Sustainable Construction

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Sustainable Construction of Sustainability Lecture 3: Collaboration as Sustainability in

Action; Site and Natural Energy Mapping

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Collaboration as

Sustainability in Action

• Every sustainable construction project begins with an integrated design charrette.

– A collective brainstorming session with as many of the

stakeholders participating as possible.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Collaboration as

Sustainability in Action

• The Merry Lea Environmental Learning Center of Goshen College is a 1,150 acre land and nature

preserve, close to Wolf Lake, Indiana.

– They recently completed phase 1 of a building project

for collegiate student housing and an education center.

Rieth Village, Merry Lea Environmental Center,

Goshen College, Wolf Lake, IN. Photograph

Taken by Dr. Luke Gascho. By Permission.

– In preparation for the

design, a number of

sustainable design

projects were reviewed,

and owners interviewed.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Collaboration as

Sustainability in Action

• It was determined that this charrette process would cost more money in the design phase. – But would greatly improve the buildings’ performance.

• “Front loading” the design process has been shown to save energy & costs in construction and operation.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Collaboration as

Sustainability in Action

• A successful design charrette needs representatives of all disciplines involved in the design-build process

to be present, with representatives of the future

occupants of the completed building.

– It is critical that everyone at the table be willing to learn,

and to think in terms of whole systems.

– Participants must be able to conceptualize the integrated

nature of the whole.

– The consequence of stopping the process of dialogue

is just as severe in nature as it is in our relationships.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Collaboration as

Sustainability in Action

• Teams must have certain core learning abilities in order to function, both individual and group abilities.

– Aspiration - the ability to truly care about the project.

– Personal mastery - another individual learning ability.

– Ability to understand complexity - thinking in terms of

whole systems, and having reflective conversation using

both mental models and dialogue.

• To function well, the group has to be able to become a learning team together, able to have dialogue.

• The Merry Lea integrated design team successfully became a learning organization.

– Able to think together to accomplish goals of the charrette.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Collaboration as

Sustainability in Action

• The Merry Lea Participants didn’t know a lot about green building, so the morning of the first day of the

charrette was devoted to education about different

principles of sustainable design.

– Afternoon work groups explored possible design ideas.

• Facilitators from RMI helped prioritize green-building objectives and to evaluate their choices in light of the

U.S. Green Building Council LEED standards.

– Objectives selected at the charrette informed choices of

the integrated design team in the months of planning that

followed.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Collaboration as

Sustainability in Action

Buildings are oriented and designed

to use passive solar heating and

day lighting.

Triple-pane, operable windows to

provide passive ventilation on

warmer days.

Passive Solar Heating and Day Lighting.

Photograph by Dr. Luke Gascho. by Permission.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Collaboration as

Sustainability in Action

Photovoltaic solar panels produce electricity, reducing the size and

energy load of heating, ventilating & air conditioning (HVAC) units.

Solar Panels.

Photograph by Dr. Luke Gascho.

By Permission.

A wind turbine adds to

the renewable energy

fund, providing about

16% of the energy

needed by the

complex.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Collaboration as

Sustainability in Action

Parking bays are finished in gravel grass, sidewalks are made of

porous concrete, a cistern recycles rainwater, and two rain gardens

have been created.

Gravel Grass Parking Area

at Entrance to Rieth Village

at Merry Lea.

Photograph by Dr. Luke Gascho.

By Permission.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Collaboration as

Sustainability in Action

Gray water from the

cistern is plumbed

to the toilets so that

potable water isn’t

used for flushing.

Potable water system on the left comes from the well. Ground source

heat pump is in the Center. Nonpotable water system on the right comes

from the cistern. Photograph by Dr. Luke Gascho. By Permission.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Collaboration as

Sustainability in Action

Waste water and

sewage is treated

on-site in a system

using constructed

wetlands to do the

job.

Wastewater Treatment Wetland Cell Being Planted.

Photograph by Dr. Luke Gascho. By Permission.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Collaboration as

Sustainability in Action

• Most difficult to describe is the charrette process of the charrette itself.

– What must be created is an experience with minimal

structure so creative brainstorming can occur.

• This can feel uncomfortably like chaos to participants.

• Final outcome quality will depend on the creativity participants are able to achieve.

– Creativity is stifled by structured outcomes.

• To achieve out-of-the-box thinking and a genuinely fruitful charrette, provide only a bare-bones structure

of the charrette session.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Site and Natural

Energy Mapping

• In the conventional approach to building, the site is cleared and leveled.

– The most common way of preparing land for construction.

• Green building approaches look at environmental issues contextually throughout the process.

– In considering the site, first we look at the total context in

which it exists.

