Despite spearheading "George Goes Green," a campus-wide energy conservation competition, Washington College has no definite plans to include the LEED rating system, a national-based standard for constructing high performing, low energy, sustainable buildings, in any of its upcoming construction or renovation projects.
The LEED rating system, which stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, is spearheaded by the United States Green Building Council. It is the definitive authority on whether a structure could be considered a "green building" by using a point system that awards a certain amount of credits for certain energy efficient materials used.
"The LEED documentation process is not as clear-cut as it seems. It is a difficult and expensive process," said Reid Raudenbush, Director of Physical Plant at WC. "The college has to hire consultants used for documentation. There is clearly a conflict over money available and a tough choice has to be made. The college is obligated to build an energy-efficient building, but if it has to cut programs in order to avoid going over budget, is it worth it?"
To be LEED certified, a building must meet certain prerequisites, such as minimum energy performance and pollution prevention from construction activity, along with a certain amount of accumulated credits as determined by a rating system checklist. The LEED rating system offers four certification levels for construction-Certified, Silver, Gold and Platinum-that correspond to the number of credits accrued in five green design categories: sustainable sites, water efficiency, energy and atmosphere, materials and resources and indoor environmental quality. For instance, three credits can be awarded for a 20% reduction of water usage.
"LEED is a potential part of the [performing arts] project, but there is only a fixed budget of $17 million that we can use," said Raudenbush. "LEED has been on the agenda at our most recent meeting with the architects this past Monday. It is something that we are looking into, but, the building is still in its planning stages so we are not sure of anything yet."
According to Raudenbush, the Gibson Performing Arts renovation project is currently in the schematic design phase. Sketches of the floor plans have been settled, but no actual construction plans have been drafted yet, this includes what materials will be used in construction as well.
"The focus right now is on the interior of the building. The architects have been working with the people who will be using the building-faculty, staff, and students-to meet their needs," said Raudenbush.
The final phase of architectural planning for Gibson is scheduled to be completed in December.
"The LEED program is a large part of the social responsibility we have to Chestertown. We come to Chestertown to live here for four years, essentially becoming citizens of the town, and we should be concerned about how much of the resources we use. So many people come here for the location, so it's important to be a part of the community and not use more resources than are available," said Holste.
For schools in the Centennial Conference, going "green" with the LEED program is a also marketing edge as well. Swarthmore College is currently boasting about its $48 million LEED certified science center, making it an attractive admissions magnet for prospective students.
For WC, the $19 million John S. Toll Science Center, which was completed in mid-2005, was unable to receive LEED certification. "Three to five percent of the total cost of the project was projected for LEED recognition. That just was not going to work with our budget. We couldn't afford it," said Raudenbush.
"We still kept a lot of energy efficient items though," continued Raudenbush. "such as a zinc roof."
"We really messed up with the [John S. Toll] Science Center," said Holste. "If [the building planners] took the time to really plan the building in advance, then maybe there wouldn't be problems with the heating and cooling system. The Toll Center uses more energy than most of the buildings on campus."
"This is an old campus," said Raudenbush. "We have been doing two things over the long haul to conserve energy: tightening the outside of buildings by changing the roofs and replacing old windows with energy efficient windows. We have also added an energy management system to renovated buildings which can control certain building activities like turning the lights on and off."
WC has been dealing with rising energy costs most recently this year when President Baird Tipson issued a campus-wide letter encouraging all students, faculty, and staff to conserve the energy they use. "We can't keep paying more money to heat and light the place," said Raudenbush. "The issue here is how to conserve. The question is what path to take? Clearly, the projects that payback first are attractive to the college."
"The approach that I've seen the college take is to pick and choose the easier things," said Holste.
Holste believes that LEED certification is what WC's "Green" campaign needs as its next step. She remains hopeful about the college's "Green" campaign, including both the composting movement and a recent Earth Day petition to spur interest in LEED certification for WC construction projects. However, Holste would like to see more college administrative assistance in the cause.
"The biggest thing that the college can do is to encourage [the] Development [Office] to find donors who have an interest in protecting the Eastern Shore environment when fundraising for a construction project," said Holste.
"They can even involve students," continued Holste. "Lewis and Clark College in Oregon had environmental studies majors help design housing based on LEED standards."
"Ultimately, this is about money," said Raudenbush. "Energy conservation is a financial reality for WC. It puts a blight on the budget; every person has a different opinion about what's important. We struggle with this idea with every project that we pursue."
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