Green Building, Worker Safety, and LEED Standards

Running head: GREEN BUILDING DESIGN, CONSTRUCTION, AND SAFETY 1
Green Building Design, Construction, and Safety:
Building ‘Green’ and Worker Safety Issues Associated With Green Technology.
Anthony Linka
Everglades University

GREEN BUILDING DESIGN, CONSTRUCTION, AND SAFETY 2
Abstract
This paper discusses and reviews definitions of green building, green building design, the
role of Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) in green building design, the
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) role in worker safety and green design,
and ways in which worker safety can be integrated into green design concepts. LEED rating
systems are used to provide examples and an outline of OSHA CFR 29 Part 26 is given as
reference. The process of creating a safety standard within the OSHA framework is detailed and
the inability to keep up with current safety demand is covered. Worker risks in green building
are discussed and solutions are presented to integrate safety within green design.

Green Building Design, Construction, and Safety:
Building Green and Worker Safety Issues Associated With Green Technology.
The construction industry is a constantly evolving collaboration of professionals formed
by an individual or a corporation for the purpose of creating an idea. Owners, architects,
engineers, interior designers, general contractors, subcontractors, and tradesman all play a
specific role in the process of constructing a project and while these roles may continue to be
constant, the projects continue to evolve into higher efficiency, complex, facilities capable of
providing multiple uses within a single structure. One driving force behind this evolution is the
desire to increase the building’s usable life, while reducing the energy consumed through
construction and operation of the building. This process has given rise to the term ‘green
building’.
New technology has created more efficient building systems, better indoor working
conditions, self-sustaining processes, renewable resources, and reduced the impact construction
has on the environment, however as technology moves forward at a rapid pace, the methods of
integrating this new technology into the construction process lags behind. Many systems require
installations that have not been accomplished previously. This can make the installations very
dangerous for the workers and tradesman, as proper safety protocols may not yet have been
developed for the specialized situation or system. The Occupational Safety and Health
Administration (OSHA), was created in 1970 to assure safe and healthy working conditions by
creating specific standards and by providing training and assistance (U.S. Department of Labor,
2014). Through this agency, specific standards have been established for the safe
accomplishment of almost all activities conducted on a construction site; however, the process of

creating and enforcing new standards is a slow and time-consuming one. As technology races
forward and new construction practices emerge, safety is often a casualty of progress. This
paper discusses green building, OSHA, and the integration of safety into green design.
Green Building
First, we need to start by defining what green building is. This can be a very complicated
process. Green building is not simply defined as a style of architecture, or by the types of
materials used during construction. To be truly ‘green’ the entire process from design through
construction and the use of the building by the final occupants needs to be evaluated and all these
components must work collaboratively towards the end result. The end result being a building or
group of buildings that is energy efficient, environmentally responsible, designed to provide a
high-quality indoor environment for the occupants, reduces the impact of the development on the
surrounding areas, and able to sustain these qualifications throughout the life-cycle of the
building itself. The World Commission (1987) defined this process as “sustainable development
seeks to meet the needs and aspirations of the present without compromising the ability to meet
those of the future” (p. 39). These qualifications can be equally hard to quantify. Without a
measurable standard of comparison, a cost-benefit analysis is the most logical formula available
to quantify and qualify ‘green’ standards. Benefits can be categorized into three types: direct,
indirect, and reduction.
These benefits are defined by Kwong (2004) as the following: direct cost savings are
economic savings that are directly gained by the building owner through reduced initial
construction cost, reduced energy consumption, lower maintenance requirements, and
deferred replacement. Indirect gains are benefits to users of the building. The last

category is reduced environmental externalities, which are negative impacts on the
environment resulting from constructing and operating the facility, for which the facility
does not have to pay. (p. RI102)
While energy consumption may be somewhat easier to quantify through comparison to
similar buildings, without the combined effort of the occupants and maintenance staff, the
efficiency of the buildings systems will not reach the designed preconstruction levels. How does
one quantify and qualify environmental responsibility? Using recycled materials and diverting
construction waste from landfills, can be quantified but these are very small components of a
building’s life cycle. Reducing the developments impact on the surrounding area is probably the
most difficult to quantify. One could argue that the least impact a project could have on the
surrounding area is to leave the area undeveloped. Every project is going to have some type of
impact on the surrounding areas. Reducing stormwater runoff and reducing the heat-island effect
generated by the building can be accomplished through careful design of the building and the
surrounding landscape. Sustainability is the key to green building. Design and construction are
to very small parts of a building’s life cycle. Operations and maintenance will comprise the
majority of the building’s useful life and it is through these that the building will truly become
green.
Green Design
As with any project, green building starts with an idea or need of an owner. From the
very start of the project life, the owner needs to be committed to the green building process.
Designing the project to be ‘green’ can be a difficult process. Balancing initial cost with life
cycle savings can be a daunting task. There are any number of checklists and criteria developed

