Sustainable Sites
Managing what happens on the ground
Sustainable Sites covers site selection effects and construction-era impacts. There is exactly one prerequisite: Construction Activity Pollution Prevention, requiring an erosion and sedimentation control plan that meets the EPA Construction General Permit or the local equivalent, whichever is stricter. It addresses water pollution, airborne dust, and soil loss during construction.
Credits include Site Assessment (documenting topography, hydrology, vegetation, soils, and climate before design), Site Development - Protect or Restore Habitat, Open Space, Rainwater Management, Heat Island Reduction, and Light Pollution Reduction.
Rainwater Management asks the team to manage runoff from the 95th percentile rainfall event on site through infiltration, evapotranspiration, or reuse - the green infrastructure approach. Heat Island Reduction uses solar reflectance (SR) for hardscape around 29 and solar reflectance index (SRI) values of about 82 for low-slope roofs and 39 for steep-slope roofs, or shading/vegetated roof strategies evaluated over time.
Traps
- Heat island is about roofs and hardscape, not about interior temperature.
- Light pollution is measured at the property line using BUG ratings (backlight, uplight, glare) tied to lighting zones, not by counting fixtures.
- Site disturbance limits are measured from water bodies and wetlands, so buffers matter more than total acreage.
- Habitat credit distinguishes protecting greenfield from restoring previously developed land - different percentages, different language.
Rule of thumb
If the question mentions mud, dust, silt fence, or a stormwater pollution prevention plan, the answer is the prerequisite. Worked example: a team wants credit for capturing rain from a 25-year storm - too strict; the LEED benchmark is the 95th percentile event.