Green Infrastructure and Buildings
What the exam tests
GIB tests building and infrastructure performance: certified green buildings, energy and water efficiency, stormwater, heat island, site disturbance, waste, and historic reuse. The prerequisites are the gate: Certified Green Building, Construction Activity Pollution Prevention, Minimum Building Energy Performance, Indoor Water Use Reduction, and Stormwater Management.
Core rules
The Certified Green Building prerequisite requires at least one building to achieve LEED BD+C certification; the credit scales points by the percentage of total floor area certified. Minimum Building Energy Performance requires a baseline level of efficiency. Construction Activity Pollution Prevention requires an erosion and sedimentation control plan. Stormwater Management requires control of runoff volume and quality. Credits cover optimized energy performance, indoor and outdoor water use, building reuse, historic preservation, minimized site disturbance, rainwater management, heat island reduction, solar orientation, renewable energy, district heating and cooling, infrastructure energy efficiency, wastewater management, recycled and reused infrastructure, solid waste management, and light pollution.
Worked example
A project has five buildings totaling 100,000 sq ft. Two buildings totaling 40,000 sq ft are LEED BD+C certified. The prerequisite is met because at least one building is certified. For the Certified Green Building credit, 40% of floor area is certified; if the credit awards points at 30% and 60%, the project earns the lower tier, not the higher one. Do the math on floor area, not building count.
Traps that cost marks
Do not assume one certified building covers every building for the energy prerequisite; check the credit scope. Do not mix rainwater management with wastewater management. Do not claim construction waste diversion without documented receipts. Do not forget that infrastructure credits can apply to streets, utilities, and district systems, not only buildings.