Green building on college campuses

Green building on college campuses is the purposeful construction of buildings on college campuses that decreases resource usage in both the building process and also the future use of the building. The goal is to reduce CO2 emissions, energy use, and water use, while creating an atmosphere where students can be healthy and learn. Universities across the country are building to green standards set forth by the USGBC, United States Green Building Council. The USGBC is a non-profit organization that promotes sustainability in how buildings are designed and built. This organization created the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system, which is a certification process that provides verification that a building is environmentally sustainable. In the United States, commercial and residential buildings account for 70 percent of the electricity use and over 38 percent of CO2 emissions.[1] Because of these huge statistics regarding resource usage and emissions, the room for more efficient building practices is dramatic. Since college campuses are where the world’s future leaders are being taught, colleges are choosing to construct new buildings to green standards in order to promote environmental stewardship to their students. Colleges across the United States have taken leading roles in the construction of green building in order to reduce resource consumption, save money in the long run, and instill the importance on environmental sustainability on their students.

Benefits of Green Building on Campuses

Green buildings on college campuses provide benefits to the campus in several different ways. Campuses can benefit from the short and long term economic benefits. Initially, federal and state governments will sometimes provide tax incentives for buildings constructed that surpass the standards set by the government. There are also long term savings. According to the USGBC, with an upfront investment of 2% in green building design, the resulting life savings is 20% of the total construction costs. With many universities lacking funding, this kind of savings could dramatically help the yearly budget. Along with this increase in monetary savings, green building and architecture has been proven to make the occupants more productive. Studies have shown a link between improved lighting design and a 27% reduction in the incidence of headaches. Also, students with the most daylighting in their classrooms progressed 20% faster on math tests and 26% faster on reading tests in one year than those with less daylighting. Both of these studies show that better lighting conditions, which are one of the main features of green buildings, can increase the productivity of its occupants. Students at colleges where green buildings are being used will benefit by increasing their potential to gain knowledge.[2] The last important benefit of green buildings on college campuses is having the university seen as environmentally sustainable. Students are becoming increasingly aware of the issues the Earth faces with carbon emissions and increased consumption. These students want to attend universities that are striving to reduce their environmental impact. Universities participating in sustainable initiatives, like constructing green buildings, will attract more highly qualified students. Green buildings on campuses benefit both the school as well as the students.

LEED Rating System

Many institutions in the United States are administering the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Green Building Rating System. The development of the LEED Rating System has been nationally recognized as the leading method to construct green buildings. The rating system incorporates the design, construction, and maintenance of the building. LEED promotes a cradle-to-cradle approach in regards to construction and design materials. The rating system is composed of six sections: Site Planning, Water Management, Energy Management, Material Use, Indoor Air Quality, and the Innovation & Design Process. Each section is composed of credits and points, which ultimately determine how "green" the building is constructed, designed, and maintained.

LEED Certification Levels

LEED has four different levels of certification. All depending on how many credits and points were obtained through the LEED Rating System. There are 100 possible base points plus an additional 6 points for Innovation in Design and 4 points for Regional Priority.

Buildings can qualify for 4 types of certification:

LEED - NC Application Guide for Multiple Buildings and On-Campus Building Projects (AGMBC)

The USGBC has issued an application guide for administration of LEED Rating System on college, corporate, or government installations that include multiple buildings. This application is designed for projects where several buildings will be constructed at once, in phases, or a single building is constructed in a setting of existing buildings with common ownership. Note, however, that the AGMBC applies to LEED Rating System Versions 2.1 and 2.2. The methods described still apply to new construction on campuses.

Issues with AGMBC

The sustainable sites category is the most challenging category, and it is the most detailed section in the AGMBC.[3]

Multi-Building Certification Methods

  1. Certifying a new building within a setting of existing buildings that are considered a campus, i.e. there is one owner or common property management and control. Use of a retention pond not on "site" but on campus, would still qualify for LEED credit.
  2. Certifying a group of new buildings as a package where the entire building set will be rated as a package and only one rating received. These buildings may constitute the entire campus or be a subset of an existing campus.
  3. Certifying new buildings where each new building is constructed to a set of standards but will receive an independent rating based on achievement of credits beyond the standards specific to that building. These buildings may constitute the entire campus or be subset of an existing campus.

