LEED v5, Materials & Resources focuses on quantifying and reducing embodied carbon and aligning product selection with verified data. Projects must first quantify cradle-to-gate (A1–A3) embodied carbon and identify priority hotspots; points are then earned by demonstrating reductions via WBLCA and/or EPD-based approaches, with optional tracking of A5 construction emissions.

LEED v5 is divided into two parts: MRp2 and MRc2. The first, MRp2, is a mandatory prerequisite that focuses on A1–A3 emissions, while MRc2 expands the assessment to include stages A1–A5, B1–B5, C1–C4, and D.

Under LEED v5 Materials and Resources Prerequisite 2 (MRp2) – Quantify and Assess Embodied Carbon, projects must measure the embodied carbon (global warming potential, GWP) of their structure, enclosure, and hardscape materials. This includes all relevant construction elements such as concrete, steel, masonry, insulation, aluminum, wood, cladding, glass, and asphalt—plus any ancillary structures like parking areas within the LEED boundary. Projects must calculate cradle-to-gate (A1–A3) emissions by multiplying each material’s GWP per unit by its quantity. Use of life-cycle assessment or embodied carbon software (like One Click LCA) is acceptable for reporting A1–A3 results. Finally, teams must identify the top three sources of embodied carbon (“hotspots”) and describe how design or material strategies were considered to reduce these impacts.

Under Materials and Resources Credit 2 (MRc2) – Reduce Embodied Carbon, the goal is to measure and reduce the embodied carbon of key building components such as structure, enclosure, and hardscape materials, including all ancillary structures (e.g., parking or outbuildings) within the LEED boundary. Projects must quantify embodied carbon reductions by comparing results to established baselines or industry averages, using data from life cycle assessment (LCA) or EPD-based methods. Points are awarded according to the percentage of global warming potential (GWP) reduction achieved, as outlined in LEED Table 1: two points for meeting baseline or average values, increasing up to six points for a 40% or greater reduction (Projects may earn up to 6 points total). For LEED Platinum certification, both New Construction and Core & Shell projects must demonstrate at least a 20% reduction in embodied carbon.

This pathway requires conducting a cradle-to-grave (Modules A–C) assessment—covering the product stage (A1–A3), construction stage (A4–A5), use stage (B1–B5), and end-of-life stage (C1–C4)—with optional reporting of benefits beyond the system boundary (Module D). The analysis must encompass the structure, enclosure, and hardscape materials and be benchmarked against a baseline model developed specifically for the project.

Projects can earn 1–6 points for New Construction and 1–7 points for Core and Shell by demonstrating embodied carbon reductions per the LEED v5 point scale. The WBLCA must also report results for the following environmental impact categories:

The Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) Analysis pathway focuses on quantifying and reducing embodied carbon through the use of verified product data for materials used in construction. This option allows project teams to demonstrate measurable improvements in the carbon performance of procured materials compared to recognized industry benchmarks. Projects may follow one of two paths—Path 1: Project-Average Approach or Path 2: Materials-Type Approach—to earn points based on the level of reduction achieved.

Projects can earn up to 3 points (New Construction) or 4 points (Core and Shell) by reducing the overall project’s embodied carbon, measured as the weighted average Global Warming Potential (GWP) of all major material categories. Comparisons must be made against industry averages established by authoritative sources such as the Carbon Leadership Forum (CLF) Material Baselines Report (available in One Click database).

Teams must track the GWP per unit of each installed material, ensuring that project-specific or facility-specific Type III EPDs are used wherever possible. Biogenic carbon may only be included in calculations if C-stage (end-of-life) emissions are accounted for.

In this path, projects can earn up to 2 points (New Construction) or 3 points (Core and Shell) by targeting specific material categories—such as concrete, steel, aluminum, glass, or insulation—and demonstrating reductions in embodied carbon relative to industry benchmarks. Each targeted material type must be supported by product-specific Type III EPDs, and reductions are assessed through weighted-average calculations of embodied carbon intensity within each category.

The Construction Emissions Tracking option recognizes projects that actively monitor and quantify the carbon emissions associated with on-site construction activities, referred to as Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) module A5.

Projects can earn 1 to 2 points depending on the level of detail and responsibility included in the tracking scope:

When preparing the baseline building model for embodied carbon assessment, the comparison between baseline and proposed designs must be fair and technically consistent. Both models must have comparable size, function, orientation, and operating energy performance as defined in Energy and Atmosphere prerequisite 2 (EAp2): Minimum Energy Efficiency. Each model should assume the same service life of at least 60 years, ensuring that maintenance and replacement impacts are properly accounted for over time.

The baseline assumptions should reflect standard design practices and typical material selections relevant to the project’s location and building type. It is essential to use the same life cycle assessment (LCA) software tools and datasets—which must be ISO 14044-compliant—for both the baseline and proposed buildings.

To construct a valid reference, the baseline (or reference) model must align with the project’s geometry, structure, thermal performance, and function. Project teams can use an early design iteration as a baseline if it meets all comparative criteria or creates a copy of the proposed design and substitute materials with regionally typical alternatives to represent a realistic baseline scenario. This ensures transparency and consistency when demonstrating embodied carbon reductions under LEED v5 MRc2.

The Carbon Designer 3D tool of One Click LCA can help you regarding the creation of your baseline.

Create a new design and enable the "LEED V5 North America" tool.

Fill in the building materials query of the design either manually or by import. You are allowed to use either generic data, manufacturer-specific EPDs (recommended) or similar products from another manufacturer. Use net quantities (amounts of material installed in the building); the on-site losses of materials "Wastage" would be included in module A5.

This information is used to calculate the impacts of raw material extraction, transportation, and manufacturing (A1–A3), as well as the transportation of materials from the manufacturing facility to the construction site (A4). In addition, the end-of-life emissions (C2–C4) are also calculated in this section.

Once the correct materials and quantities are provided, set the transportation distances from material manufacturer to the project site and transport methods.

The default transportation distances can be set up from the project’s LCA parameters page. If they are chosen, any material will use the average distance unless a more specific one is given in the query. This information will be used to calculate the impacts of material transportation in A4.

This information will be used to calculate the material replacements for B4 & B5.

Material service life means how long each material will last in your building. If the service life is less than 60 years the material will have to be replaced. From an environmental impacts point of view, this means additional emissions from the production of new material that is needed to replace the old one.

Each of the materials in One Click LCA database has a default service life. However, as the exposure conditions of the materials may vary, it may be good to check that the service life matches the condition of your building. It is especially important to check the external wall and roof material service lives’ as the weather conditions may vary greatly between areas.

Construction Site Operations

In the next step, you need to enter the input data in the "Construction Site Operations" tab. This section will help you generate results for the C1 and A5 stages.

To calculate B1 emissions, another query tab called "Emissions and Removals" should be completed in the LEED tool. This section considers emissions related to refrigerant leakage and the carbonization of cementitious materials.

The "Maintenance" query tab collects data related to the building's annual maintenance activities, such as cleaning and preventive and regular product servicing. These activities are accounted for in the life-cycle module B2. This section includes data on annual electricity use, water use, fuel use for maintenance, and the annual replacement of parts as part of preventive and regular maintenance.

This tab is used to define the 2025 Carbon Leadership Forum (CLF) North American Material Baselines for the Option 2 – Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) Analysis pathway.

For the final steps of data input, fill in the calculation period and building area queries. The building area information will be used to give you results based on intensity, helping you understand how the results compare to other projects. The gross floor area is required.