to promote ‘green’ design and construction. In May of 2001, Environmental Building News
published a list of priorities associated with green building. These priorities are listed in order of
return on investment. The following list summarizes these priorities:
1. Save energy – design and build energy efficient buildings.
2. Recycle buildings – utilize existing buildings and infrastructure instead of developing
open space.
3. Create community – design communities to reduce dependence on the automobile and to
foster a sense of community.
4. Reduce material use – optimize design to make use of smaller spaces and utilize materials
efficiently.
5. Protect and enhance the site – preserve and restore local ecosystems and biodiversity.
6. Select low-impact materials – specify low-environmental impact, resource-efficient
materials.
7. Maximize longevity – design for durability and adaptability.
8. Save water – design buildings and landscapes that are water-efficient.
9. Make the building healthy – provide a safe and comfortable indoor environment.
10. Minimize construction and demolition waste – return, reuse, and recycle job site waste.
11. Green up your business – minimize the environmental impact of your own business
practices, and spread the word. (Wilson, Malin, & Yost, Establishing priorities with green
building, 2001)
The United States Green Building Council (USGBC) has developed a very precise
method of sustainable design with its Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED)
program. Through LEED certification, the building’s design and operations are set against

specific criteria. These criteria will drive the design of the building, not aesthetically but
functionally.
LEED
The United States Green Building Council developed the Leadership in Energy and
Environmental Design (LEED) rating system as a way to standardize the qualification of
sustainability. LEED rating systems are divided into five categories. Each category covers a
type of project, allowing LEED to remain applicable to all types of projects from entire
neighborhood development to a small office remodel. The five categories into which LEED is
divided are: Building Design and Construction (BD+C), this category covers new building
construction and major renovations; Interior Design and Construction (ID+C), covering interior
spaces within a larger facility in which the tenant does not control; Operations and Maintenance
(O+M), covering improvements to the existing building’s energy systems; Neighborhood
Development (ND), covering multiple buildings, with mixed uses, set within or developing a
community; and Homes, which covers multifamily or single family residential units. (LEED
rating systems, 2014)
Each of these rating systems contains a set of credits, which through an accumulation of
credit points the project can achieve levels of certification. There are four levels of certification:
Platinum, Gold, Silver, and Certified. Using the version 4 rating system for new construction
and major renovations under the BD+C category, a project earning 40-49 points is considered
Certified, 50-59 points, Silver, 60-79 points, Gold, and 80 points and above Platinum. The
credits themselves are also categorized by how they integrate into the design. Focusing on the
main goals of green building, these categories cover the entire design, construction, and

operation of the building or project. Again, using the version 4 rating system for new
construction and major renovations under the BD+C category, the credit categories are Location
and Transportation, Sustainable Sites, Water Efficiency, Energy and Atmosphere, Material &
Resources, Indoor Environmental Quality, Innovation, and Regional Priority. (LEED credit
library, 2014) Some of the categories, such as sustainable sites, water efficiency, energy and
atmosphere, material and resources, and indoor environmental quality carry prerequisites that
earn no points but must be achieved to be considered for certification, thus setting the baseline
for comparison to conventional construction projects.
Green Building vs. Conventional Construction
The comparison of green buildings to conventionally built buildings continues to fuel the
debate on green benefits. Green methods and materials are largely unproven and generally cost
significantly more than the same products not categorized as green. However, what makes a
product green? In addition, how does it compare to a conventional product? Green products
generally need to conform to certain design qualities before they can be considered green. Some
of these criteria are quite complicated such as reducing the amount of volatile organic
compounds (VOCs) emitted by the given product and others are simpler such as the product
containing a given percentage of post-consumer waste recycled content. Comparing these green
products to conventional products for the same use will determine the value in choosing a green
product over a conventional one. Using low VOC paint on the interior of the building might be a
requirement, however on the exterior conventional coatings could be considered. Steel used in
the construction of the superstructure might already contain post-consumer waste recycled
material and a conventional product might not be available. These types of green products
coupled with systems designed to reduce energy usage throughout the building are what