Required LEED Levels for Select Colleges

These are 10 colleges all around the US determined to build for a sustainable future. Each college outlines their commitment in Campus Sustainability Initiatives and Mission statements.[4]

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United States Green Building Council LEED Rating System

Campus Green Building Techniques

The following methods are becoming more prevalent on campuses around the nation. Because of the large scale of college campuses, the impact of these methods are truly praisde for energy savings and enhanced occupants' comfort.

Sustainable Materials used in Green Building

The following are some examples[8] of sustainable products used in green building. These materials are less harmful to the environment. Now-a-days many materials have a "green" substitute.

Division 3: Concrete

Division 4: Masonry

Division 5: Metals

Division 6: Woods, Plastics, and Composites

Division 7: Thermal and Moisture Protection

Division 8: Openings

Division 9: Finishes

Division 12: Furnishings

Division 26: Electrical

International Campus Sustainability

Organizations

International Sustainable Campus Network

Universities have a leadership role in advancing knowledge, technology and tools to create a sustainable future. To fulfill this role effectively and with high credibility, they need to include a focus on sustainability also in their own operations and facilities. Campus projects, be they educational or corporate campus developments, present interesting sustainability challenges and opportunities. Firstly, their size is at the borderline between single building projects and small towns, a fruitful scale for innovative energy and transport solutions. And secondly, they are to a certain degree one-purpose neighborhoods focused on education, research, development or distribution of new ideas, products or services.

Partners: Australian National University, Berkeley University, City of Zurich, Dundalk Institute of Technology, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL), Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich (ETH Zurich), Harvard University, HEEPI, Hosei University, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Los Angeles Community College District, National University of Singapore, Pontifical Catholic University of Peru, Stanford University, The Sustainability Forum, Tongji University, University of Applied Sciences of Trier-Birkenfeld, University of Copenhagen, University of Zurich – CCRS, University of Gothenburg, University of Luxembourg and Yale University.

International Green Construction Code

The International Green Construction Code is a part of the International Code Council (ICC). As part of its commitment to green and sustainable safety concepts, the Code Council is excited to develop a new set of green codes under the multi-year initiative called "IGCC: Safe and Sustainable by the Book." This initiative will include collaboration from the Council’s closest allies and pre-eminent thought leaders in green building, as well as outreach and feedback from our members and the general public. The International Green Construction Code is committed to developing an effective and efficient code that will continue our long tradition of international code guidance.[9]

World Green Building Council

The World Green Building Council is an international organization that facilitates the green building councils of many developed and developing nations. The Council started in 1999 with its first meeting in California. Eight members attended the first meeting: U.S. Green Building Council, Green Building Council of Australia, Spain Green Building Council, United Kingdom Green Building Council, Japan Green Building Council, United Arab Emirates, Russia and Canada. THE WorldGBC incorporated in 2002 and operates from Toronto, Canada. There are currently over 15 established GBCs and 35 emerging and prospective countries with GBCs.[10]

Campus Green Building Case Studies

United States

Stanford University: Knight Management Center

Stanford is a leading university in the green movement and the school is striving to achieve a LEED Platinum certification for their new graduate school of business, the Knight Management Center. The goal for this building is to open in the winter of 2011.[11] The center will have eight buildings around three quadrangles with 360,000 square feet (33,000 m2) of interior space. According to the principal architect, Stan Boles of Boora Architects in Portland, Oregon, "The orientation of the buildings is narrow in the north-south dimension. They are designed for optimum daylighting, ventilation, and for shading of one another. The exterior walls are designed so that areas of glass are created but shaded by exterior screens to prevent excessive heat gain."[12] This project aims to:

Stanford’s president, John L. Hennessy, said, "One of the biggest global challenges facing us today is the sustainable use of our planets natural resources. The Graduate School of Business will play a key role in helping us address these challenges by leading the way in its sustainable development of this new campus."[12] Stanford University is taking an active role in constructing green buildings on their campus and the Knight Management Center will be a great example of how a building can be sustainable.