• The Earth is comprised of a number of “biomes” – Large areas consisting of similar vegetation, animals,

and micro-organisms.

• Classifications of large ecosystems, for example, mountains,

deserts, rainforests, savannah, northern conifer forests, plains.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Site and Natural

Energy Mapping

Earth’s biomes. http://earth.rice.edu/mtpe/bio/biosphere/topics/biomes/biomes_map_final.gif

http://earth.rice.edu/mtpe/bio/biosphere/topics/biomes/biomes_map_final.gif

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Site and Natural

Energy Mapping

• Wherever the construction site is located, determine the pre-existing biome.

• The interdependency of organisms is the ecosystem within which any site exists.

– The dynamic way living things reciprocally interact with in

a symbiotic relationship, creating conditions for survival.

• For interaction to occur, ecosystems must remain in balance.

• Ecosystems can be as large as the Sahara desert, or as small as a little pond.

– When we make alterations to a site, we must determine

how to maintain the ecosystem balance.

• Carbon cycle, nitrogen cycle, water cycle, food chain.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Site and Natural

Energy Mapping

• To build sustainably, we need to find a way to take in carbon dioxide and exhale oxygen, just as the pre-

existing forest did.

– Or be carbon-neutral.

• To build sustainably, we need to find a way to keep the water on the land that falls there, and allow it to

find its way to the water table, just as the forest did.

• To build sustainably, we must adopt methods to contribute in a positive way to the nutrient chain.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Site and Natural

Energy Mapping

• We must understand that whatever we do will alter the ecosystem within which the site functions.

– We must ensure that we restore balance to the ecosystem.

• By adding nutrients to the earth.

• Restoring more water to the water table.

• Making the air as clean as or cleaner than it was as a forest.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Site and Natural

Energy Mapping

• A primary goal is to conduct site research and map the natural energy systems on the site.

Wetland Search.

Conducted by the Author

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Site and Natural

Energy Mapping

• Deed research - past owners & uses of the site and surrounding area.

– For problems that may have contaminated soil and/or

groundwater, “brown field sites” are one example.

• Site Visit - visit & walk the site. – Make note of existing trees, other vegetation present.

• Interview neighbors if you can - which helps plan for extra site preparation and/or reparation costs.

• Complete a topographical survey - map location of indigenous trees.

– Clear invasive species before you do this?

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Site and Natural

Energy Mapping

• Make note of the area surrounding the site. – Buildings or trees to consider in planning access to

heating, cooling, and day lighting using natural energy.

• Photo documentation - 360° photos you can piece together into a radial view of the land.

• Climate data. – Prevailing winds, average speeds.

• Summer and winter.

– Information about solar heating and cooling days.

• The Department of Energy has an energy modeling tool

which is downloadable free of charge.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Sweetwater Sound

Built to LEED NC Gold Certification Level

• The Sweetwater Sound facility consists of an office area, warehouse, auditorium and recording studios.

– Total area is is a 155,300 ft2

• They have worked toward a LEED Gold certification, attaining the following LEED credits: – Sustainable Sites 7 (out of 14 possible points)

– Water Efficiency 5 (out of 5 possible points)

– Energy/Atmosphere 8–13 (out of 17 possible points)

– Materials and Resources 7 (out of 13 possible points)

– Indoor Environmental Quality 12–14 (of 15 possible points)

– Innovation in Design 5 (out of 5 possible points)

– Total Points 44 to 51 (out of 69 possible points)

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Sweetwater Sound

Built to LEED NC Gold Certification Level

• The levels of LEED certification are as follows: – Certified: 26–32 points

– Silver: 33–38 points

– Gold: 39–51 points

– Platinum: 52–69 points

One of Several Recording Studios

in Sweetwater Sound.

Sweetwater Sound/John Hopkins.

By permission.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Sweetwater Sound

Built to LEED NC Gold Certification Level

• Prerequisite 1: Construction Activity Pollution Prevention (Required)

– The intention is to control erosion, sedimentation, and dust

from construction activities.

Silt fencing at Sweetwater Sound.

Sweetwater Sound/John Hopkins.

By permission.

To comply, an Erosion and

Sedimentation Control

(ESC) plan must be

created & implemented.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Sweetwater Sound

Built to LEED NC Gold Certification Level

• SS Credit 1: Site Selection (1 Point) – Intention is to avoid development of inappropriate sites.

Existing building in background,

warehouse addition beginning in

foreground.

Sweetwater Sound/John Hopkins.

By permission.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Sweetwater Sound

Built to LEED NC Gold Certification Level

• To attain this credit, the building cannot be built on: – Prime farmland.

– Land never developed, lower than 5 feet above the 100-

year flood elevation.

