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F O R U M : C L E A N A N D G R E E N Environmentally Conscious Campus Development Itcanbe win-win-win—forcampus,communityandcostcontrol— whenthereisenvironmentalplanning LAWRENCE C. BACHER DefiningSustainability constructionprojects.WhilenotallNew Collegesanduniversitieshave Whileavarietyofguidelinesfocus Englandpublicinstitutionsarebound widelyrespondedtothe effortsonsustainableoperationsand bythisrequirement,NewEngland expectationthatweshouldwork toward,operateunder,andliveby development,themostreferenced communitiesinthetablebelowhave principlesofsustainability.Eighty-nine istheU.S.GreenBuildingCouncil’s adoptedordinancesorbylawsman- ofthe260-plusinstitutionsofhigher LeadershipinEnergyandEnviron- datingorencouragingLEEDcertifica- learninginNewEngland(34percent) mentalDesign(LEED)ratingsystem. tion.Inaddition,theNewEngland universitieslistedhaveexplicitly havesignedtheAmericanCollege& Accordingtoarecentsurvey,44 adoptedpoliciesguidingtheirinstitu- UniversityPresidentsClimate percentofNewEnglandprojects tionstowardLEEDcertification. Commitmenttoguidetheirinstitutions achievingLEEDcertificationwere andtheirprogramstowardclimate builtforcollegesanduniversities,and InstitutionalCostSaving neutrality.Publicinstitutionshavebeen morethanhalfofthose(57percent) Oneofthemostpragmaticgoals significantleaders,withmorethanhalf wereforpublicinstitutions. forcampusestopursueistoreduce ofNewEngland’spubliccollegesand Whilemanyinstitutionsfollow energycosts.Energyconservation universities(57percent)participating. otherguidelinesystemsortheir measureshaveadirect,measurable Interestinsustainabledevelopment owndefinitionof“sustainability,”the impactonreducingcampusoperating comesfrommanysources,butfirst PresidentsClimateCommitmentand costs,whilereducingthecampus andforemost,fromtheinterestof LEEDarecommonlyrecognizedas carbonfootprint.Energyreductions students,faculty,administrationand rigoroussystemsofevaluationrequiring reducecarbonfootprint,whether thewidercommunityinmoderating acommittedeffort.NewEngland’s theenergycomesfromon-campus orreversingclimatechange.Arecent publiccollegesanduniversitiesare surveyofcollegepresidentsandexec- clearlyleadersinthispursuit. sourcessuchasco-generationsystems, orispurchasedfromautility.Both havecarbonemissionstoavoid. On a typical campus, up to 90 percent of direct greenhouse- Manybasicenergyconservation gas emissions come from buildings. measuresdonotinvolvemechanical systemsandcostalmostnothing.The utiveofficersidentifiedthefollowing PublicinstitutionsinConnecticut, waybuildingsaresitedtorespondto reasonsfordevelopingenvironmental Maine,MassachusettsandRhodeIsland, microclimate—wind,shelterandsolar programsoncampus.Theyfitinwith arerequiredbystatelaworexecutive orientation—canhavesignificant thecultureandvaluesofthecampus; orderstomeetLEEDstandardsinmajor impactonlong-termenergydemand. theyaregoodpublicrelations;they arecost-effective,andtheyhelp “Leeding” Communities and Colleges recruitstudents. CommunitiesAdoptingLEED Colleges&UniversitiesAdoptingLEED Giventhatbuildingsconsume Acton,Mass. BowdoinCollege 40percentofallU.S.energy,construc- tionisamajorfocusofimprovement. Arlington,Mass. BrownUniversity Onatypicalcampus,upto90percent Bangor,Maine ConnecticutCollege ofdirectgreenhouse-gasemissions comefrombuildings.Whileinterest BarHarbor,Maine DartmouthCollege insustainabledevelopmentisstrong, Berlin,Conn. HarvardUniversity justifyingexpendituresforsustainable