Determining the Sustainability of Mass Timber Structures Through Third-Party Sustainability Assessment Systems

9 pages•Published: May 26, 2024

Anthony Mirando, Lameck Onsarigo and Ivana Krsteska

Abstract

Sustainability in the built environment is often judged by the presence and type of third-party sustainability assessment programs. Third-party rating systems offer independent and verifiable point- based metric systems to assess a building's adherence to a set of sustainable building principles. This study assesses mass timber structures' relationship to third-party rating systems in order to determine how sustainable mass timber structures are. A regression analysis of 370 completed commercial mass timber structures across the U.S. provides strong evidence that mass timber structures correlate with the presence of third-party rating systems, especially LEED. The data shows the presence of third- party certifications in over 36% of projects, a vast majority (64%) being LEED certified. Results highlight the overwhelming percentage of mass timber structures deciding to pursue sustainability certifications. Importantly, researchers gain additional building attribute knowledge relative to this new structural technology.

Keyphrases: leed, mass timber, sustainability, united state, usgbc

In: Tom Leathem, Wes Collins and Anthony Perrenoud (editors). Proceedings of 60th Annual Associated Schools of Construction International Conference, vol 5, pages 405-413.

Links:	https://easychair.org/publications/paper/J2mQH
	https://doi.org/10.29007/xtnr

BibTeX entry

@inproceedings{ASC2024:Determining_Sustainability_Mass_Timber,
  author    = {Anthony Mirando and Lameck Onsarigo and Ivana Krsteska},
  title     = {Determining the Sustainability of Mass Timber Structures Through Third-Party Sustainability Assessment Systems},
  booktitle = {Proceedings of 60th Annual Associated Schools of Construction International Conference},
  editor    = {Tom Leathem and Wes Collins and Anthony Perrenoud},
  series    = {EPiC Series in Built Environment},
  volume    = {5},
  publisher = {EasyChair},
  bibsource = {EasyChair, https://easychair.org},
  issn      = {2632-881X},
  url       = {/publications/paper/J2mQH},
  doi       = {10.29007/xtnr},
  pages     = {405-413},
  year      = {2024}}

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