– Land that is habitat for threatened or endangered species.

– Land within 100 feet of wetlands, or state or local setbacks.

– Land that has never been developed and is within 50 feet

of a body of water.

– Land that was parkland prior to purchase.

• Sweetwater Sound achieved it by building on a site previously developed by North American Van Lines,

a national moving company.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Sweetwater Sound

Built to LEED NC Gold Certification Level

Drawings produced for Sweetwater Sound by MSKTD, an architectural firm headquartered in

Fort Wayne, Indiana. By permission.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Sweetwater Sound

Built to LEED NC Gold Certification Level

• SS Credit 2: Development Density and Community Connectivity (1 Point)

– The intention is to encourage development in urban areas

that already have municipal service infrastructure available.

• Sweetwater Sound did not seek to achieve this credit.

• SS Credit 3: Brownfield Redevelopment (1 Point) – To encourage development of sites that may have

environmental contamination by prior occupants.

• The Sweetwater Sound site was not designated as a brownfield.

• SS Credit 4.1: Alternative Transportation: Public Transportation Access (1 Point)

– Sweetwater Sound did not try for this credit.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Sweetwater Sound

Built to LEED NC Gold Certification Level

• SS Credit 4.2: Alternative Transportation: Bicycle Storage and Changing Rooms (1 Point)

– Repeats the intention to reduce the environmental impact

of automobile use.

• Sweetwater Sound

achieved this credit.

Showers in changing

room at Sweetwater Sound.

Sweetwater Sound/John Hopkins.

By permission.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Sweetwater Sound

Built to LEED NC Gold Certification Level

• SS Credit 4.3: Alternative Transportation: Low- Emitting and Fuel-Efficient Vehicles (1 Point)

– Repeats the intention to reduce environmental impact of

automobile use, in up to three ways.

• Fuel-efficient and low-emitting, company-owned vehicles with

preferred parking.

• Preferred parking for fuel-efficient vehicles.

• Alternative fuel refilling stations.

– Sweetwater Sound achieved this credit by using the

second option.

• 21 preferred parking spaces reserved for fuel-efficient

vehicles, with spaces located near all entrance doors.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Sweetwater Sound

Built to LEED NC Gold Certification Level

• SS Credit 4.4: Alternative Transportation: Parking Capacity (1 Point)

– Reducing the impact of environmental pollution by cars.

• Sweetwater Sound achieved this credit.

• SS Credit 5.1: Site Development: Protect or Restore Habitat (1 Point)

– Retain & restore as much natural green space as possible,

so habitat is provided, or is restored for creatures who

share the land space.

• Sweetwater Sound was not able to achieve this credit.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Sweetwater Sound

Built to LEED NC Gold Certification Level

Much of the pre-existing asphalt was removed on the new Sweetwater Sound site.

Sweetwater Sound/John Hopkins. By permission.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Sweetwater Sound

Built to LEED NC Gold Certification Level

• SS Credit 5.2: Site Development: Maximize Open Space (1 Point)

– Increase the ratio of open space to developed space

beyond that which is mandated by local code.

• Sweetwater Sound achieved this credit.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Sweetwater Sound

Built to LEED NC Gold Certification Level

• SS Credit 6.1: Stormwater Design: Quantity Control (1 Point)

– The intention of is to keep the water on site that falls there.

• So the natural hydrology of the site is undisrupted.

– Sweetwater Sound did

not achieve this credit.

Swale at back of Sweetwater Sound property.

Photograph by the Author.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Sweetwater Sound

Built to LEED NC Gold Certification Level

• SS Credit 6.2: Stormwater Design: Quality Control (1 Point)

– To maintain quality of the natural site hydrology by

preventing stormwater runoff from occurring.

– Sweetwater Sound did not achieve this credit.

• SS Credit 7.1: Heat Island Effect: Non-Roof (1 Point) – The intention is to reduce the effect of heat islands, caused

by dark surfaces on roofs, pavement, and parking lots.

– Sweetwater Sound did not achieve this credit.

• SS Credit 7.2: Heat Island Effect: Roof (1 Point) – To reduce the effect of heat islands.

– Sweetwater Sound did achieve this credit.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Sweetwater Sound

Built to LEED NC Gold Certification Level

Sweetwater Sound/John Hopkins. By permission.

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Sustainable Construction and Design, First Edition

By Regina Leffers

Pearson Prentice Hall - Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

Sweetwater Sound

Built to LEED NC Gold Certification Level

• SS Credit 8: Light Pollution Reduction (1 Point) – To maintain or, in many cases, to begin to recover the

visibility of the night skyscape.

Sweetwater Sound—front entrance after dark. Sweetwater Sound/John Hopkins. By permission.