Green Apple Day of Service
By Grey Lee

A Green Building That Helps Make Everything Greener
By Grey Lee
In the interests of full disclosure, I submitted this building for the recent Green Building of the Year Award. My connection to this building is not as a member of the project team, but as one who gets to work in this building on a daily basis. I lived through the considerable challenges that the builders, architects, and occupants faced. It was observing this project that helped crystallized my long-running passion for green building.
Imagine being tasked with turning an asbestos laden, archaic, 1950's era building that sits on a Brownfields site that used to house open tanks of raw sewerage into a state of the art laboratory for the advancement of environmental science. Now, imagine being told that it's a state building and obviously budget will be a major concern. Finally, you are told that all of the functions at this lab are critical to the Commonwealth and all activities must continue without impact; all workers must remain on site and their extremely delicate equipment must remain operational throughout.
That was the challenge. One of the difficulties was that the old portion of the building was completely renovated except for one tiny 12×12 portion. This room was an environmentally controlled chamber that had to maintain humidity and temperature within extremely tight ranges. Inside, it housed a robot that was capable of measuring the weight of a fingerprint. It was used to measure airborne particles that are so small that over 700 of them would fit in the diameter of a human hair. When inhaled, these particles directly contribute to hospital admissions for cardiac and respiratory distress. The state monitors the levels of this pollutant and thus the importance of this small space. This chamber stayed operational and free of contamination, not missing a single sample, while the building was literally gutted and rebuilt around it. Not only did the building meet the challenge, but it also achieved LEED Platinum certification.
The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection William X. Wall Experiment Station, located in Lawrence Massachusetts, has been transformed into a state of the art green building. Worldwide there are 52,152 LEED certified projects, but only 1,029 (or 1.97%) are certified at the Platinum level. Of those achieving Platinum certification, only 29 in the world are LEED Platinum Laboratories. Within the 29 certified at a Platinum level, the vast majority are New Construction. The William X Wall Experiment Station not only achieved LEED Platinum certification as part of a renovation to an existing building, it also did so when the existing building was designated as a Brownfields site.
The old facility was constructed in 1954 and was inadequate to handle the complex testing protocols required by today's environmental science. The WXW Experiment Station houses 52 FTE's and is the state's principle drinking water laboratory. The facility also annually performs over 15,000 lab analysis of contaminates in air, water, waste water, soil, hazardous wastes, fish, environmental evidence, and other environmental samples. The state's ambient air monitoring efforts are housed in the facility as well as the Massachusetts Occupational Safety laboratories. The building contains state of the art laboratory facilities that include clean rooms, DNA testing laboratories, inorganic chemistry laboratories, organic chemistry laboratories, toxicology laboratories, a microbiology lab, air monitoring laboratories, and 2.5 micron respirable particulate gravimetric chamber; it also houses laboratory support facilities such as building wide scientific gasses storage, hazardous waste rooms, dedicated wash rooms, high efficiency fume hoods, dedicated sample prep rooms, mechanical workshops, laboratory equipment rooms, and quality assurance lab space.
The project added 13,000 square feet of laboratory space and a major renovation of the 22,000 square foot existing lab. During the entire construction period the laboratory had to continue to operate a full capacity. During this time, all samples were analyzed and all quality assurance benchmarks had to be met. Technical systems audits, conducted by the EPA, insured that data quality objectives were achieved. The project was a 4 year, 2 phase project. All laboratory operations had to be moved multiple times and personnel had to be housed on site in construction trailers.
MassDEP, Massachusetts Division of Capital Asset Management (DCAM) and the design firm of Perkins + Will and RDK Engineers planned the project. O'Connor Constructors, Inc. was the project's construction manager.
As a top notch laboratory, the building required some unusual features. It needed Reverse Osmosis Deionized Water available in every laboratory. The labs had to be plumbed for ultra high purity laboratory grade gasses. Any source of potential contamination had to be eliminated. The entire building needed the ability to change its air within minutes. Data handling infrastructure had to be robust in order to handle the massive amounts of data that the instruments would generate. Safety features such as positive pressure labs, eyewash stations, decon showers, and emergency communications had to be incorporated throughout the work spaces. The building needed back up power and other systems to remain functional in the event of a disaster. Also, the building needs to be secure and capable in the event that it is ever called upon to analyze biological threats.
