Dockside Green

Dockside Green is the first community in North America to strive for certification at the highest attainable designation in sustainable building, LEED® Platinum. But what does this designation mean?

• LEED® (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is a voluntary certification program that recognizes leading-edge buildings that incorporate healthy design and reduced environmental impact.
• LEED® is the most recognized green building rating system in North America. It was developed by the United States Green Building Council to provide a standard for the construction industry to assess sustainability of building designs.
• In Canada, LEED® certification is tailored to Canadian climates and construction practices and is overseen by the Canadian Green Building Council (CaGBC).
• LEED® is a credit-based rating system; credits are earned for environmentally beneficial building attributes. With four possible levels of certification – Certified, Silver, Gold and Platinum – LEED® is flexible enough to accommodate a range of green building strategies. The achievement of any LEED® level represents a significant reduction in environmental impact and results in an improved indoor environment compared to standard building methods.
• In Canada, LEED® credits are given in the following categories: sustainable sites, water efficiency, energy and atmosphere, materials and resources, indoor environmental quality, and innovation in design.
• LEED® can be applied to a variety of buildings and building project types, including new construction, existing buildings, commercial interiors, and private homes.
• LEED® certification provides buildings with increased market exposure and places them in elite company among the greenest buildings in North America.
• There are over 200 buildings that have been registered with the CaGBC to become LEED® certified, and 10 times that number in the United States. However Dockside Green is the first community to go after LEED® certification.
• The LEED® rating system is the national standard for green building in the United States and Canada, but it is also recognized worldwide as an invaluable tool for the design and construction of high-performance, sustainable buildings. There are currently LEED®-certified and registered buildings in Australia, China, Guatemala, India, Japan, Mexico, Puerto Rico, and Sri Lanka.
• At first, concerns about potentially higher initial costs of building to LEED® standards have overshadowed the overall acceptance of sustainable building strategies. Now, however, several new studies demonstrate that green buildings are not more expensive to build, and the lifetime benefits of these buildings are sizeable.

Media Contact:
Deirdre Campbell, Tartan Group
250-592-3838 or 250-882-9199. 
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