2008 Woodie Awards
Webster looks to 'green' future
By: Megan Connelly
Issue date: 3/1/07 Section: News
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In an effort to become a more energy and cost efficient university, Webster will construct new buildings to meet environmental standards from the U.S. Green Building Council. This will include a new energy efficient science building on campus, following a long road of paperwork and consultation.
"The administration made a decision last year relative to the new buildings, particularly the science building - to follow the LEED standard for certification," David Stone, director of facility planning and management, said.
The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Green Building Rating System is the national standard for the design, construction and function of high performance green buildings, or buildings that aim to increase the efficiency of energy, water and materials use. The LEED program focuses on five key areas: sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality.
"The initial plan was to be certified at the minimum certification level," Stone said. "The LEED certification has four levels: certified, silver, gold and platinum."
The final product for Webster could be a silver level certification due to standards the campus has already met such as the chiller plant, a cooling system that uses chilled water, that replaced the less efficient, free-standing air conditioning systems five years ago. Stone said they are considering many of the same features for the future business and technology buildings, but at this point there are no plans to obtain certification.
In order for a project to earn certification it must achieve a minimum number of points within each category. Projects are then awarded Certified, Silver, Gold, or Platinum level status depending on the number of credits they achieve.
Stone said he's not sure that a point system is the best method, because it can cause judgment errors when deciding what updates to include.
"The administration made a decision last year relative to the new buildings, particularly the science building - to follow the LEED standard for certification," David Stone, director of facility planning and management, said.
The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Green Building Rating System is the national standard for the design, construction and function of high performance green buildings, or buildings that aim to increase the efficiency of energy, water and materials use. The LEED program focuses on five key areas: sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality.
"The initial plan was to be certified at the minimum certification level," Stone said. "The LEED certification has four levels: certified, silver, gold and platinum."
The final product for Webster could be a silver level certification due to standards the campus has already met such as the chiller plant, a cooling system that uses chilled water, that replaced the less efficient, free-standing air conditioning systems five years ago. Stone said they are considering many of the same features for the future business and technology buildings, but at this point there are no plans to obtain certification.
In order for a project to earn certification it must achieve a minimum number of points within each category. Projects are then awarded Certified, Silver, Gold, or Platinum level status depending on the number of credits they achieve.
Stone said he's not sure that a point system is the best method, because it can cause judgment errors when deciding what updates to include.
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