’s official list of known human carcinogens or reproductive toxicants, including nicotine, acetaldehyde, formaldehyde, nickel, lead, toluene(1)”.

[1] Background Paper on E-cigarettes (Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems); Grana, R.; Benowitz, N.; Glantz, SA; December 2013; University of California

Campus Applicable
Yes
Internationally Applicable:
Yes
7/2/2018
LEED Interpretation
Inquiry:

Inquiry:
Is the smoking of cannabis covered under the Environmental Tobacco Smoke Control prerequisite?

Ruling:

Yes, smoking of cannabis is considered a form of smoking for the purposes of both the interior and exterior smoking provisions of the LEED Prerequisite Environmental Tobacco Smoke Control.

Secondhand cannabis smoke has been shown to contain many of the same chemicals and carcinogens as secondhand tobacco smoke [1].

[1] Moir D, Rickert WS, Levasseur G, et al. A Comparison of Mainstream and Sidestream Marijuana and Tobacco Cigarette Smoke Produced under Two Machine Smoking Conditions. American Chemical Society. 2008;21:494-502.

Campus Applicable
Yes
Internationally Applicable:
Yes
See all forum discussions about this credit »

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LEEDuser expert

Virginia Leary

LEED AP BD+C; TRUE Advisor, Fitwel Advisor

WSP USA
Assistant Consultant

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USGBC logo

© Copyright U.S. Green Building Council, Inc. All rights reserved.

Requirements

Prohibit smoking on site.

Signage must be posted at the property line indicating the no-smoking policy.

Cost estimates for this credit

On each BD+C v4 credit, LEEDuser offers the wisdom of a team of architects, engineers, cost estimators, and LEED experts with hundreds of LEED projects between then. They analyzed the sustainable design strategies associated with each LEED credit, but also to assign actual costs to those strategies.

Our tab contains overall cost guidance, notes on what “soft costs” to expect, and a strategy-by-strategy breakdown of what to consider and what it might cost, in percentage premiums, actual costs, or both.

This information is also available in a full PDF download in The Cost of LEED v4 report.

Learn more about The Cost of LEED v4 »

In the end, LEED is all about documentation. LEEDuser’s Documentation Toolkit, for premium members only, saves you time and helps you avoid mistakes with:

  • Calculators to help assess credit compliance.
  • Tracking spreadsheets for materials purchases.
  • Spreadsheets and forms to give to subs and other team members.
  • Guidance documents on arcane LEED issues.
  • Sample templates to help guide your narratives and LEED Online submissions.
  • Examples of actual submissions from certified LEED projects.

What about vaping and e-cigarettes?

The answer to this question is available to LEEDuser premium members. Start a free trial »

(If you're already a premium member, log in here.)

10/1/2014Updated: 2/14/2015
Reference Guide Correction
Description of change:
Required Documentation section, revise the last documentation requirement in the table so it reads: "Any code restrictions that prevent establishment of no-smoking requirements."
Campus Applicable
No
Internationally Applicable:
Yes
7/1/2014
LEED Interpretation
Inquiry:

Are electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) covered under the Environmental Tobacco Smoke Control prerequisite?

Ruling:

Yes, electronic cigarettes are considered a form of smoking for the purposes of both the interior and exterior smoking provisions of the LEED Prerequisite Environmental Tobacco Smoke Control. As recommended in the December 2013 report[1] prepared for the World Health Organization, “e-cigarettes should be prohibited anywhere where the use of conventional cigarettes is prohibited”. The indoor air quality impacts from electronic cigarettes are not fully characterized, but there is sufficient evidence that electronic cigarettes produce emissions in fine aerosol form that can expose building occupants. For example, according to the report, “several chemicals that have been found in e-cigarette aerosol and e-liquid are on California’s official list of known human carcinogens or reproductive toxicants, including nicotine, acetaldehyde, formaldehyde, nickel, lead, toluene(1)”.

[1] Background Paper on E-cigarettes (Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems); Grana, R.; Benowitz, N.; Glantz, SA; December 2013; University of California

Campus Applicable
Yes
Internationally Applicable:
Yes
7/2/2018
LEED Interpretation
Inquiry:

Inquiry:
Is the smoking of cannabis covered under the Environmental Tobacco Smoke Control prerequisite?

Ruling:

Yes, smoking of cannabis is considered a form of smoking for the purposes of both the interior and exterior smoking provisions of the LEED Prerequisite Environmental Tobacco Smoke Control.

Secondhand cannabis smoke has been shown to contain many of the same chemicals and carcinogens as secondhand tobacco smoke [1].

[1] Moir D, Rickert WS, Levasseur G, et al. A Comparison of Mainstream and Sidestream Marijuana and Tobacco Cigarette Smoke Produced under Two Machine Smoking Conditions. American Chemical Society. 2008;21:494-502.

Campus Applicable
Yes
Internationally Applicable:
Yes

LEEDuser expert

Virginia Leary

LEED AP BD+C; TRUE Advisor, Fitwel Advisor

WSP USA
Assistant Consultant

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