The green upgrades include: a 52.5 kW solar photo-voltaic system for on-site renewable energy production; use of the existing site as a Brownfield redevelopment; maximizing open space; rain gardens and storm water detention basins to protect the adjacent Merrimack River; water efficient landscaping; high performance roof; green-roofed areas; rain water harvesting for reuse in toilets and cooling tower; water efficient plumbing (40% savings); optimized energy performance (greater than 21% over baseline, 5 LEED points); day lighting of 75% of the space; plug in charging for 2 electric vehicles; bicycle storage room and shower facilities; lighting controls; ventilation air monitoring; low emitting, regional, and recycled materials, and other strategies as well. A measurement and verification plan, as well as enhanced commissioning, has been incorporated to insure that the building continues to meet its certification.
The Lawrence Experiment Station was founded in 1887 and it was one of the first laboratories in the world dedicated to environmental research. In 2013, the newly renovated laboratory became one of the few LEED Platinum labs in the world and is poised to be on the vanguard of environmental science for years to come.
Kevin Dufour is an Environmental Scientist with Viridis Advisors. He collaborates with Tom Irwin on creating greener greenscapes. The opinions expressed by member bloggers are their own and not necessarily those of the USGBC Massachusetts Chapter.
Building Energy Disclosure
By Grey Lee
The Building Energy Reporting & Disclosure Ordinance is a Boston policy that could transform our city and make it possible to reach our climate change mitigation goals. Mayor Menino is calling for 80% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 and the only way we're going to get there is if we can bring down the % of energy that our buildings consume. In Boston, it's a whopping 70% and most building owners don't have a great handle on their building's energy and water usage. The Building Disclosure Ordinance would require owners of buildings over 20,000 sq ft to report their energy usage in a free online EPA tool called Portfolio Manager that all sectors across the country use to manage energy.
Make your voice heard by making a phone call or sending an email to your City Councilor and/or to an at large City Councilor TOMORROW. (You have to have a City of Boston address). The Ordinance is up for vote by the City Council on Wednesday, May 8th.
If you want to send a letter, NRDC has put together an Action Page that has a pre-drafted (but editable) letter of support for activists to send to all Boston council members (supporters must have a Massachusetts address in order to send). Please feel free to push this link out in any way you can via mailing list, social media, etc:
https://secure.nrdconline.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=3055
Why BERDO is a good idea:
1) Tenants have a right to know. Without BERDO, prospective tenants and buyers can't get comparable information about the utility costs of buildings they're considering moving into. BERDO will help us avoid being stuck in cold, costly apartments. Community groups support BERDO.
4) Air Quality. Our neighborhoods are already plagued by high asthma rates and other illnesses associated with environmental exposures. More insulation means reduced demand for energy generated from dirty power plants — and that means we'll have cleaner air and improved health. Moms and kids support BERDO.
What BERDO is NOT:
4) We do not expect that building owners will have to spend a lot of time to do the energy reporting
5) City buildings are not exempt and will be the first to be measured.
Call Your City Councilor
Here is the breakdown of Councilor contact info and how to identify which district you live in:
Verify your district: http://www.cityofboston.gov/citycouncil/districts.asp
Look up your city councilor: http://www.cityofboston.gov/myneighborhood/
Salvatore LaMattina – District 1 (Charlestown, East Boston, North End) 617.635.3200
Bill Linehan – District 2 (South Boston, Chinatown) – 617.635.3203
Charles C. Yancey – District 4 (Dorchester) – 617.635.3131
Matt O'Malley – District 6 (Jamaica Plain, West Roxbury) – 617.635.4220
Michael P. Ross – District 8 (West End, Mission Hill, Back Bay)- 617.635.4225
Mark Ciommo – District 9 (Allston, Brighton) – 617.635.3113
Felix G. Arroyo – At Large – 617.635.4205
Stephen J. Murphy – At large – 617.635.4376
John R. Connolly- At large – 617.635.3115
Ayanna Pressley – At large – 617.635.4217
Green Schools Update (May)
By Grey Lee
- Establishing & Coordinating a Multi-Disciplinary, Massachusetts “Green School Building Coalition”
- Expanding the LEED Education & Practice Program
- Developing & Managing The Green Schools Project Matching Service
Green Buildings for Peace & Prosperity
By Grey Lee
I hope you will stay energized and alert to improve our building stock as well as the ecological, health & safety, security and human rights issues relevant to our real estate and built environment. We have a lot of work to do!