University of California at Santa Barbara: Donald Bren School of Environmental Science & Management

The Donald Bren School of Environmental Science & Management is located at the University of California, Santa Barbara, California. The academic laboratory and classroom facility demonstrates cost-effective, energy-efficient technologies and operations. The concrete and steel frame structure was complete in 2002 and cost approximately $27,500,000. Donald Bren Hall was the first laboratory to receive LEED Platinum accreditation, the highest rating achievable through the US Green Building Council’s national rating system, with the following building design features:

According to Great Buildings, "The Donald Bren School at the University of California, Santa Barbara takes advantage of a beautiful setting near the Pacific Ocean to become a green building that embraces its environment not only for efficiency, but for experience. With a striking open courtyard, it provides ample opportunity for social interaction that makes the transition between indoors and outdoors much smoother and ephemeral than most buildings. Building Bren Hall with sustainable materials and methods is estimated to have added only 2% to the building cost, which will easily be offset over time by energy savings."[15]

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill: Botanical Gardens Education Center

The 29,656-square-foot (2,755.1 m2) Education Center is located at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The building consists of three major sections connected by covered breezeways. The central wing welcomes visitors to the education center as they enter the garden through a large breezeway. The east wing offers classrooms for students enrolled in workshops and classrooms, and the west wing features the Reeves Auditorium. This large multipurpose space is used for lectures, conferences, and special events.[16] The Education Center plans to achieve a LEED Platinum rating, most likely the first ever in North Carolina, with these features:

The new Education Center expresses a sense of place and celebrates relationships between humans and nature through the integration of indoor and outdoor spaces. Open breezeways, comfortable porches, natural light in every room, beautiful native plant landscaping, and educational exhibits inform, delight, and invite visitors to the Conservation Garden. Most of all, the building is a center of learning, teaching both the science and the enjoyment of plants and nature.[17]

University of Florida: James W. Heavener Football Complex

The University of Florida’s new football complex, the James W. Heavener Football Complex, was completed in 2008 and received LEED Platinum rating for the environmental sustainability of the building. The facility contractor was PPI Construction Management and the architect was RDG Planning and Design. The building includes offices, conference rooms, an atrium to display the football teams accomplishments, and a weight training facility.[18] The LEED rated the complex 52 out of the 69 available points for the certification, which gave the building the Platinum rating. This facility is the first platinum athletic facility in the United States as well as the first platinum rated building in the state of Florida. The $28 million building exceeded the original goal of obtaining a LEED Silver rating.[19]

This building has many features that helped it to achieve the Platinum level. The features dealing with water usage reduce the buildings indoor water use by 40 percent.[18] Due to all of the facility’s energy saving features the building has exceeded the state and national energy requirements by 35 percent.[18] Another interesting fact about the construction of this building is that most of the material used in the construction came from within 500 miles of the University of Florida, which reduce the emissions created form transporting the material. Also 78 percent of the building debris was recycled. The assistant director of LEED at UF, Bahar Armaghani, said, "Green Buildings are not exclusively concerned with saving money through more efficient technology. They are also investments for the well-being of the people and environment."[18] The University of Florida has taken on an initiative to have all new construction be LEED Gold certified or higher and with the construction of this facility the school has surpassed their own requirements by achieving the Platinum rating.

Key Features of the Heavener Football Complex:

High Point University School of Education

High Point University, located in High Point, North Carolina, has a LEED-Certified building that houses the School of Education. The 31,000-square-foot building houses the education and psychology departments in technologically advanced classrooms, computer labs and offices. It features high-tech educational equipment, such as smart boards, a children’s book library, math and science touch screen games, a methods lab designed to look and feel like a real elementary school classroom, a Mac lab and psychology research booths. The School of Education building is setting an example for modern-day energy conservation with things like floor to ceiling windows for natural lighting and light sensors in the rooms.[20]

Key Statistics:

