Free LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Certification) Energy and Atmosphere Questions and Answers — Questions and Answers
Question 1: The EA Prerequisite: Fundamental Refrigerant Management is primarily intended to reduce stratospheric ozone depletion by prohibiting the use of which type of refrigerant in new HVAC and refrigeration systems?
- Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs)
- Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) (Correct answer)
- Natural refrigerants like ammonia (NH3)
- Hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs)
Correct answer: Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)
The prerequisite is aligned with the Montreal Protocol, an international treaty designed to protect the ozone layer by phasing out the production of numerous substances responsible for ozone depletion. Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) have a very high ozone depletion potential (ODP) and are strictly prohibited for use in any new HVAC&R equipment within a LEED project.
Question 2: A project team pursuing the EA Credit: Optimize Energy Performance for a new building must demonstrate a percentage improvement over a baseline. This baseline building's performance is calculated according to the methodology found in which standard?
- ASHRAE Standard 62.1
- The International Energy Conservation Code (IECC)
- ASHRAE Standard 90.1-2010, Appendix G (Correct answer)
- ENERGY STAR for Buildings
Correct answer: ASHRAE Standard 90.1-2010, Appendix G
LEED v4 requires projects to use a whole-building energy simulation to compare the proposed design against a baseline building. The baseline building must be modeled according to the rules and methodologies defined in Appendix G of ASHRAE Standard 90.1–2010. This ensures a standardized comparison for calculating energy performance improvement.
Question 3: To earn points for the EA Credit: Green Power and Carbon Offsets, a project team must purchase certified Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs). What is the critical third-party certification required for these RECs to be eligible?
- ENERGY STAR
- Green Seal
- Green-e (Correct answer)
- Fair Trade
Correct answer: Green-e
To ensure the environmental integrity and prevent double-counting of off-site renewable energy purchases, LEED requires that Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) and carbon offsets be certified. The primary certification body recognized for this purpose is Green-e, through its Green-e Energy and Green-e Climate programs.
Question 4: A new office building is designed to participate in a Demand Response (DR) program to earn the corresponding LEED credit. During a DR event initiated by the utility, which action would the building's automation system be expected to perform?
- Increase the outdoor air ventilation rate.
- Activate on-site diesel generators.
- Temporarily reduce lighting loads and adjust HVAC temperature setpoints. (Correct answer)
- Switch to purchasing power from a different off-site provider.
Correct answer: Temporarily reduce lighting loads and adjust HVAC temperature setpoints.
Demand Response involves reducing a building's electricity consumption temporarily in response to a signal from the utility, typically during periods of peak grid demand. Common strategies include dimming non-essential lights and slightly raising the cooling setpoint (or lowering the heating setpoint) to shed electrical load and help stabilize the grid.
Question 5: For the EA Prerequisite: Building-Level Energy Metering, project teams must install meters to track total building energy consumption. What additional commitment must the project owner make regarding the data from these meters?
- Publish the data on the company's public website annually.
- Commit to sharing the energy data with USGBC for a five-year period. (Correct answer)
- Conduct a third-party energy audit if consumption increases by 10%.
- Submeter at least 50% of the building's individual tenant spaces.
Correct answer: Commit to sharing the energy data with USGBC for a five-year period.
A core requirement of this prerequisite is not just to meter energy use, but also to contribute to a larger understanding of building performance. Therefore, projects must commit to sharing their whole-building energy consumption data with the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) for a period of at least five years after certification.
Question 6: When calculating the contribution of an on-site solar panel array for the EA Credit: Renewable Energy Production, the system's annual energy production is expressed as a percentage of what building metric?
- The building's total annual water consumption.
- The building's total annual energy cost. (Correct answer)
- The building's total gross floor area.
- The building's peak electricity demand.
Correct answer: The building's total annual energy cost.
Points for the Renewable Energy Production credit are awarded based on the percentage of the building's energy that is offset by on-site renewable systems. This percentage is calculated based on the renewable energy's contribution to the total annual energy cost of the building, not its energy consumption (kWh).
Free LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Certification) Energy and Atmosphere Questions and Answers
The EA Prerequisite: Fundamental Refrigerant Management is primarily intended to reduce stratospheric ozone depletion by prohibiting the use of which type of refrigerant in new HVAC and refrigeration systems?