[please also see the comment from Ben Myers below, just under the “tags”]
Below is the piece:
Facts About the Proposed Boston Building Energy and Disclosure Ordinance
By Grey Lee
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Photo credit: wikipedia.org |
to meet the Mayor's greenhouse gas reduction goal of 25 percent by 2020, Mayor Thomas M. Menino filed the Building Energy Reporting and Disclosure Ordinance with the Boston City Council. This ordinance would require all large and medium-sized buildings to report their annual energy and water use to the City of Boston.
Here are some facts about the proposed ordinance:
1. All large and medium buildings or groups of buildings would be required to report annual energy use, ENERGY STAR rating (if applicable), water use, and greenhouse gas emissions through ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager or an equivalent mechanism.
2. The requirement would be phased in over 5 years and would ultimately apply to non-residential buildings 25,000 square feet or greater and residential buildings with 25 or more units.
3. Buildings with ENERGY STAR ratings below the 75th percentile and do not meet other exemption criteria (to be developed by the city, i.e. high performing buildings that do not qualify for any ENERGY STAR rating or that show continuous improvement) would be required to conduct energy audits or other evaluations every 5 years to identify opportunities for energy efficiency investment. Building owners would not be required to act on the audit.
(Excerpted from USGBC MA's April 2013 Newsletter)
How can we make greener leases in commercial buildings?
By Grey Lee
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Brian Swett (City of Boston)
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Bruce Percelay (Mount Vernon Company)
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Jonathan Keefe (Cassidy Turley)
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Cynthia Keliher (McCarter English)
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Rives Taylor (Gensler)
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Mark Wartenburg (Philips)
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Derek Brown (Clean Fund)
- There can be the tendency of the parties and their counsel – who may be unfamiliar with the sustainable leasing process and principles – to focus excessively on certain legal aspects of the lease to the detriment of the process and the parties’ goals.
- A lack of well-known effective approaches to overcome the “split incentive” created by many leases between landlord and tenant related to how each shares the costs and benefits of sustainability-related measures can impede progress.
- The challenging market environment of the past several years has caused many market participants to defer implementing sustainability-related changes in their business practices and leasing operations that may be seen as costly or risky.
- Many participants are still concerned about unsettled potential legal pitfalls posed by green leasing.
- There is no comprehensive, widely distributed and easily digestible guide to overcoming these barriers and implementing sustainable practices into the leasing process.
- More commercial leases do not currently stipulate any shared or unilateral environmental objectives.
- Few leases incorporate provisions contemplating the reduction of waste production or require that the tenant improvements match the standards of LEED CI or equivalent.
- Most existing commercial leases will not require certain types of materials to be used or mandate the use of environmentally friendly products by the parties. In fact, most leases will stipulate that the tenant must use new (or as new) building materials.
- Guidelines for materials and procedures related to tenant fit-out
- A tenant primer that extends the concept of green to office equipment, recycling, travel and day to-day practices (e.g., the proper use of operable windows in air-conditioned spaces)
- Procurement guidelines that reinforce the building’s goals of resource-efficiency, indoor air quality, etc.
This integrated set of materials provides greater detail than any single document could. Moreover, this approach distinguishes items that are within the landlord’s control and enforceable under the terms of the lease from ones that may be just as important to the building’s sustainability profile, but depend on the tenant’s voluntary compliance.
[This article written by Dennis Walsh, Building Better Buildings Organizer]
Living LEED Edition No.2: Water, Water everywhere or is it?!
By
By Steve Wychorski, Architect, Elkus Manfredi
This is a guide for LEED accredited professionals and eco-conscious individuals on how to apply the LEED credit scorecard to their personal lives.
