BREEAM USA

BREEAM USA
Name	BREEAM USA
Type	Certification scheme
Founded	2010s
Founder	BRE Global
Location	United States
Area served	United States
Industry	Sustainable building assessment

BREEAM USA is a sustainable building assessment adaptation developed to apply the BREEAM framework to projects in the United States. It translates methodologies from BRE Global into criteria intended for American climates, codes and markets while engaging with stakeholders such as the U.S. Green Building Council, state agencies like the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, and professional bodies including the American Institute of Architects and the American Society of Civil Engineers. The program seeks alignment with federal regulations such as the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and initiatives exemplified by the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design movement.

Overview

BREEAM USA is positioned as a market-specific variant of the BREEAM family, designed to evaluate sustainability performance of buildings across categories that mirror those used by BRE Global in the United Kingdom and Europe. It aims to incorporate regional standards exemplified by the International Building Code, the ASHRAE 90.1 standard, and state-level programs like CALGreen while interfacing with financing bodies such as the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and investors including BlackRock and TIAA. BREEAM USA emphasizes metrics addressing site ecology, energy, water, materials, and occupant health, interacting with certification actors like the Green Building Council of Australia and benchmarking tools such as ENERGY STAR and LEED v4.

History and Development

The adaptation initiative was driven by BRE Global in response to demand from multinational developers, institutional owners like Prologis and Boston Properties, and consulting firms such as Arup and AECOM. Early pilots drew on precedents from the original BREEAM International rollouts and lessons from projects certified under LEED and the Living Building Challenge. Stakeholder engagement included collaborations with universities such as Massachusetts Institute of Technology, policy think tanks like the Rockefeller Foundation, and municipal programs in cities such as New York City, Los Angeles, and Chicago. Development phases referenced international standards like the ISO 14001 family and datasets from agencies including the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.

Assessment Methodology

Assessment follows the established BREEAM approach of category-based scoring, third-party verification, and life-cycle considerations adapted to U.S. contexts. Registered assessors draw on documentation comparable to that used by U.S. Green Building Council credential holders and consult databases maintained by organizations like the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and American Petroleum Institute for emissions factors. The methodology considers climate zones defined by the U.S. Department of Energy, construction procurement practices used by firms like Skanska and Turner Construction, and health guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Verification pathways resemble those of schemes such as WELL Building Standard while employing tools similar to BREEAM UK New Construction protocols tailored for U.S. codes.

Certification Levels and Criteria

BREEAM USA employs tiered achievement levels corresponding to performance thresholds comparable to the original BREEAM classifications; these levels are measured across categories including energy, water, materials, waste, pollution, health and wellbeing, and management. Certification criteria reference metrics and modeling practices informed by ASHRAE, whole-building life-cycle assessment techniques used by Athena Sustainable Materials Institute standards, and procurement policies mirrored in frameworks like the U.S. General Services Administration guidelines. Awarded levels influence investor reporting aligned with indices such as the Dow Jones Sustainability Index and disclosure platforms like the Carbon Disclosure Project.

Comparison with Other Green Building Standards

Compared with LEED, BREEAM USA emphasizes flexible, context-specific benchmarks derived from BRE Global’s original protocol and tends to prioritize life-cycle and operational data akin to Passivhaus principles. Against standards such as the Living Building Challenge and WELL Building Standard, BREEAM USA positions itself as more performance-evidence oriented and adaptable to conventional procurement and financing, paralleling approaches seen in Green Star (Australia) and HQE (France). Market adoption contrasts with the widespread corporate uptake of LEED by organizations like Google and Apple, while BREEAM USA follows pathways similar to international real estate investors including CBRE and JLL exploring diversified certification portfolios.

Implementation and Notable Projects

Implementation has involved pilot projects with developers and owners across sectors—commercial, residential, and industrial—working alongside construction firms such as Hines and consultancy networks including Deloitte and PricewaterhouseCoopers. Notable demonstrations have been reported in metropolitan regions like San Francisco, Boston, and Seattle, and integrated with municipal climate action plans of cities such as Portland, Oregon and Philadelphia. Projects often leverage simulation tools used by firms like Ramboll and datasets from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory to validate outcomes and attract capital from pension funds and insurers like MetLife and Aegon.

Criticisms and Challenges

Critiques mirror those faced by other schemes: concerns about market confusion among standards such as LEED and WELL, questions about the rigor of regional adaptation compared to original protocols from BRE Global, and debates over cost implications raised by developer organizations and trade associations including the National Association of Home Builders. Challenges include aligning with diverse state codes, ensuring assessor capacity comparable to LEED Accredited Professional networks, and demonstrating measurable operational savings to institutional investors accustomed to metrics from ENERGY STAR and GRESB. Inequities in access and the need for harmonization with federal procurement rules remain ongoing topics in dialogues with agencies like the General Services Administration and non-profits such as the World Resources Institute.

Category:Green building certification systems