The green building certification program run by the Washington-based U.S. Green Building Council has become the dominant certification program in the green construction arena, because it was introduced so early and because of the program's quality, say observers.

The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design program, which the USGBC said was introduced in 1990, is a point-based system where building projects earn credit in several categories, including sustainable sites, water efficiency, energy and atmosphere, materials and resources, and indoor environmental quality.

An additional category, among others, is innovation in design, which addresses sustainable building expertise and design measures not covered under the five environmental categories.

LEED categories, in ascending order of value, are certified, silver, gold and platinum. LEED certifications are granted after a building has been built. Certification is administered by the USGBC through a network of professional third-party certification bodies. The system is set to be updated this year.

According to the USBC, nearly 9 billion square feet of building space participate in the suite of LEED rating systems, and an additional 1.6 million square feet are certified daily around the world.

The USGBC also administers a LEED professional credentialing program.

Observers say the biggest competitor to the LEED program is the Green Globes rating and certification program, which is operated by the Portland, Ore.-based Green Building Initiative. The GBI, which started its program in 2004, has certified about 600 buildings, about one-third of which are Veterans Administration facilities, according to a spokeswoman.

In addition, in January the Washington-based Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure introduced its Envision rating program, which focuses on infrastructure projects.

However, Jeffrey D. Masters, a partner with law firm Cox Castle & Nicholson L.L.P. in Los Angeles, said the LEED program “has dominated the certification arena because they were the first” and “rapidly became the market standard.”

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Stephen T. Grossmark, a partner with law firm Tressler L.L.P. in Chicago, said the LEED program “is the one that's best known,” perhaps “because of the USBC's national member and local membership programs. Furthermore, he said, the program is “ever improving.”

Mr. Grossmark said before the LEED system was developed different local and state governments had been trying to come up with their own green construction codes. “They were reinventing the wheel.”

However, J. Kent Holland, president of Vienna, Va.-based consulting firm ConstructionRisk L.L.C., said, “There are still some maybe unrealistic and unfulfilled expectations for project owners concerning what they are going to get by having their building LEED certified.

“Sometimes a project owner assumes they're going to save energy if they get a building that's LEED certified, but there's no guarantee that's going to happen,” he said, noting it is important there is communication between all the parties involved.

Furthermore, you can still have a green building without necessarily obtaining the LEED certification or other certifications by introducing measures including low-toxic paints and sustainable wood products, said Stanley L. Alpert, a partner with law firm Constantine Cannon L.L.P. in New York.

While LEED “is a very nice way for people to identify a green building, it's not the only way,” he said.

Angie Fuqua, Dallas-based senior property specialist with Chubb Corp., said building owners should keep in mind that green building codes are secondary to building and fire codes. You could conceivably get credit under a green rating system code “for something a fire code or building won't let you do,” she said.