This edition is a topic of much discussion: Water Reduction. We are all criminals in our over usage of water. Me, I am just as guilty. It's a cold early Spring day as I write this. I really enjoy a long hot shower. Who doesn't?! But how you check and balance this idea the heart of this discussion.
LEED across the various disciplines dictates our projects to reduce its water usage by at least 20%. When you score higher percentages, for instance 30, or 40, you get more credit points. We know how to achieve this: by metering timed water usage, low to no flow toilets, and more. As you know, these formulas are based on men and women using toilet rooms “X” times a day. Come on LEED, let's get real! Not use the mean average! If you drink multiple cups of coffee a day, are you really holding it in and going about 3 times a day? I highly doubt it! In my interpretation, the credit is a minimum of what we should be doing on the job.
At home there is little chance of us ripping out our old faucets and installing new proximity sensor faucets. Usually we install a low flow toilet. Yet how many people have really installed aerators on their sink and shower faucets? I dare say many people love a pulsating water massage! Which is a water hog, no pun intended! So how do we get water usage reduced at home when we can or cannot replace fixtures? The answer is a major culture shift in our habits. One we have to practice not just at home, but also at work.
Get your water bills for the past year and create log of how much you use. Notice any variations; these could be any time of year, a vacation or maybe you forgo showers at home for the ones at the gym! My lifestyle is already blissfully spartan even with 2 dogs. And these boys drink a lot of water. Yet my bill never goes above the minimum. I know by reviewing my bills and watching my water habits, I've drastically reduced my water consumption. By how much? I wish I could know. But when the city only charges you baseline, then you have nothing it to compare to.
The keys to home Water Reduction and Consumption are simple: Reduce and Re-use. If there are children in the house then it will be a challenge, but one the kids will probably have fun doing. For us adults, it's changing our mindset. I've composed a list of things to help shift our Water Hog mentality. Many most of you will know. This list won't be pretty, but neither is waste or wasting water. Clean water might not be an issue here in New England, but I am waiting for the dam to break in drought cultures like Texas and California. For your friends out there, this blog will help! So tighten those valves and let's get to reducing!
- Reduce your hand washing time. PERIOD!
- Wash your hands in a sink of water and not let the water run. Better yet, put all your cups and bowls that need rinsing and wash your hands over them in order to let the grey water soak the dirty dishes.
- Transfer that water or rinsing water to a potted indoor or outdoor plant. This is especially effective come summer. I rarely fill a bucket with water to water my patio garden of a dozen or so plants.
- Fill up a bucket by keeping one with you in the shower. So that it catches the 'waste' water.
- Install aereators!
- Install a Flow Control valve on your shower head. While living in Europe, you learn to get wet, shut off the water, soap up, and turn it back on to rinse the soap off. This would often lead to a cold shock but with a flow control, you will have the water temperature where you last had it.
- Rinse all fruit and vegetables into a bucket and use the water for plants or, ahem, flushing No.1!
- Icky dog or cat water, the plants love it!
- Buy water saving/energy star dishwashers and horizontal axis washing machines. Only wash full loads!
- Install rain barrels!
- Plant indigenous and drought tolerant plants.
We've all got to Conserve! I need to take shorter hot showers. You and your family have to ween yourself of letting the water run forgetting that is is wasted down the drain. By conserving, we are helping to preserve our water resources and save money.
We've all got to Reduce usage!
We all have to Re-use too!
LEED for buildings doesn't take into account the cultural factors, but living LEED does. I bet you can reduce far more than you think. The added benefit is more money in your wallet. So grab that glass and have a tall glass of filtered water. Bottled is not the answer and your tap is!
Steve is a Holistic Design Professional at a large Boston-area design firm. The opinions expressed by member bloggers are their own and not necessarily those of the USGBC Massachusetts Chapter. We welcome contributions from all Members. If you would like to write for the blog, use the Contact us tab to drop us a line.
Welcome Stephen Muzzy to the USGBC MA Chapter as our new “Green Schools Program Manager”
By Grey Lee
- Facilitating a Green School Buildings coalition
- Implementing LEED Study Groups
- Creating a LEED Project Assistance Matching Service
(Excerpted from USGBC MA's April 2013 Newsletter)