sustainable design concepts are working toward. When comparing operating costs of green
building to conventional buildings the energy savings stands out as the most obvious benefit to
building green and the data is there to prove it, “green buildings commonly use less than half as
much energy as their conventional counterparts, and some green buildings consume less than a
quarter as much energy” (Wilson, Making the case for green building, 2005).
As comparisons continue and benefits are weighed, there is one area of green building
that seems to have taken a back seat to the conversations, worker safety. In the United States,
the Department of Labor established OSHA to protect workers and to require all employers to
provide a safe and healthy workplace. The next section discusses OSHA, the impacts OSHA has
on the construction of a building and how OSHA standards and rules are created.
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
In 1970, Congress passed the Occupational Safety and Health Act, which created the
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). OSHA covers almost all private
employers and their workers. OSHA creates safety standards by which all workers must abide,
sets criteria for safety provisions that must be provided by employers, and enforces these
regulations through site inspections, fines and training. OSHA created a separate set of rules and
regulations specifically for the construction industry. These rules and regulations are part of a
set of standards included in 29 CFR Part 1926. This section covers virtually every activity
performed on a construction jobsite. These standards are divided into 29 specific sections with
numerous standards defined within each section. The sections included in 29 CFR Part 1926 are:
Subpart A. General
Subpart B. General Interpretations

Subpart C. General Safety and Health Provisions
Subpart D. Occupational Health Environmental Controls
Subpart E. Personal Protective and Life Saving Equipment
Subpart F. Fire Protection and Prevention
Subpart G. Signs, Signals, and Barricades
Subpart H. Material Handling, Storage, Use, and Disposal
Subpart I. Tools – Hand and Power
Subpart J. Welding and Cutting
Subpart K. Electrical
Subpart L. Scaffolds
Subpart M. Fall Protection
Subpart N. Cranes, Derricks, Hoists, Elevators, and Conveyors
Subpart O. Motor Vehicles, Mechanized Equipment, and Marine Operations
Subpart P. Excavations
Subpart Q. Concrete and Masonry
Subpart R. Steel Erection
Subpart S. Tunnels and Shafts, Caissons, Cofferdams, and Compressed Air
Subpart T. Demolition
Subpart U. Blasting and Use of Explosives
Subpart V. Power Transmission and Distribution
Subpart W. Rollover Protective Structures; Overhead Protection
Subpart X. Stairways and Ladders
Subpart Y. Commercial Diving Operations

Subpart Z. Toxic and Hazardous Substances
Subpart AA. Reserved for future use.
Subpart BB. Reserved for future use.
Subpart CC. Cranes and Derricks in Construction (U.S. Department of Labor, 2014)
Though the extensiveness of these standards helps to ensure worker safety at all times the
process for amending and adding standards is a lengthy and time-consuming one. The process
consists of several steps, which at a minimum could take almost five years to complete and in
some cases up to twelve and a half years to accomplish. The first stage of the rule making
process is Making the Decision: Conducting preliminary rulemaking activities, this stage takes
anywhere from twelve to thirty-six months. Stage 2, developing the proposed rule, is a twelve to
thirty-six month process after which the proposed rule is published taking two to three months.
Stage 4 is a six to twenty-four month process in which the proposed rule is subjected to public
comments and hearings. After this period, the final rule is developed. A process taking eighteen
to thirty-six months. Upon final development, the final rule is published taking two to three
months. The final stage of rule development includes a four to twelve month period in which
compliance guides are published and legal action is resolved. (The OSHA rule making process,
2012) With the steps outlined above, it is virtually impossible for OSHA to remain current with
safety regulations involving new technologies. While many of OSHA’s standards have been
proven to cover installation methods and technologies as they develop and change, the possibility
and likelihood of deficiencies in the standards remain. Keeping worker safety a top priority,
other solutions than can keep pace with the fast paced construction industry need to be
addressed. The next section will discuss some of the safety issues workers face when working
on green projects and the steps being taken to develop procedures to reduce potential risks.

