"LEED certified" buildings in Washington D.C. use more energy than non-certified buildings.

The report examined energy-usage statistics released by the city's Department of the Environment, analyzing the data for hundreds of privately owned structures. It compared non-certified buildings with those that participated in the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program. Created by the U.S. Green Building Council, LEED's goal is to help buildings lower their carbon footprint.

D.C. leads the nation in the number of LEED buildings per capita, and the city has also mandated the use of LEED standards for many of the new public and private buildings being constructed.

Environmental Policy Alliance research analyst Anastasia Swearingen says, "We found that, on average, LEED-certified buildings actually perform worse than traditional buildings when it comes to energy usage."

Defenders of the LEED program say it's okay if they use more energy, because LEED is about more than energy. For instance, LEED certified buildings also have bike racks. I kid you not, that is their defense.