LEED: A Framework for Healthy, Sustainable Building

By Catherine Kunkel 

It’s no secret that one of our favorite colors at the Port of Seattle and Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) is green. It’s in our logo and our uniforms. But most important, green represents the many buildings that are being built for a lighter load on the environment.

Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is the most widely used and recognized green building certification in the world. Administered by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and active in 192 countries with 209,000 projects worldwide, LEED certification provides a framework to construct healthy, efficient, and cost-effective buildings. It also offers environmental, social, and governance stewardship benefits. Through this structure, sustainable building is tested through simulations and projects are awarded certification levels based upon a points system.

LEED is designed for all project types and phases, including new construction, building operations and maintenance, neighborhoods, and cities. 

To achieve LEED certification, a project must complete prerequisites and earn points by selecting and satisfying credit requirements. Projects then go through a verification and review process by Green Business Certification Inc. (GBCI), which independently recognizes excellence in the green business industry. GBCI provides oversight for rating systems in the built environment and helps advance sustainable practices around the world. 

“It’s a framework for building more energy efficient and holistically more environmentally friendly buildings,” said Allie Bull, Senior Environmental Management Specialist with the Port of Seattle. 

Established in 2000, LEED was the first green certification in the building industry. "Touching all aspects of the building, LEED provides a common language for people to talk about how to do less harm to the planet. The LEED requirements provide a shared understanding on how this can be done,” Bull said. 

Whether it’s using healthy materials, or energy efficient strategy in the heating and power sources, LEED addresses elements throughout the design and construction of a building. With the LEED framework, Bull notes, all construction teams work toward shared goals from start to finish. 

Green is more than marketing 

More than just a feature to market, LEED provides a verified methodology to certify building materials and methods. It supplies a third party to verify a project’s authenticity in terms of all the aspects of truly being a green building. Achieving LEED certification allows projects to benchmark performance against other projects and industry standards. 

All projects must meet select criteria, such as: 

• Preventing construction pollution
• Using water and energy efficiently
• Building with responsible materials
• Providing dedicated space to collect recyclable materials
• Meeting basic ventilation rates for indoor air

But beyond the prerequisites, there is flexibility for the builders to target certain areas of construction impacts, such as air quality, using sustainable materials, water use, site selection, and considering the surrounding environment. 

For example, project teams can opt to focus on transportation impacts, such as access to public transit, bicycle access, or availability of electric vehicle (EV) charging stations. Teams may seek to achieve higher points in these areas. The focus areas vary depending on a given building project and its goals. At SEA Airport, we strive to make sure the credits we pursue on each project are impactful and relevant to the scope of the project. 

There are four levels of LEED certification which correspond to the points awarded to a project: 

• Platinum: 80+ points
• Gold: 60-79 points
• Silver: 50-59 points
• Certified: 40-49 points 

SEA is a LEED Campus 

SEA Airport is a “LEED Campus” which means the airport has documented and adheres to some of the LEED requirements for its entire campus. To earn this distinction, SEA has proven it meets LEED criteria across the board. The “campus” qualification enables individual building projects to take advantage of those credits that have been pre-approved at the campus scale.

In 2023, Washington state had the fourth highest LEED-certified gross square footage of green building space. While this progress to advance healthy, responsible, and equitable communities is promising, the world also saw alarming climate impacts, including record-setting temperatures and increasingly intense storms. SEA Airport and the Port of Seattle believe that how we build today will define tomorrow and that sustainable building is vital to our planet, our health, and the lives of future generations. 

In its quest to be the greenest and most energy efficient port and airport in North America, the Port of Seattle has numerous LEED-certified buildings completed and in progress. Eleven Port of Seattle projects, totaling more than one million square feet, are pursuing or have received LEED certifications:

• Delta Air Lines Crown Room Club: This passenger lounge space was the first LEED certified interior fit-out at SEA. It was LEED-certified for an interiors pilot in 2005
   
• SEA Airport Rental Car Facility (RCF): The Rental Car Facility, built in 2012, was the Port’s first LEED-certified building, and the largest consolidated rental car facility in the nation to be certified LEED Silver. Sustainable features include: natural ventilation, high efficiency lighting throughout, regionally sourced construction materials, Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified wood, and construction materials with recycled content. During construction, 97% of construction waste was recycled
   
• SEA Bus Maintenance Facility: LEED-certified in 2013, the bus facility was constructed to operate, service, and maintain buses serving both the rental car facility and employee shuttles. The facility is more than 22,000 square feet and it exceeded Energy code requirements and included site work and utility improvements
   
• D Concourse Annex: Completed in 2018 and Silver-certified, provided space at SEA Airport to more efficiently accommodate passengers waiting for flights, reduce the length of time passengers spend waiting for a plane to arrive at a gate, reduces greenhouse gas emissions from idling aircraft, and saves airlines fuel
   

• N Concourse Modernization: From harvesting rainwater to heating the facility with renewable natural gas (RNG), these green features helped SEA Airport’s N Concourse Modernization achieve a LEED Silver certification in 2021

   

  

   

