LEED CERTIFICATION
What LEED certification is, and why it matters in housing: the Arroyo Bodonal case
When the U.S. Green Building Council awarded LEED Platinum to the Arroyo Bodonal building in Tres Cantos in 2016, it became the first multi-family residential building in Europe to reach the highest level of the most demanding sustainable construction standard in the world. ACRE Arquitectura was the author of the design and of the construction supervision, and that experience shaped how we understand housing.
What LEED actually measures
LEED — Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design — assesses the whole building: energy performance, water consumption, indoor air quality, materials, waste management during construction, and even how well connected it is to public transport. It is not a theoretical label applied to a drawing: it requires measuring, documenting and verifying. There are four levels — Certified, Silver, Gold and Platinum — and very few residential buildings in the world reach the last one.
What it means for the people who live there
At Arroyo Bodonal it means an energy rating of A, a measured saving of around 75% against a conventional building, underfloor heating and cooling run from geothermal energy, and indoor comfort that does not depend on the price of gas.
The lesson for residential development
Certified sustainability is not a cost: it is an investment that pays back in bills, in health and in asset value. A LEED-certified building stands apart in the market, ages better and protects its owners against rising energy prices. That is why we build these criteria in from the first sketch of every development we deliver, our own or on behalf of a client.
Wondering whether your next project could be certified?
Tell us about it and we will look at what it would take.