Safety and Green Building
Worker safety is an essential component that needs to be seamlessly integrated into green
design. There are a number of ways of accomplishing this. Green design is an integrative
process. During the early design process when professionals are chosen to collaborate on a
project, the addition of a safety, health and environmental (SH&E) professional can ensure
worker safety will be addressed throughout the design process. As SH&E professionals are
involved throughout the building process their role can become two fold. The safety and health
side can “provide information to top management on issues such as total recordable cases, lost
workday cases and workers compensation” (Taubitz, 2010, p. 40), while the environmental side
can provide key insight into green requirements. Design teams can also be mindful of the risks
associated with their design. For example: large daylighting windows can cause injuries to
workers during installation because of their size and weight. Air conditioning systems can
increase a workers potential for falls based on the installation.
With new construction technologies, come new and increased risks. EU-OSHA (2013)
defines these risks as:
• A risk that did not previously exist and is caused by new processes, new
technologies, new types of workplace, or social or organizational change
• A long standing issue is newly considered as a risk due to a change in social or
public perceptions
• New scientific knowledge allows a long-standing issue to be identified as a risk
• The number of hazards leading to the risk is growing
• The likelihood of exposure to the hazard leading to the risk is increasing

• The effect of the hazard on workers’ health is getting worse (Green jobs and
occupational safety and health: Foresight on new and emerging risks associated
with new technologies by 2020, pp. 20-21)
LEED and Safety
Design can play a large role in consideration of worker safety. In the design of green
buildings, LEED is often the framework with which the design team works. There have been
some recent discussions of adopting a safety-rating system and incorporating it into existing
LEED rating systems to ensure worker safety as part of the green design process. These
discussions have been met with both positive and negative feedback.
Donna Heidel, the Prevention through Design (PtD) Program Coordinator for National
Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), told Inside OSHA that it would
probably be most effective to incorporate safety criteria into the existing LEED system
(Administrator, 2010)
Another source however, provided some concern over the integration of safety into the
LEED rating systems.
LEED’s measures have been trending heavily toward energy efficiency, and health and
safety measures are not dealt with very effectively in LEED right now. (Administrator,
2010)
As the debate over how safety should be implemented wages on, the process of
integrating safety seems to fall back on the designers and builders. Builders are reminded that
OSHA standards represent the minimum protections to be afforded to their workers and that a

comprehensive safety program dealing with green technologies, methods and materials should be
implemented by builders who wish to pursue such avenues. Designers are encouraged to include
safety consideration in the system design. Recently, there has been some encouraging progress
toward establishing safety guidelines in green building design. According to Matt Gillen, deputy
director in the NIOSH Office of Construction Safety and Health, “a team at the National Institute
for Occupational Safety and Health is developing worker protection measures that would be part
of the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) green building code.” (NIOSH
team to reccomend worker safety requirements in LEED green building certification, 2012)
Conclusion
Designing, constructing and operating a building is a major undertaking. Years of design
and work will go into the completion of a building before it is occupied. Understanding all the
effort put into this process, one can see how worker safety could be overlooked. This however,
is not an acceptable result. Worker safety needs to be at the forefront of building design and
construction practices. Green or traditional, safety is a concern. With OSHA’s inability to adapt
to the current trends and adopt standards applied to green building practices in a timely manner,
another option needs to present itself. Integrating safety rules and regulations into green design
is a viable solution. According to Gambatese, Rajendran, & Behm, (2007) “if current green
design and construction practices have negative effects on worker safety and health, those
concerns can be mitigated through the integration of the sustainable construction safety and
health concept within green design and construction practices.” (p. 35) The sustainable
construction safety and health concept is an intriguing solution to quantifying worker safety.
This concept mirrors sustainable building by which the World Commission (1987) defined as
“sustainable development seeks to meet the needs and aspirations of the present without

compromising the ability to meet those of the future” (p. 39). Sustainable construction safety
and health “concept aims to sustain the construction worker’s safety and health 1)from start to
finish of a single project; 2)for each future project in which the worker is involved; and 3) during
the workers remaining lifetime after retirement, without any injuries or illnesses as a result of the
construction work.” (Gambatese, Rajendran, & Behm, 2007, p. 34)
As rules and regulations are written, enforced, and debated, safety can be maintained
throughout green building, by applying the same concepts to worker safety as to the building
design.

References
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