International construction giant Skanska USA has terminated its membership in the U.S. Chamber of Commerce due to what the firm views as attempts to “halt progress in sustainable building.” The move reportedly came after failed talks with the U.S. Chamber about its policies, and it follows on the heels of a pro-LEED op-ed in the Washington Post penned by Michael McNally, president and CEO of Skanska USA.
At issue is the U.S. Chamber’s membership in the American High-Performance Building Coalition (AHPBC), an advocacy group formed by the American Chemistry Council (ACC) and other trade organizations to support green building standards developed through the ANSI or ISO consensus process. Although AHPBC claims it does not favor one rating system over another, its emphasis on ANSI mirrors the Green Building Initiative’s claims for its Green Globes rating tool. Chemical and plastics companies have objected to new credits in LEED v4 that will reward project teams for using alternative materials.
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