• Salty’s at the SEA and BrewTop Social: This is the first tenant project inside SEA Airport to achieve LEED certification in 2023. It features a space that worked to create a sustainable design focused on using as little energy as possible through conservation and efficiency
   
• International Arrivals Facility (IAF): LEED Silver Certified in 2024; As part of the Port of Seattle’s emphasis on environmental stewardship and sustainability, SEA Airport’s International Arrivals Facility was designed to achieve LEED Silver certification. Sustainable features include: increased ventilation levels and sourcing of low-emitting materials, incorporation of nearly double the required amount of materials with Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs), robust commissioning efforts, and energy efficiency measures. This was the first SEA LEED project to earn energy efficiency points for the baggage handling system
   
• SEA Gateway Project: Targeting LEED Silver in 2026; Will reconfigure the 40-year-old terminal north end and ticketing area, expand security checkpoints and create an updated, light-filled open space facilitating new technology and building standards to help passengers move quickly and easily through the terminal. Sustainable features include: high performance glazing, LED lighting, HVAC upgrades, material optimization for embodied carbon, healthy chemistry, and local sourcing, enhanced air, lighting, and acoustic quality
   
• C Concourse Expansion (CCE): Tracking to achieve LEED Gold in 2026 (originally targeted Silver) The C Concourse Expansion at SEA Airport is the first project of its kind to follow the Port’s Sustainable Evaluation Framework, a process to transparently evaluate alternative, sustainable approaches to build capital projects where environmental and societal impacts inform project design, alongside cost and schedule. Sustainable features include: fossil fuel free systems, such as heating, tenant hot water, and cooking equipment, rooftop photovoltaics, an energy efficient rooftop solar array, dishwashing capabilities to reduce solid waste and storage location for donated food, low-flow water fixtures that help conserve potable water, electrochromic glazing for windows, biophilic design strategies which create a comfortable environment, and a symbiotic relationship between design expression and sustainability
   
• Terminal 91 Uplands Phase I: Targeting LEED Silver Certification by 2027; Involves development of the T-91 area located north of the Magnolia Bridge including construction of three light industrial buildings to support maritime manufacturers and fishing industry suppliers. Sustainable features include site improvements, such as stormwater upgrades, replacing existing aged storm water infrastructure with effective management controls, water quality treatment to put T-91 in full compliance with Port and City of Seattle standards, and adding a new sewer system to support existing and future development. Plans also include improving existing lighting, electrical, communications, and circulation related infrastructure at T-91 including new bike commuter improvements
   
• S Concourse Evolution (SCE): Targeting LEED Silver in 2033; Project is in design; Involves modernizing building systems for this concourse constructed in the early 1970s for greater operational and environmental efficiencies, such as earthquake resilience with seismic updates, design and amenities, and art focused on user wellbeing and comfort

 For an overview of the Port’s continuing environment and sustainability work, check out the Port’s annual report “Driving a Sea Change for Our Future."

How do other green certifications compare to LEED? 

LEED is the most common green certification in the world, but there are several other environmental standards defined below. 

Living Building Challenge 

It is billed as the “the world’s most holistic and ambitious rating system to create buildings that work in harmony with nature.” 

(Source: Living Building Challenge Website) 

• A philosophy, certification, and advocacy tool that moves being green to being truly regenerative
• A performance-based approach with 20 imperatives that must be met for any type of project
• Focused on equity for project teams, such as having diverse stakeholders in design and construction, operations and maintenance plans using minority owned businesses in design and construction, and promoting human-scale environments with equitable access to nature and public places

One example of the regenerative focus is certified buildings must produce more energy than they use and must capture and treat water onsite and must use responsible products that are safe for all species through time. 

Project: Maritime Innovation Center (MInC), Fishermen’s Terminal

New construction striving for the Living Building Certification by 2027. Designed to provide work, fabrication and event space for new business incubators and tenants, this beautiful and modern facility will be on the cutting-edge of sustainability. It is the first project at the Port designed for the highest Living Building certification, and is designed to meet the world’s most rigorous building certification.

 Read more about the Maritime Innovation Center (MInC)→

WELL Building Standard 

• Administered by the International WELL Building Institute (IWBI)
• Focused on people and their experience
• An evidence-based roadmap to create people-first buildings
• The standard is based upon 10 concepts with features with distinct health intent: Air, Water, Nourishment, Light, Movement, Thermal Comfort, Sound, Materials, Mind, and Community
• Buildings are scored by compliance in every concept and feature 

Project: The Employee Service Center at SEA Airport 

Achieved WELL Gold certification in 2024. Project highlights include healthy materials, circadian lighting, ergonomic workstations, and air quality monitoring. 

ENVISION Standard 

• Administered by the Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure Use Envision – Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure
• A holistic sustainability framework for infrastructure projects. Whereas, LEED is for building projects, Envision helps stakeholders build more sustainable, resilient, and equitable infrastructure projects
• More flexible and less prescriptive certification process than other standards 

Project: 2026 Airfield Improvement Program — SEA

This project is part of an annual program focused on airfield functionality. The 2026 AIP will focus on runway 16C. It includes taxiway pavement rehabilitation, lighting and signage upgrades and infield drainage improvements. In design; Construction will take place in 2026.

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