Boston,Mass. MassachusettsInstituteofTechnology developmentinadifficulteconomic environmentcanbechallenging. Mansfield,Conn. UniversityofConnecticut Nevertheless,thereisastrongeconomic Portsmouth,N.H. UniversityofVermont andcommunity-relationsrationale forpursuingsustainablegoals. LEEDInitiativesinGovernmentsandSchools,U.S.GreenBuildingCouncil,July2008. THENEWENGLANDJOURNALOFHIGHEREDUCATION FALL2008 25 F O R U M : C L E A N A N D G R E E N Carefulmassingofbuildingscanemploy principlescanresultinlong-term measuresreducedlong-termenergy seasonalmicroclimatevariationsto paybackatminimaladditionalcost. costsandreducedup-frontcapital provideapartofenergyneedsby: Awhiteroof,forexample,reflects costs,sincemajorbuildingenergy solarheatthatwouldbeabsorbedby systems—chillers,pumpsand • admitting daylight as widely as ablackroof.Significantsavingsresult switchgear—couldbedownsizedon possible, to reduce the need for fromnothingbutthecolor.Areflective theassumptionofreducedloads. artificialillumination; filmonwindowglasshasasimilar Themostcommonenergy • encouraging absorption of solar effect.Otheroptions,suchas systemimprovementisupgrading heatduringcoolheatingmonths;and increasedinsulationandinsulating theefficiencyoflightingsystems. • shielding the building from solar windowglass,addsomeinitialcost, Changinglightbulbstocompact radiationduringwarmcoolingmonths. butreturnthatcostquicklythrough fluorescentsinexistingfixturesis energysavings. inexpensiveandcost-effective. Massingstrategiesincludecareful Carefulconsiderationofprogram Majormechanicalequipment—fans, placementofwindows,shieldingof needscanalsoprovideenergysavings. pumps,boilersandchillers—canbe openingsthroughwindowdepthor WhentheUniversityofRhodeIsland boughtinenergy-conservingmodels, overhangsandstrategiclandscape realizedthatalargeatriuminanew atasmallpremium.AllNewEngland plantings.Askilledarchitectcan centerforbiotechnologyandlifesci- stateshaveutilityandstate-funded incorporatethesestrategieswhile enceswouldbeusedonlybriefly(by programstosubsidizeandsupport developingasensitivedesign. peoplewalkingtootherspacesinthe thecostofsuchimprovements. InallNewEnglandstates,building building)andthattwofloorsofteach- Asacampusdevelopsoverdecades, codesrequiredesignprofessionalsto inglabswouldnotbeusedinsummer itacquiresapanoplyofbuildingcon- developbuildingenvelopedesigns months,thesespaceswerebuiltwith trolsystems.Contemporarycontrol tomeetminimumenergyefficiency provisionsforautomatednatural systemsstopandstartequipmentwhen standards;skilledapplicationofthese ventilation,notairconditioning.These needed,monitorspaceconditions andoccupancieswithaccuracy,and implementsophisticatedstrategiesto reduceoverallenergyuse.Aprofes- sionalevaluationofbuildingcontrols canidentifyplaceswherecontrolscan beupgradedtoharmonizesystems andreturnenergysavings—while Thinking reducingcarbonfootprint. CommunityCostSaving about Arangeofsustainablemeasurescan benefitthecommunitysurrounding theinstitutionthroughavoided college? infrastructurecosts.Stormwater mitigationisaclearexampleofthis. Thesustainableprincipleisthatrain- We can fallshouldberetainedonsite,rather thansentouttocommunitystorm-water help! systemsorlocalwetlands.Stormwater placesdemandsoncommunityinfra- structurethatmayimpelconstruction ofnewstormdrainsystems.Storm watersenttowetlandscanoverwhelm The Center for College Planning at the anddamagefragileecosystems. NHHEAF Network Organizations Water-retentionsystems—retention AssistancewithFinancialAidForms