AUSTIN, Texas
The Austin Convention Center has been awarded LEED Gold Certification for Existing Buildings, established by the U.S. Green Building Council and verified by the Green Building Certification Institute. The LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Green Building Rating System is the internationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings, which was developed by the USGBC.
LEED promotes a whole-building approach to sustainability by recognizing performance in five key areas of human environmental health: sustainable site development, water efficiency, energy efficiency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality. There are several types of certifications, but two primary ones for commercial facilities – New Construction (NC) and Existing Buildings (EB).
Among the Austin Convention Center’s sustainable design features and practices: 66 percent of all waste diverted from landfill; composted 250,000 lbs. of organic waste in 2011; reduced carbon footprint by 93 percent since 2007; facility powered by wind energy, reduced electric consumption by 20 percent, and more.
