The greenest building in America

CHESTERFIELD, MO — Washington University recently opened the doors to one of the greenest buildings in the world and aims to meet one of the toughest green building standards: The Living Building Challenge, according to a Matter Network story hosted by Reuters.

The Living Learning Center, a 2,900-square-foot building at the university's Tyson Research Center that not only provides its own water and power, but is also built from reclaimed wood, captures and stores all of the water it needs and harness energy from wind turbines and solar panels, the story stated.

According to the story, the Living Learning Center has a green roof that catches rainwater, which is filtered and stored in a 3,000-gallon tank underground, eliminating its municipal water consumption.

Eden Brukman, research director at the Cascadia Region Green Building Council, said: "In order to be certified as a Living Building, it must be fully operational for at least 12 consecutive months; this program demands proof that the occupants engage the project as anticipated. After all, an empty building serves no purpose."

According to the article, the Cascadia Region Green Building Council launched the Living Building Challenge three years ago, and since then, over 60 proposed structures have been registered.

The Learning Center monitors all building processes and displays avoided emissions to show how efficiently the building is operating, the story noted.

Living buildings are a step beyond current green building requirements such as Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification and are expected to be the high performance buildings of tomorrow, the story added.

First LEED-EB certified hotel in San Francisco

SAN FRANCISCO — The Hotel Carlton recently earned Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design for Existing Building (LEED-EB) Gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), according to a press release.

The certification makes the 161-room Hotel Carlton, a Joie de Vivre boutique property, the first lodging property in San Francisco to earn LEED-EB certification, the release stated.

Pamela Flank, the Hotel Carlton's general manager, said: "We are thrilled and proud that we can now say Hotel Carlton is LEED-EB Gold certified, making it the highest rated hotel by LEED standards in San Francisco. Sustainability makes good business sense because it conserves resources. Every operations decision we make at the hotel is filtered through our mission to reduce our impact on the environment."

According to the release, the Hotel Carlton was also recently awarded a top score of 100 from Energy Star, a joint program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

Sustainable aspects of the hotel include: Compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs; proportioned dispensers for toiletries in guest rooms; low volatile organic compound (VOC) paints; and the use of environmentally friendly cleaning chemicals, the release noted.

In achieving LEED-EB Gold certification, the Hotel Carlton was able to: Reduce CO₂ emissions by 176 tons; divert 80 percent of waste from landfills; reduce water consumption by 27 percent; produce 9 percent of its energy on-site through solar panels; and get rid of 40 percent of traditional cleaning chemicals, the release added.

Click here to read the complete release.

School executive director allegedly embezzles $1.38 million

June 3, 2009
MINNEAPOLIS, MN — The former executive director of the now closed Heart of the Earth Charter School is charged with eight counts of felony theft by swindle for his role in the disappearance of $1.38 million, according to the Pioneer Press.

Joel Pourier, who falsely claimed he had earned a master's degree in business administration from Chadron State College, made it appear that he was being paid for performing cleaning work for the school, the story stated.

According to the complaint filed by the Hennepin County attorney's office, Pourier explained the money by saying he and his wife were receiving gaming proceeds as members of the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community, which was not true.

In all, the complaint lists 124 canceled checks or fund transfers from the school's account to Pourier's accounts from August 2003 through July 2008, the story noted.

According to the story, Pourier, who often forged the signatures of board members and school administrators, was living lavishly and running up thousands of dollars in charges at local nightclubs while the school lacked money for field trips, supplies, computers and textbooks, eventually forcing its closure last summer.

Pourier is being held in jail on $25,000 bail and is scheduled to appear in court July 30, the story added.

New machine turns office paper into toilet paper

TOKYO, Japan — Nakabayashi Company Ltd., a 2,000-person company which manufactures items such as car seats and various office supplies, has upped the ante with their newest invention: The toilet paper machine, according to Crunch Gear.

By using standard A4-sized paper like that used in printers and copy machines in offices and other facilities around the world, the machine is able to produce usable toilet paper and keep materials out of landfills, the story stated.

Approximately 900 sheets of paper can produce a roll of toilet paper, and the machine can pump out two rolls an hour, the story noted.

No estimates have been released as to how much the machine costs to operate, but it comes with a price tag of $95,000, the story added.

According to the story, the company will begin distributing the machines in August and hopes to sell 60 units in the first year of production.

Click here to read the complete article.

Proposed law for green cleaning in Nevada schools

CARSON CITY, NV — The State of Nevada has taken a decidedly different approach towards green cleaning in schools by proposing legislation that would require all public K-12 schools to use environmentally sensitive cleaning and maintenance products in the cleaning of all floor surfaces only, according to a press release.

As passed by both the Nevada Senate and Assembly, and awaiting the signature of Governor Jim Gibbons, SB 185 was amended to mandate green cleaning for floor surfaces only in order to gain enough support to pass, the release stated.

According to the release, SB 185 does allow the board of trustees of a school district to use environmentally sensitive cleaning products on surfaces other than just flooring.

Under SB 185, the Nevada Department of Education would be required to provide each school district with a list of products that meet "…standards for environmentally sensitive cleaning and maintenance products for use in the cleaning of all floor surfaces in the public schools," the release noted.

The bill allows schools to opt-out of implementing a green cleaning program for floor surfaces if it would place an undue economic burden on the school, the release added.

College custodians fall victim to outsourcing

BATTLE CREEK, MI — Remaining Kellogg Community College custodial positions will be outsourced to Omni Facility Services as outsourcing efforts will be complete July1, according to the Battle Creek Enquirer.

It was agreed between custodians and the college that if the number of college-based custodians fell below six, the college would privatize the balance of the custodial positions through an outsourcing contract, the story stated.

Kevin Moody, chairman of Kellogg Community College's Local 331.06 maintenance union, said: "As a union we're not in favor of this decision, but we've worked together with the college to make it the least damaging as possible."

According to the story, since 2005, custodians have been working under a collective bargaining agreement that calls for contracting out positions piecemeal to Omni Facility Services when custodians leave or retire.

Kellogg Community College hopes to save $200,000 in the next year by outsourcing out the remaining positions, the story noted.

The college has offered severance packages to the remaining four custodians, and one of them has accepted an administrative-level position with the college, the story added.

First LEED-EB certified building in Southwest Michigan

KALAMAZOO, MI — The College of Health and Human Services at Western Michigan University is the first building in Southwest Michigan to achieve Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design for Existing Buildings (LEED-EB) certification, according to Building Design and Construction.

Being certified at the Gold level makes the Health and Human Services building the first LEED-EB certified higher education building in the country to achieve a rating higher than Silver, the story stated.

Western Michigan University President John Dunn said: "We are delighted to have this national recognition for a facility we regard as a special building in its own right and a symbol of the commitment this campus has to sustainability. Our facilities management area is on the cutting edge when it comes to wise energy use and sound environmental management. This is a well-deserved recognition for those who planned and built this amazing facility, for those who manage its daily use and for those who guided it through the certification process."

The certification involved documenting sustainable practices with storm water management, pollution control, water usage efficiency, ozone-free cooling systems, recycling and waste management storage and collection and sustainable cleaning products and policies, the story noted.

The high-tech, 200,000-square-foot building was completed in the summer of 2005 and was designed by the architectural firm SmithGroup of Detroit, the story added.

Click here to read the complete article.