ponds—enableanewbuildingproject College Planning Workshops toavoidcreatingoff-sitestorm-water College Planning Library runoff.Inanacademicenvironment, thesefeaturescanbeupgradedtocre- Visit us in Concord! atewetlandhabitatandevenbecome 1.888.7.GRADUATE•www.nhheaf.org teachingopportunities.Theydotake 26NEWENGLANDBOARDOFHIGHEREDUCATION F O R U M : C L E A N A N D G R E E N spaceoncampus,however.Ameasure ofcars.Theyofferbroadroadways reachesouttopublictransportation thattakesnospaceandmaycostno anddispersedparkinglotsthatmake points-of-contact,evenmorecar morethanconventionalmethods,isto accessbyautoconvenienttouniversity reductionisaccomplished. usepermeablepavement—asphalt, buildings.Theyalsospreadbuildings Themorepublictransportation concreteorstone,producedwithvoids apartandintroducetrafficbetween routesthatserveacampus,theless thatletrainwaterandmeltedsnow them,makingaccessbypedestrians needthereisforautosandparking percolatethroughtothegroundwater. inconvenientordangerous.Such facilities.Oneeffectivestrategyisto partnerwithlocalcommunitiesto TheUniversityofMassachusetts,asa campusespromoteuseofautosto developtransportationalternatives;it partofitsintegratedsciencesbuilding navigatebetweenclassesandmeetings. mayevenbeeconomicaltosubsidize atAmherst,incorporatedanunder- Forward-lookingcampusesaredevel- communityefforts,inlieuofinvestment ground20,000gallonstoragetankthat opingpedestrian-friendlycenters, incaraccommodationsoncampus. collectswaterfromroofsandthe withgreens,walkwaysandcourtyards Therearemanyothermeasures, undergroundfoundationdrainage betweenbuildings.Parkingfacilities andmanyothergoalsencompassedin system.Ratherthandischargingthis arerelocatedtotheperimeter.This sustainabledevelopment.Asastarting watertostormsewers,thebuilding keepstrafficoutofcampus;promotes pointforconversation,thebenefitsto usesitatcoolingtowerstosupplement developmentoflarger,morecost-effec- campusandcommunityareresonant. waterlosttoevaporation.Forthecost tiveparkingfacilities;reducespollu- ofatankandapump,theuniversityhas tionfromemissions;andencourages LawrenceC.Bacherisvice reducedlong-termwatersupplycost healthywalkingactivity.Acampus president,highereducationat andthepotentialstrainoncampus shuttlesystemfacilitatesleavingthe theGilbaneBuildingCompany. stormwatersystems.Otherprojects carbehindfortheday.Iftheshuttle E-mail:[email protected] haveusedsimilar“greywater”systems forotherwaterneedsthatdonot requiretreatedpotablewater—such asflushingtoilets,orlawnirrigation. Onemeasurethatcancostthesame asconventionalsystemsbutreduce waterneedsistheuseofwaterless urinals.Maintenanceproceduresare similar,butcantakelesstimethan maintenanceofstandardurinals. Anothermethod,calledxeriscaping,is alandscapingtechniqueusingnative plants,reducedornoturf,andcareful planningtominimizelandscapewater usage.Maintenancecostsarealso reduced,aslawnareasarecostly itemsingroundskeepingbudgets. Campusesworkingtowardcarbon footprintreductionmustalsofocus onvehicletraffic.Students,faculty, administrationandvisitorstraveling bycartoandfromcampuscreate significantemissionsandenergyuse. Theexpansionofon-campushousing optionsinrecentyearsaddressestraffic directly.On-campushousingalso benefitsstudentlifeandcanaddress town/gownrelationshipissues. Masterplandevelopmentcanhave significantimpactonuseofauto- mobilesoncampus.Carsareamajor componentofcampuscarbonfoot- print.Manyuniversitycampuseshave beendevelopedfortheconvenience THENEWENGLANDJOURNALOFHIGHEREDUCATION FALL2008 27