Green Building Standard FAQs

Currently, the GBS v2 only applies to:

• Projects in Washington State
• Projects owned and operated by the UW
• Capital Projects
• Projects with a budget of $1,000,000 or greater
• Projects that completed project formation after June 30th 2024

Yes, however the new UW GBS is designed to be flexible enough that exceptions are not necessary or rare. There are limited permitted reasons for an exception, and upfront cost alone does not drive the exception process. See Variance Request section in the Green Building Standard for full details.

Projects that completed project formation on or before June 30, 2024 may consider the following:

If your project qualifies as a Tier 1 or Tier 2a project under GBS v2, GBS v1 may apply if the project is state funded and required to pursue LEED. These projects must work with UW Sustainability to agree on GBS v2 elements to incorporate into the project wherever possible and identify alternatives where not possible.

If your project qualifies as a Tier 2b, 3, or 4 under GBS v2, GBS v1 was not required but is strongly encouraged. Projects should evaluate requirements and work to UW Sustainability to agree on GBS v2 elements to incorporate into the project wherever possible requirements.

Yes, see the full GBS Workbook here (Excel document).

UW CAP will initiate the GBS Workbook to determine project applicability and Tier, and hand the Workbook to the UW PDG PM at the start of Project Definition, who will be responsible for filling it out on a regular basis with the support of all project team members. See more information in the Reporting section of the Green Building Standard.

If a project scope does not include restrooms, it is not required to add restrooms in order to comply with water savings requirements or UW Gender Neutral Guidelines. These requirements only apply when restrooms are part of the scope.

There are additional design elements that projects can evaluate that support and further UW’s equity and sustainability goals, such as providing lactation facilities and showers for commuters. Project teams should study what it would take to add these elements to a project as part of the iterative design process. UW CAP and PDG are required to report on the project’s decision and rationale, but GBS compliance will not be determined on whether the project adds these elements to the project.

The requirement for UW Seattle projects to connect to the UW Central Plant is driven by the University’s Energy Transformation Strategy to convert fossil fuel-based utility plants to non-fossil fuel energy sources. (Read more here.) By connecting to the plant now, all projects will be fully electric when the plant is transitioned to 100% clean energy, which helps the UW comply with the Washington Clean Buildings Performance Standard, and in Seattle, the Building Emissions Performance Standard.

Emergency replacement projects may use fossil fuels if no alternative is available on the time scale required. Going forward, capital planning must include phasing out all fossil fuel-based equipment and systems, including natural gas cooking equipment and any systems that do not impact life safety or research.

Projects that have a Fitwel pilot credit requirement are to choose any Fitwel credit that aligns with project goals (and preferably is not already reflected by a LEED credit strategy.) Project teams are not required to register for Fitwel or submit any documentation to Fitwel for verification. Project teams will document their best efforts to comply with the Fitwel credit by submitting documentation to UW Sustainability with the GBS Workbook.

There are no prescriptive requirements for lactation facility design for GBS compliance, but projects are expected to follow best practice. A good lactation facility is dedicated solely to lactation, is private, sanitary, may be reservable, is fully equipped with seating and a sink, and is easily accessible to users.

See UW Seattle lactation spaces for examples and reference Fitwel credit 08. Shared Space - Lactation Rooms and Stations for additional guidance. Projects required to pilot a Fitwel credit may consider meeting the requirement with this credit.

The UW's Seattle campus has a LEED Master Site designation, and all three campuses have many LEED projects and resources to share. Therefore, UW can document or support several credits on behalf of project teams, on a project-by-project basis.

For UW Seattle, UW will document any credits with a "c" next to the credit name in the UW LEED Scorecard. For all campuses, UW should be involved in credit discussions and can collaborate in documenting any credit with the "UW" indication next to it.

The UW LEED Scorecard represents credits that all UW projects are expected to pursue and achieve. They were selected in alignment with the goals of the GBS version 2 and are widely applicable across project types and locations. Project teams have the flexibility to supplement these required credits with any other credits to achieve LEED Gold on applicable projects.

Tier 2 projects that meet the LEED Minimum Program Requirements (MPR) for LEED v4 Interior Design + Construction: Commercial Interiors fall under Tier 2a. The MPR requirements are:

Must use reasonable LEED boundaries. Project scope makes up one contiguous space, which may include several contiguous floors.

Must comply with project size requirements. Project must have a minimum of 250 square feet of gross floor area.

Must be in a permanent location on existing land. (Interior renovation projects typically comply. This requirement does not impose restrictions on lease durations.) Project may not be built on artificial land masses and may not be designed to move at any point in its lifetime.