 "Photo: Tina Russell")
UCF stayed true to its colors by earning LEED gold status certification for the recently constructed Physical Sciences I building.
Built on a former parking lot located between the Biological Sciences building and the C3 parking lot, the building’s construction did not disrupt any natural habitat nearby, a contributing factor to its gold status.
Developed by the U.S. Green Building Council, the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design status measures sustainable sites with 14 points, water efficiency with five points, energy and atmosphere with 17 points, materials and resources with 13 points, indoor environmental quality with 15 points and innovation in design with five points, totaling a possible 69 points under the LEED for New Construction Rating System v2.2.
The Physical Sciences I building earned 39 points, the minimum amount for gold status. In 2007, UCF President John C. Hitt implemented a policy requiring that each new campus construction project earn at least a silver LEED rating, as part of UCF’s promise to the American College & University Presidents’ Climate Commitment.
“Every time we’d meet with engineers and construction personnel we’d impress upon them that the silver rating was not the goal, but the minimum,” said David Norvell, director of the department of Sustainability and Energy Management. “We expected more than just that and we achieved it.”
The road to getting the green light for the green project wasn’t easy, though. Chris Castro, a senior environmental studies major, has been working with Norvell as an intern, assisting with student outreach for the department of Sustainability and Energy Management.
“This has been years of effort lobbying with administration to get the LEED certification going,” said Castro, who is also the president and co-founder of Intellectual Decisions on Environmental Awareness Solutions, a student organization promoting environmental sustainability. “This building has the first green roof to be approved by the state at UCF.”
Castro said Alaina Bernard, assistant director of land management for the division of landscape and natural resources, was an advocate for the project and really pushed for the roof.
“Students will notice UCF as a prominent green university,” said Meghan Ryan, a freshman interdisciplinary studies major. “This LEED certification and the promise to ACUPCC show that UCF is serious about the environment and reducing carbon emissions.”
Ryan is also the organizing and planning coordinator for I.D.E.A.S. and a member of Eco-Advocates.
“I believe President Hitt chose to begin the silver LEED policy because of several factors, including student interest, environmental responsibility and budgetary reasons,” Castro said. “The school plans to go carbon neutral by 2050.”
The main advantages to the building having been built green are its energy efficiency, indoor air quality and water efficiency.
“The energy and water efficiency in this building will lower expenses over time, hopefully leaving the school more money that can be allocated where it is needed,” Norvell said.
Students will see a direct effect in the indoor air quality, one of the more noticeable advantages.
“With the certification of these buildings the university will be lowering greenhouse emissions, a goal of becoming carbon neutral,” Norvell said.
Colbourn Hall is also now in the process of bringing up its standards to LEED’s existing building certification.
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