International

Charles Hostler Student Center

The Charles Hostler Student Center on the campus of the American University of Beirut provides a model for environmentally responsive design that meets the social needs of the campus and the larger region. Situated on Beirut's seafront and main public thoroughfare, the new 204,000 sq ft (19,000 m2). facility houses competitive and recreational athletic facilities for swimming, basketball, handball, volleyball, squash, exercise and weight training. The space also includes an auditorium with associated meeting rooms, cafeteria with study space, and underground parking for 200 cars.[21]

Green Building methods:

Dubai International Academic City Phase-III

Dubai International Academic City Phase-III (DIAC phase-III) comprises four academic buildings and a food court spread over a total built up area of 600,000 square feet (56,000 m2). It has received the Silver LEED certification, and is expected to save approximately AED2.3 million per year from reduced energy costs, district cooling demand changes, irrigation water costs, sewage tanker and domestic water costs.[23]

Green Building component Features:

These features will make this cluster 21.7% more energy efficient than the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) 90.1 - 2004 standards.[23] will also consume 30% less water than the standards set by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as well as 40% less irrigation water. These savings have been achieved by the installation of ultra-low flow water restrictors in wash basins and dual-flush tanks in wash rooms, as well as additives in the soil for the landscape areas.[24]

See also

  1. "LEED For New Construction". USGBC. Retrieved 2009-11-13.

Notes

  1. ↑ Lester Brown (2008). Plan B 3.0.
  2. ↑ "USGBC: Green Building Research". Retrieved 2009-11-10.
  3. ↑ "Real Life LEED: Certifying Multiple Buildings Together? Part2". Retrieved 2009-11-12.
  4. ↑ "Harvard's Commitments to Sustainability". Retrieved 2009-11-09.
  5. ↑ "University of Florida FP&C LEED". Retrieved 2009-11-11.
  6. ↑ Wimmer, Leslie (March 2012). "Business Leadership Building Receives Gold LEED Certification" (Press release). University of North Texas. Retrieved 2012-07-03.
  7. ↑ Lianne Jepson & Heather Shandloff. "University of Florida FP&C Student Presentations". Retrieved 2009-11-10.
  8. ↑ "International Construction Code". Retrieved 2009-11-15.
  9. ↑ "World Green Building Council". Retrieved 2009-11-17.
  10. ↑ "Sustainable Stanford Green Buildings". Retrieved 2009-11-16.
  11. 1 2 3 "Stanford Business School breaks ground on LEED Platinum campus". Retrieved 2009-11-08.
  12. ↑ "Sustainability: Knight Management Center: Stanford GSB". Retrieved 2009-11-16.
  13. ↑ Gregory Dick (2009-10-05). "Donald Bren School of Environmental Science & Management". Retrieved 2009-11-16.
  14. ↑ Great Buildings Online. "Donald Bren School of Environmental Science & Management". Retrieved 2009-11-16.
  15. ↑ Susan Houston. "N.C. Botanical Garden inaugurates new "green" education center with fall events". Retrieved 2009-11-16.
  16. 1 2 Laura Cotterman. "An Environmentally Sustainable Education Center for the North Carolina Botanical Garden". Retrieved 2009-11-16.
  17. 1 2 3 4 5 Katie Privett. "UF's Football Complex Receives Highest Green Building Certification". Retrieved 2009-11-16.
  18. ↑ Sara Watson. "Football Complex leads the state in sustainability". Retrieved 2009-11-16.
  19. ↑ http://www.highpoint.edu/sustainability/leed-certification/
  20. ↑ "HPB Case Study: Overview - Charles Hostler Student Center". Retrieved 2009-11-16.
  21. ↑ "Integrated sports centre honoured at AIA Top Ten Green Projects awards 2009". Retrieved 2009-11-15.
  22. 1 2 "Dubai International Academic City Phase-III Becomes Middle East's First and Largest LEED Certified Academic Facility". Retrieved 2009-11-15-09. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
  23. ↑ United Arab Emirates Press Release 2009-2-11. "Dubai International Academic City Phase-III moves closer to get Leed certification". Retrieved 2009-11-17.

References

External links

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